Alexander Wang

Parsons dropout Alexander Wang launched his first full women’s collection in 2007. The label embodies casually cool downtown style, drawing inspiration from the eighties, French chic, and rock grunge—always finished with a slouchy rolled-out-of-bed edge. Wang launched a diffusion line of pre-weathered cotton tees, tanks, and T-shirt dresses in spring 2009, T by Alexander Wang, as well as a footwear collection of towering platform sandals. He won the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund in 2008, an honor accompanied by a $20,000 award to expand one’s business.