WHO'S THE NEXT THOM BROWNE? THE CFDA MENSWEAR DESIGNER OF THE YEAR HAS RAISED THE STAKES FOR SMALL, INDEPENDENT DESIGNERS, PAVING THE WAY FOR FRESH TALENT IN AN EMERGING RACE TO BECOME THE NEXT BIG THING IN MEN'S FASHION.(Thom Browne )

Daily News Record, September, 2006 by Nygaard, Sandra

Byline: SANDRA NYGAARD

Thom Browne has never been one for fads.

"Trends actually scare me more than excite me, because a trend comes and goes," he says. "I would rather people see something timeless that can almost live forever."

Yet there's one trend that Browne has undeniably started, and it has nothing to do with the length of a trouser or the width of a lapel. In making an enormous splash as a very small, independent designer, he has opened the floodgates to a deluge of new talent. A striking number of new designers-from Michael Bastian and Adam Kimmel to Jurgen Oeltjenbruns and Robert Molnar-have entered the men's wear field in the last year. Nathan Bogle's yet-to-be-named label and a tailored clothing line from Barker Black are...