The award, open to graduates from 14 colleges in six countries, includes a €50,000 prize and a show at Stockholm’s Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week on 1 February.

‘It’s our first ever prize for new young designers, and it’s been such an inspiring experience to meet these talented graduates, to hear the vision behind their collections and to see the final result,’ H&M Head of Design Ann-Sofie Johansson said in a statement. ‘With the award I hope we can encourage young designers around the world to believe in themselves and their creativity.’

In the UK, graduates from the Brighton School of Architecture and Design, Central Saint Martins and the London College of Fashion participated in a preliminary round of competition to identify a UK-wide winner. Britain’s contender will face up to graduates chosen through similar selection processes in Sweden, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium.

ELLE participated in jury sessions in London. If the talent on show was any indication of the calibre of international competitors, we can’t wait to learn the result of the Award’s inaugural year.

Follow the awards process through behind-the-scenes footage of jury sessions, designer bios and more, all online at designaward2012.hm.com.

Read about Marni's upcoming collection for H&M

Take a look at the Versace for H&M collection here

<object width="400" height="225"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true" /><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /><param name="movie" value="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=34886890&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=00adef&fullscreen=1&autoplay=0&loop=0" /><embed src="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=34886890&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=00adef&fullscreen=1&autoplay=0&loop=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="400" height="225"></embed></object><p><a href="http://vimeo.com/34886890">H&M Design Award Announcement</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/barracudatv">Barracuda Film & TV</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.</p>