Michael Bastian named Menswear Designer of the Year by the CFDA.

Michael Bastian was honored as Menswear Designer of the Year during last night’s CFDA Awards held at the Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall in New York. 2011 is the 4th consecutive year that the Council of Fashion Designers of America has nominated him for the fashion industry’s equivalent of the Oscars. Michael Bastian launched his own menswear line MICHAEL BASTIAN in 2006, and in fall 2010, he entered into a long-term collaboration with GANT for his GANT by Michael Bastian line for men and women.

Michael Bastian is an American fashion designer born in 1965 in Lyons, New York. After graduating from Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, he moved to New York City, where his first job was as an Assistant Buyer at Abraham & Strauss. This was followed by positions within Sotheby’s, Tiffany & Co., Polo Ralph Lauren, and most recently, Bergdorf Goodman, where he was the men’s fashion director for five years. It was this experience that led Bastian to launch in 2006 his own men’s wear line. The line, produced under a licensing agreement by the Italian company Brunello Cucinelli, is now carried in over 50 retail locations in America, Canada, Japan, Europe, and the Middle East. The licensing agreement with Cucinelli was terminated the end of 2010. In Fall 2010 a new special collaboration was launched, GANT by Michael Bastian, which has expanded to offer womenswear for Sprint 2011. This collection is widely distributed in over 60 countries worldwide, in both GANT stores and independent specialty retailers. In April 2011 Michael Bastian launched a collaboration with Havaianas, under the name Havaianas + Michael Bastian with 4 Limited Edition styles designed for the Spring ’11 Collection. Bastian is a resident of New York City.