Inside, Stephanie Suberville of Heirlome was talking to people through some of her signature pieces. In both Spanish and English, she explained how the fringed knitwear was created in partnership with artisans of the Madres y Artesanas Tex collective in Bolivia. It’s been a major few months for her young brand. With a well-attended February presentation during NYFW, Suberville joined the likes of fellow CVFF finalists Bach Mai and Meruert Tolegen on the official schedule. “It’s a very strong room,” Suberville agreed, looking around.

Ashlynn Park of ASHLYN is ready to give it her all. “I made sure I had no other distractions going on right now, so that I could be ready to really focus on the program,” she said. “But I do feel a little overwhelmed,” she added, humbly, gesturing at the other designers. Her worries abated, as shoppers gathered around her rack and swooned over the same round-shouldered poppy red coat from Fall/Winter 2025 that wowed editors on the runway a few months ago.

While Native American artist and designer Jamie Okuma can’t quite pinpoint when she started her label, as making garments has always been a part of her life in some way, shape, or form, taking part in the program this year is monumental. “The timing just aligned,” she said. “I’ve only been working with what I know so far, which in the greater scheme of the fashion industry, isn’t a lot.” Okuma’s husband recently joined her at the brand to help propel things to new heights, too. With her family, she is based on the La Jolla reservation in Southern California. Still, “thanks to the power of social media and the internet,” she’s steadily amassed a fan group that includes Lily Gladstone, Eva Chen, Quannah Chasinghorse, and Vogue’s own Christian Allaire.

At 10 a.m., Rickie De Sole, VP, fashion director at Nordstrom, explained that later that day, the ten finalists would participate in a mini challenge and pitch the top buyers in a bid to get picked up by the retailer—think: Shark Tank, but make it fashion. “SPACE is a department at Nordstrom that was built to support the next generation of American designers,” she added. “Because supporting emerging talent is so incredibly important to us. ”

Once the shoppers placed their orders and finished off the last of the croissants, it was time to spend the afternoon hearing from the class of 2025. De Sole, along with Sam Lobban, EVP/GMM of apparel and design, Jian DeLeon, men’s fashion director, and Joyce Lin, director of merchandising, reached a verdict. Ashlynn Park was selected as this year’s winner, and her collection will be carried at select Nordstrom stores in the upcoming year. Keep an eye out for that poppy red coat.