Natalia Pestaña, a young designer from Madrid, has won the competition organized by Pullmantur Cruises —the only cruise line on the market that brings the Spanish lifestyle to the cruise experience—in conjunction with the European Institute of Design (IED) and Ad Talent (a platform dedicated to discovering, supporting, and promoting emerging designers). The aim of this competition was to find the designer for the crew's next uniforms.
Specifically, the 12 participants – all of them former students of the Master of Fashion Design at the European Institute of Design – had to present their proposals for what the uniformsof the following positions would be, which bring together the largest number of professionals on board: buffet, bar and restaurant waiters; cabin assistant and excursion, photography and entertainment staff.
The winner was announced at a fun and lively evening held yesterday in the Aula Magna of the IED in Madrid, which was attended by more than 200 professionals from the world of fashion and tourism.
According to Richard J. Vogel, President & CEO of Pullmantur Cruises, “collaborating with these young talents has been a true privilege and a very enriching experience, one that is still ongoing.” Now, the next step – Vogel explains – is “to work hand in hand with Natalia Pestaña to bring her proposal to life and ensure her designs are featured on board.”
The selection of the winning proposal
The selection of the winning proposal took place during a luncheon held at the Etxeko restaurant in Madrid, where the five finalists presented their micro-collections. Each was accompanied by a model who wore the prototype buffet waitress outfit.
For about four hours, the 13 members of the jury - led by the prestigious Spanish designer Juanjo Oliva, godfather of this contest - evaluated the five finalist projects according to three criteria: the development of the proposal taking into account the values of the brand, functionality and wearability, as well as the technical development of the project and the tailoring.
Alongside Oliva were the President & CEO of Pullmantur Cruises, Richard J. Vogel; representatives from IED Madrid; Ad Talent as well as other professionals related to the world of fashion and tourism.
In addition to seeing her proposal travel the world, Natalia Pestaña has been awarded a three-month scholarship at Juanjo Oliva's sewing workshop and a 'Dubai and Legends of Arabia' cruise for two. This itinerary is part of Pullmantur Cruises Exclusive Destinations: Dreams that become journeys.
Gastrolab presents the gala night menu
At this meeting, Gastrolab – the innovative gastronomic platform of Pullmantur Cruises and led by Jordi Cruz – presented its new proposal for the gala night menu
Cruz, along with the company's Food & Beverage Operations manager, Kristoffer Baek-Soerensen, and another of Gastrolab's chefs, Adrià Viladomat, surprised attendees by performing a showcooking demonstration.
There they prepared two of the dishes – which the attendees then tasted for the first time – that will be part of the new gala menu: Tartare of sun-dried tomato, honey air, basil oil and salt and Ajoblanco of pistachios, grapes, croutons and arugula sprouts.
The night concluded with music from the incomparable DJs Pepino and Crawford, who thrilled the audience.
