Your art, our undies.

We're teaming up with Bow Valley College's School of Creative Industries and Digital Technology to hand our next print over to the people who design YYC's future: YOU. Kick-off is Wednesday, November 4, and the winner is announced in January 2027.

Here's the idea. Devon & Lang makes two kinds of underwear: solid and printed. This one is all about the printed line. Bow Valley design students pitch an original print, our team gives honest feedback at every stage, and the winning design becomes a Devon & Lang print. You get a real brief from a real Calgary apparel brand, a spotlight on our website and socials if you win, and something seriously fun for your portfolio either way.

We built this with Ara Shimoon, Program Chair at the School of Creative Industries and Digital Technology, using the college's VentureQuest pitch competition as the blueprint who is also going to be part of the judging panel. The goal is a fair, skill-building competition that grows with you over three stages. Nobody expects a finished masterpiece on day one. We double checked.

How it works

Three stages, each one a little more polished than the last. Our team reviews every round and sends feedback, so you're never guessing.

1. Sign up. Register with your name/program mentioning the design competition in the subject line on the email address: design@devonandlang.com. Give us a short blurb about your artistic background, inspirations, and why you want to design for us.

2. Come to the kick-off. We'll be on campus to meet you, walk through the brief for our printed line, answer every question you've got and make it official.

3. Stage 1: Preliminary selections. Show us where your head's at. Submit preliminary drawings and sketches plus a mood board or vision board that points to the direction of your design. Our team picks who moves on to the semi-finals.

4. Stage 2: Semi-finals. Take our feedback and build an accurate rough draft of your concept. Lock in your colours with exact swatch info (Hex and CMYK), and add a draft letter of intent: a short overview of your work and what inspired it. We then pick up to four finalists.

5. Stage 3: Finals. Apply our final round of feedback and bring the full pitch: your artist statement, the intent and inspiration behind the work, and a polished version of your digital design.

6. Pitch day. Finalists present to the full panel in the room. Devon & Lang picks a winner and a runner-up on the spot (potentially).

The ground rules

Short list, no fineprint gymnastics.

• Who can enter: Bow Valley College students who register through the email before the closing date.

• What you're designing: An original repeating print for the Devon & Lang printed underwear line. Solids are sitting this one out.

• Original work only: Your design has to be yours. No traced artwork, no borrowed characters, logos or AI generated art.

• Stage 1 submission: Preliminary drawings or sketches plus a mood board or vision board showing your direction.

• Stage 2 submission: An accurate rough draft of your print with final colours and swatch specs (CMYK or similar), plus a draft letter of intent.

• Stage 3 submission: A completed pitch with an artist statement, your intent and inspiration, and a polished version of your design.

• Deadlines are deadlines: Late submissions can't move forward, so plan a little breathing room.

• Who decides: The Devon & Lang team makes the cuts at every stage and picks the winner and runner-up at the final. Up to four students make it to the finals.

• Who owns the design: The winning design becomes the property of Devon & Lang, including the right to produce, sell and promote it. You'll be credited as the artist whenever we feature it.

• Have fun with it: Boring underwear? Couldn't be us.

How we'll judge

Every design is scored on the same five things, at every stage. The further you go, the more polish we look for.

1. Originality: Is it fresh, and is it unmistakably yours? We want something we haven't seen before.

2. Brand fit: Does it feel like Devon & Lang? Playful, confident, a little cheeky, and made for every body.

3. Works as a print: Does it repeat well, read clearly at underwear scale, and look great on everything from a bikini brief to a boxer brief, in every size?

4. Colour and craft: Is the palette thoughtful, and are your swatch specs accurate and ready for production?

5. Story and growth: How clearly do you tell the story behind your work, and how well did you use our feedback from stage to stage?

What's in it for you

Every student who takes part walks away with portfolio-worthy experience pitching to an actual apparel brand, plus real feedback from our team at each stage.

• Winner: A prize (details coming soon), your print in the Devon & Lang printed line, and a featured artist spot on our website. We'll film static and video content with you and your design to tell your story, and share it across our socials too.

• Runner-up: Recognition at the final event in front of students, faculty and colleagues.

• Finalists and shortlisted designs: A shot at being featured on our socials.

We make underwear that's soft where it matters and bold where it counts. This is your chance to bring the bold part.

Key dates at a glance

About eleven weeks from first sketch to pitch day, with the winter break built in. Save these.

Got questions? Bring them to the kick-off, or reach out to your Program Chair. We can't wait to see what you make.