O’Neill teams up with Teen Vogue

Lifestyle surf label O’Neill announced the 2nd Annual ‘Generation Next’ fashion show in association with Teen Vogue, taking place on Friday, September 25th at Seven Degrees in Laguna Beach, CA. As part of a 6-month program based at O’Neill’s headquarters in Irvine, four girls from local Southern California high schools will have the opportunity to present their dress and handbag designs on the runway during an evening featuring O’Neill’s Spring 2010 collection, music, live dance performances, prizes and more.

Each Generation Next participant is competing for a design internship at O’Neill, a $2,000 education scholarship, exposure in Teen Vogue, and an O’Neill wardrobe for the entire winning team. The winner will be determined via students’ text messages and all money raised at the door will benefit Boarding for Breast Cancer, a non-profit, youth-focused education and fundraising foundation dedicated to increasing awareness about breast cancer, the importance of early detection, and the value of an active lifestyle.

The Generation Next experience provides each of the finalists with hands on access to learn everything from merchandising, apparel design, graphic design, manufacturing and marketing, to ultimately creating their own runway look with the help of a fashion mentor.

“We launched Generation Next to give our young audience a chance to share their inspirations and showcase their ideas, and allow us to learn from their insights firsthand,” said Toby Bost, CEO of O’Neill. “The program helps prepare young talent for a future in fashion and/or action sports, exposing them to a variety of elements by working side-by-side with O’Neill executives and influencing career opportunities early on.”

Last year’s Generation Next winner, Rebekka Schuman (San Clemente), won for ‘Nolita’ a white island-inspired dress accented with black leather gloves for a grungy twist. Schuman is currently enrolled in fashion design school in New York and will be attending the event.

Image: O'Neill