Canadian teen Vejas Kruszewski up for fashion's prestigious LVMH Prize

It's quite the ascent: 19 year-oldCanadian designer Vejas Kruszewskihas gone from relative obscurity in the fashion worldto having Karl Lagerfeld assesshis designs.

The pony-tailed, sunglass-wearing fashionicon is one of several famous judges who'lldecide if Kruszewskiwill be crowned the young designerwinner of the LVMHPrize, set to beawarded Thursday in Paris at the Louis Vuitton Foundation building.

Createdtwo years agoby luxury goods conglomerate Louis VuittonMotHennessy,the prize wasspecifically established to give props to virtually unknown designers.It is only open to those under 40, who may have as fewastwoready-to-wear collections under their youngbelts.

'A game-changer'

Originally from Montreal, Toronto-basedKruszewskihas had no formal fashion training and, at 19, is so far the youngest finalist for the fledglingaward two factors in his favour or that work against him, depending on your point of view.

"It's a game-changer,"NoreenFlanagan, editor-in-chief ofElleCanada magazine, said of the lucrative prize.

Kruszewski has 'tapped into the gender fluidity or blurring that is very much part of the zeitgeist.'- NoreenFlanagan, Elle Canada

Aside from coverage byinternational press, winning the award opens doors to potential investors as well as influential supporters for a young designer, she added.

HavingnotedKruszewski'sdesignprowess,Flanaganis showcasing him inElleCanada's upcoming feature onCanadiandesigners to watchfeature, to appear in theAugust issue.Kruszewskiis a "self-taughtwunderkind," she told CBC News.

"Streetstyle melded withglamfashionhas been adefining influence for a few seasons and it's only gaining in terms of being an influential and enduring trend in fashion.Vejashas a preternatural affinity for handling this fashion paradox. He's also tapped into the gender fluidity or blurring that is very much part of the zeitgeist."

His distinctline carriesclout because of its rough and raw appeal: denimriddledwith grommetsandbackpackswith next-level scrunching.

The designer says he took early inspiration from the pattern inserts inJapanese sewing magazines. Thatled to re-envisioning basic sportswear garmentssuch as sweatshirts so theygather, nip and/or balloon in unconventional ways.

$431K and valuableguidance

Young designers winning theLVMH Prize get agrant of 300,000(or about $431,000 Cdn) and businessmentorship from arguably the most well-established luxury fashion behemoth on the planet.

LVMHowns labels such asLouis Vuitton,Givenchy,Fendi,TAG Heuer, De Beers andChristian Diorperfumes. That's the kind of powerhouse giving each winnerguidance onintellectual property, marketing, production,distribution and more.

In other words, a win could vaultKruszewskiinto a completely different stratosphere offashion.

Kruszewskistill makes most of his own samples,though that's likely to change if his name is called on Thursday.

And if he does win, he would stand in good company:fellowCanadian Thomas Tait, now London-based,captured the inaugural edition of the prize in 2014.