Reflections with Project Runway’s first trans winner, Veejay Floresca

Interviewed by: Dalton Primeaux (@djprimeaux)

New York Fashion Week coverage is often framed by the unbridled chaos behind the scenes. However, some fashion moments deserve quiet reflection to truly digest them. It’s the long exhale after holding your breath for weeks, hoping that all the hard work and sleepless nights have paid off. For Veejay Floresca, such a pause means everything. Her moment is one of significance, worthy of reverential musing. And it’s certainly not lost on Floresca. In fact, she manifested it.

After her Project Runway victory, crowned in 2025 as the long-running show’s first Filipino and trans winner, and after her first solo NYFW show, listed on the coveted official Fashion Calendar, Veejay Floresca shares that exhale with The Sanxtuary.

Today in fashion, we are seeing designers breathe new life into nostalgic pieces by reimagining them through the lens of now. Recently, Dior’s Jonathan Anderson was quoted saying: “How do you find newness within something which is already old? By having it dialogue with what’s happening today.”

Floresca’s tenacity is nothing new, but this chapter in her life is all fresh. So, a moment of quiet reflection, okay maybe not quiet, as she gears up for Bridal Fashion Week activations, but reflection nonetheless, allows her to truly celebrate where she stands in her career presently. And the voice that is bubbling up from the past, dialoguing with what’s happening today, is a young Veejay, interviewed by a blogger back in 2015.

The Heroines of My Life blogger asked Floresca, 10 years ago, if she sees a rise in recognition among transgender fashion designers. Floresca responded: “I want to be known as the first transgender designer who will win Project Runway US. Haha. […] I believe visibility and talent will eventually open more doors for transgender designers.”

The blogger asked Floresca to envision herself five to seven years from then. “I am happy with where I am today. I see myself having my own studio in New York, maybe being engaged to someone, and continuing to inspire people […].” Floresca now has her own studio in New York and was affianced just days before NYFW.

15 years ago, Floresca was asked by transgender blogger Monika Kowalska, “What advice would you give to transgender girls who dream of building a career in fashion similar to yours?” She summed up her response by saying, “Believing in yourself is just as important as talent.”

Photography by Michael Pagara

“I manifested it,” Floresca beams now as she chats with me via a video call with her publicist. “I think one of the most powerful things we can do is think of our future. Dreams are free. It’s all about knowing what you want,” she says. But even though manifesting sharpened her aim, make no mistake, those 10 years were not an easy journey, and the legwork was all her doing.

“It did not come easily. It took me more than a decade, but I did not let go of that dream because I believed that I could. And I did.” For Floresca, it’s all about not doubting yourself. She says if you don’t believe in yourself, no one else will. That belief must start within you.

“I love that [my manifestation] inspired people!”

In response to her younger self’s digital memento, Floresca says, “Oh little Veejay, it’s not going to be an easy journey… but enjoy it and spend time cherishing the people that love you. Whatever you have achieved could not have been done without the help of people who believed in you. Be kind. Show beauty in the world by being kind. Enjoy everything.” Veejay believes that there is magnificence in the roller coaster ride we call life, no matter how terrifying the drops.

One recent, thrilling coaster hill climbed by Floresca was New York Fashion Week.

Attendees of Floresca’s recent NYFW show may not have thought fall/winter right away if they were expecting the typical blacks and neutrals. Floresca says that was intentional. Right away, she knew she wanted to play with colour.

Her designs are known for exquisite tailoring and can be rather architectural, yet always feminine. Floresca says she is a visual person, inspired by an array of mediums from photography to film to art. This show was inspired by abstract artist Willem de Kooning. With abstract art, Floresca can pinpoint that she’s drawn to the imperfections and the fluidity. Every person has their own interpretation of the work. Specifically, with de Kooning, she’s drawn to the colour, line and texture. Floresca said she could almost see the fabric right there in the MoMA, looking at the texture of the art.

Photography by Michael Pagara

In those final moments of her first show, Veejay Floresca was feeling overwhelmed, “in a good way,” she clarifies, gleefully waving away any negative interpretation. A day before her fashion show, she had said to her team she hoped at least 50 people would come to see all their hard work. She was blown away by the outcome.

She remembered looking around the Ritz-Carlton Ballroom, packed wall to wall, and realising that all these people were interested in her work. Clients and friends from the Philippines, her best friend who drove in from Maryland. She describes seeing all the attendees as magical.

“They wanted to be a part of something so special in my career as a designer.”

Days later, once she returned to Earth following the fashion week whirlwind, she was overjoyed by a statement from a friend: “Your success is our success.” She was moved by the outpouring of love and support and wanted to make sure the people she loves knew just how grateful she was. She reached out through text messages and phone calls. The responses were ones of encouragement and pride.

“Even though, yes, it’s work, at the end of the day I’m just a person. A person who wants to spend time with these people. It’s work, but it’s also my passion, so I want to share it with the people I love.”

Floresca also thanked Agentry PR for their work handling the press. A six-month contract with one of the most notable fashion public relations firms in Manhattan is no small reward, and just one of the life-changing Project Runway season 21 prizes.

“It’s a dream come true to show at New York Fashion Week in the official calendar with the designers that I look up to and respect. As an immigrant and a trans woman of colour, these dreams are hard to achieve.”

Floresca had been trying to join Project Runway for over a decade. “It’s a total of 13 years of applying,” she says. The emerging designer says those years were not easy. She has struggled. The industry is cutthroat. Being in America has been financially difficult. Being in fashion today means budding designers aren’t only up against heavyweight giants, they’re up against fast fashion.

“For an emerging designer, Project Runway is a lifeline. It’s the fuel in my car to get me where I want to go,” Floresca explains.

“Sure, I want the win, but I also need the cash prize.”

Though Project Runway wasn’t her first attempt at a reality contest win. In 2008, she was the second runner-up on the first season of Project Runway Philippines. In 2024, she was first runner-up on Dress My Tour. But Floresca’s commitment isn’t fueled by ego. She says it’s more practical than that. And it was clear that the competition was her ticket to visibility.

“If I could sing, I’d be applying for The Voice or American Idol!” she laughs.

It’s not grit alone that landed her on the CFDA’s Fashion Calendar. There’s a reason why Floresca has been referred to as clear-eyed. There’s a sharpness to her that is difficult to disregard.

“I’m a designer first and an artist second,” Floresca says.

Her technical skills and artistry are something to be celebrated, but it may be the connection with her clients that makes her so successful. Floresca attributes a great portion of her win to being a good listener, a trait learned from working with clients. That care and attention shaped her trajectory and even won her the competition.

Floresca said going into the competition, contestants prepare and know what they want to show the judges, but there is no way to win if you’re not willing to listen.

“I was listening. I was paying attention, even if the critique wasn’t necessarily for me, it helped me understand what each judge wanted.”

Christian Siriano, winner of season four and current mentor for the series, also gave Floresca no-nonsense feedback many times. Law Roach likes to see the waist on feminine pieces, Nina Garcia likes colour, Heidi Klum likes unique and sexy details. Where other contestants may struggle with their ego in those situations, Floresca was already accustomed to pivoting to please a client. She said the key was seeing each challenge as a new client and each criterion as the client’s request.

“The finale was Michael Kors, who is more minimalistic, so I knew I had to pull back. If it were Rick Owens, it would have been very different.”

Accessibility is not a dirty word for Floresca. In fact, she aims for it. Her brand balances concept and wearability. She says seeing someone wear her designs brings her more joy than anything else.

And inclusivity is also essential. She works with women of all ages and sizes.

“These are the people that I work with. Women that are 70 years old. I work with women who are size 30. I don’t just work with models. These are real people. And to me, it’s important. There’s so much beauty in celebrating everyone.”

Floresca, who studied bridal wear design at Central Saint Martins in London, immigrated to the US to complete her master’s at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco around 2012.

“I grew up with love, so being close to my family is something I will carry with me. Leaving the Philippines in 2012 was one of the hardest things I needed to do for my career because it meant I wouldn’t have much time with my family and friends. But leaving the Philippines is also the reason why I’m here now. Sometimes, you must leave something to get something.”

And that something was bigger than success. It meant visibility for Filipino designers.

“I know that if I can carry who I am as a Filipino designer, being in America is celebrating my cultural identity. We need the representation.”

At her NYFW presentation, she also partnered with the Asian American Arts Alliance and Callen-Lorde Community Health Center.

“As a member of the LGBTQIA+ community, it doesn’t make sense for me not to appreciate and always support my community.”

As we wrap up, Floresca presses the eject button on the cassette of the past and sets her clear-eyed vision on the future.

“I am manifesting that I won Project Runway All Stars… Met Gala… Oscars red carpet… Perhaps I join The Traitors. Haha. And honestly, I want to build a strong brand. I am happily married. I have an amazing team and a successful business.”

Somehow, the past is paused, and yet I can still hear Veejay from 2015, reminding us just

how important self-confidence is.