When Nicky Zimmermann saw the work of design students Ethan Bergersen and Indigo Stuart, she immediately cast her vote for them to win this year’s Australian Fashion Foundation Scholarship Award.

With a $US20,000 ($31,000) prize purse courtesy of Afterpay co-founder Nick Molnar’s The Next Generation foundation and a six-month internship at a New York fashion label, the award is considered one of the most significant for emerging local talent.