How Redress Alumni have been rising to the challenge to accelerate fashion’s circularity

15 years of the Redress Design Award isn’t just a milestone—it’s a testament to the designers who’ve turned fashion’s biggest hurdles into their boldest opportunities. This year, as we celebrate ‘Rising to the Challenge’, we’re spotlighting competition alumni like Saskia Baur-Schmid: fashion game-changers who are proving that circular fashion isn’t just possible—it’s powerful.

Discover how the Redress Alumni Network fueled Annaiss’ growth, the projects that turned waste into wonder, and why the next 15 years depend on designers like her stepping up.

Can you share a project or collection that directly addresses circular fashion, and what measurable impact it’s had?

Every HYPH-N collection directly addresses circular fashion by rescuing deadstock materials from landfill and reimagining their potential. I use zero-waste cutting methods to ensure even unconventional offcuts are honoured, not discarded. Circularity is built into every seam—threads, fusing, fastenings, and elastics are all selected for end-of-life separation and responsible processing.

In the past year alone, we’ve diverted countless metres of deadstock wool, silk, and textiles from waste streams. 95% of our collections are zero-waste, with the remaining 5% low-waste (less than 5% of industry average waste created). This approach earned us the Honourable Mention for Sustainability at the National Designer Award—recognition that circular design holds strong aesthetic and relevance within the current fashion landscape while gaining traction with the larger industry.

How do you balance sustainability with desirability in your designs, and what myths are you working to debunk?

I actively challenge the idea that sustainable or zero-waste fashion has to look a certain way. There’s still this lingering myth that it’s all beige, basic, or rough around the edges. At HYPH-N, I design bold, sculptural silhouettes that prove circularity and desirability can go hand-in-hand. Our pieces are made to turn heads and start conversations. One of my goals is to shift the aesthetic expectations around sustainability—proving that sustainable design doesn’t have to sacrifice creativity or edge. People should be drawn to their pieces and then be intrigued by the sustainable messages behind the design.

What’s been the most rewarding milestone in your career since Redress, and how did the competition prepare you for it?

There have been many milestones—showcasing collections in Shenzhen, Milan, and Melbourne; dressing environmental activist Bonnie Chen; and recording a podcast episode with sustainability trailblazer Claire Press. But receiving the Honourable Mention for Sustainability at the National Designer Award stands out as the moment where independent circular design was recognised at a national level. Real recognition that disrupting the status quo and forgoing profit in favour of a better fashion system has merit.

Redress prepared me for these moments by giving me the language to articulate my purpose and the confidence to hold space for sustainability in rooms where it wasn’t always the priority. It taught me to stay educated—there are always questions to ask, better solutions to find. There’s always room to do better, but the small actions we make as designers have collective large-scale impact.

What’s a major hurdle you’ve faced in sustainable fashion, and how did Redress help you navigate it?

One of the biggest hurdles has been educating consumers about the true cost of sustainable fashion while competing with fast fashion pricing and fighting “greenwashing” perceptions in an oversaturated market. There’s constant industry resistance—being told your methods “won’t scale” or “aren’t commercially viable”—which creates isolation from mainstream fashion networks.

Redress has been instrumental in overcoming these challenges by providing credibility when facing industry skepticism. The competition connected me to international platforms and media that amplify the circular design message beyond local markets. Most importantly, Redress gave me the language and framework to clearly communicate the value of circular design to both consumers and industry. The Alumni network offers solidarity and shared strategies from other designers facing similar resistance, connecting me to progressive industry players who understand circular innovation.

What’s one design principle from Redress that still guides your approach to waste reduction today?

“Design with the end-of-life in mind” was the biggest mindset shift I took from Redress. It completely reframed how I see design—less about the initial form and more about the full lifecycle. That principle continues to guide every HYPH-N piece today. From pattern-cutting to component selection, every choice is about longevity, repairability, and disassembly. Redress helped me realize that waste isn’t inevitable—it’s often the result of decisions made without the whole system in view.

How has the Redress Alumni Network supported your growth as a sustainable fashion designer, and what’s one key opportunity it provided to scale your impact?

The Redress Alumni Network has been incredible for my growth as a designer. As a semi-finalist in both 2020 and 2021, it’s remained a constant source of support—connecting me to career-building opportunities and networks I wouldn’t have accessed otherwise, like international showcases and media platforms that elevate emerging voices.

One key opportunity it provided to scale my impact was connecting me to international showcases that amplified my zero-waste message to global audiences. Being part of this collective has reinforced that change happens faster when we do it together—transforming the industry beyond what individual brands can achieve alone.

Looking back at your Redress experience, how has the sustainable fashion conversation evolved—and what role will Redress and its alumni play in the next 15 years?

The conversation around sustainable fashion has evolved dramatically since I first competed. There’s now broader awareness that waste streams can be resource streams—and that fashion doesn’t have to follow traditional paths to be successful. The industry is slowly opening up to change, but we need more momentum.

Redress alumni are at the forefront of this shift—challenging norms, educating consumers, and designing solutions. The next 15 years will demand radical rethinking from every part of the industry, and I believe the Redress community will continue to be a powerful force leading that change. What started as a competition has grown into a global network of designers pushing for a movement toward a better fashion future. We’re all tackling sustainability in our own individual ways, working toward a fashion future we want to be part of—and we’re just getting started.