Suket Dhir, rising superstar men’s wear designer, from Delhi to Avington

Born in Banga, India, Suket describes himself as a former ‘slacker’ who once sold mobile phones for AT & T. He now lives in New Delhi and was last year awarded the prestigious prize of fashion, the International Woolmark Prize, an award that has also gone to Karl Lagerfeld and Yves Saint Laurent. Vogue.com has described him as “global fashion superstar in the making”

Since winning the prize, he has worked on producing a collection, the first to be sold outside India, to department stores in Tokyo; Sydney, Australia; Seoul, South Korea; and New York. 

Mr. Dhir’s garments are unique and contemporary Indian designs which rely on ancient techniques.

He focuses on the fabrics and materials in his designs; tie-and-dyed ikat yarn, hand-block printing, spinning and weaving methods, all giving the wool a silk-like texture.

Experiencing shearing at Avington: Noel Henderson, Svetlana Dhir, Suket Dhir, Frank Bates (Avington wool classer).

Avington hosted Mr. Dhir as part of a worldwide tour he embarked on after winning the International Woolmark Prize, one of the many rewards for his accolade, so he could gain a first-hand insight into the wool production process which is simply not an option in India because Australia remains the major exporter of Superfine and Ultrafine merino wool. 

Suket’s visit coincided with our main shearing, where we observed the traceability process for wool that Avington has developed.