Fashion Awards 2026: Tolu Coker and Labrum's Foday Dumbuya among the British Fashion Council nominees

Two London designers with West African roots are in the running at the British Fashion Council's Fashion Awards 2026, held at the Royal Albert Hall on Monday 30 November. British-Nigerian Tolu Coker is nominated for the Vanguard Award, and Freetown-born Foday Dumbuya of Labrum London is up for British Menswear Designer of the Year.

Tolu Coker: a year that began with the King

Coker, 32, grew up on the Mozart Estate in west London and graduated from Central Saint Martins in 2018. Her clothes are about heritage, belonging and social mobility, and 2026 has given them a far bigger stage.

1. 19 Feb 2026Her autumn/winter show opens London Fashion Week, with King Charles III in the front row beside Stella McCartney.
2. 2 Mar 2026An 18-piece Topshop capsule, first previewed on her catwalk, goes on sale online, priced £30 to £120.
3. Mar 2026The Princess of Wales wears a grey Tolu Coker coat dress to welcome Nigeria's President Bola Tinubu on his state visit.
4. 16 Sept 2026She is named on the Vanguard Award shortlist.
5. 21 Sept 2026She shows her spring/summer 2027 collection on the last day of London Fashion Week, with no catwalk.

The King's visit was the first time since 2018 that a senior royal had sat front row at London Fashion Week, and Coker had kept her guest secret. For that show she recreated the estate she grew up on. Weeks later the Topshop range took the same thinking to the high street: sharp tailoring, matching denim sets with her trademark pleats and a three-piece suit, in sizes 6 to 18.

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For spring/summer 2027 she chose not to go bigger. In place of a runway she held a two-hour presentation, so guests could see the process behind the clothes, alongside an installation at Westfield London with a listening room modelled on her parents' 1960s living room. "It's not a show, it's a presentation," she told the Press Association.

Foday Dumbuya: from Freetown to British tailoring

Dumbuya was born in Freetown, Sierra Leone, spent part of his childhood in Cyprus and moved to London at 12. He traces his eye to his parents: a police officer father who was always immaculately turned out, and a mother in colour-matched traditional African dress. He worked on the shop floor at DKNY and in product and design at Nike, then studied menswear at London College of Fashion and launched Labrum in 2014.

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The label marries West African culture with British tailoring and tells stories of migration. In 2023 King Charles presented Dumbuya with the Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design. In June 2026 Labrum won the BFC/GQ Designer Fashion Fund: a £100,000 grant, a year of mentoring and free legal advice.

With every union, I'm always considering how the story ties it back to Labrum, London, West Africa and British tailoring.

Foday Dumbuya, to London Museum

The running club back home

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Away from the catwalk, Dumbuya started Labrum Athletic in 2016 as a small running group in Freetown. He was inspired by London's Run Dem Crew and its founder Charlie Dark. The club uses sport to help young people grow, and Labrum campaigns pay for their kit, coaching and training. The label also runs a community sports day and a festive football tournament in the city.