On Saturday 13 November 2010 at the Sri Lanka Design Festival (SLDF), Kasuni Ratnasuriya was awarded the Young Fashion Entrepreneur (YFE) Award 2011.

The YFE 2011 Award is a British Council initiative offered in partnership with the Sri Lanka Design Festival, that seeks to champion and celebrate the importance of creative entrepreneurs working in the field of fashion in the age category of 25 to 35.

Applicants were drawn from various areas of the fashion field including fashion textile, accessories production and design, fashion promotion, fashion education, fashion marketing, and fashion publishing.

Out of the many applications received, three candidates were short-listed based mainly on their written applications, supported by additional evidence of their entrepreneurial skill and ability.

The short-listed candidates were Ahamed Barry, Sandun De Silva, and Kasuni Ratnasuriya.

For the final interview, the short-listed candidates were given an opportunity to make a short presentation expanding on their written application and addressing questions related to market awareness, vision and ambition and their desire to develop mutually beneficial engagement with the UK.

The final judging panel for the YFE Award 2011 comprised of (from left to right) Kumar Mirchandani, Garment Industry Representative; Rwituja Mookherjee, Head Creative Economy of British Council India & Sri Lanka and Tony Reilly, Country Director British Council Sri Lanka.

Kasuni Ratnasuriya, who was announced as the winner after the Industry Fashion Show at SLDF, is the founder and sole proprietor of the label ‘KUR’. A contemporary women’s label, which she launched in 2009, ‘KUR’ concerns the sustainable approaches in the fashion business such as revitalising the dying crafts in Sri Lanka, and recycling approaches.

A member of CIM, UK and Diploma holder in Marketing, CIM, Kasuni is currently employed as a Market Analyst at Brandix, the largest apparel exporter in Sri Lanka with eco-friendly best practices. She graduated from Academy of Design in 2007 and is currently reading the MBA at Postgraduate Institute of Management, University of Jayewardenepura.

As the YFE Award 2011 winner, Kasuni will be given the unique opportunity to attend a tailor-made study tour to UK, attend fashion and trade events and to network with peers and fashion leaders in February 2011.

British Council Country Director, Tony Reilly, comments on YFE 2011, “After only 3 weeks in Sri Lanka, I am bowled over by the talent and creativity of the next generation in this beautiful country. A country’s greatest asset is its people, its human resources – Sri Lanka has abundant talent. With peace and stability now at hand, the future looks very bright indeed.”

British Council and SLDF warmly congratulate Kasuni and all the other applicants on their achievements.