JAMAICA’s Gregory Williams stiched his way to top of the second season of Mission Catwalk at the Fiction night club, St Andrew, on Tuesday. The teary-eyed designer emerged ahead of Trinidad and Tobago’s Ryan Chan; Jamaica’s Crystal Powell, who came second; and, the judges wild card Belize’s Rebecca Stirm.

“I am very excited… as I go to bed and wake up [in the mornings] thinking about fashion. Each designer is very talented and creative so it was really a challenge for me. I never lost focus and attacked each challenge as if it was the first. I never got hyped up or too comfortable,” said Williams, who has been sewing for five months but designing for five years.

Williams told the Jamaica Observer that he is already preparing the collection that he will be showcasing at London Fashion Week.

“Preparations are on the way. My intention is to create designs that will have a Caribbean feel but will be suitable for any environment. For now, I will be only designing for the ladies as there is no limit to boundaries as it relates to female fashion,” the St Andrew-based designer said.

The self-taught designer said his winning pieces represents the bold and powerful women who are leaders in their own way. Williams was also the winner of the 2011 Saint International Avant Garde designer competition.

Among the cash and prizes Williams won an opportunity to show his collection at the 2012 London Fashion Week; industrial sewing equipment valued at $200,000 courtesy of Singer Jamaica; $500,000 funding to start his collection line courtesy of NCB; a six-page fashion editorial in ocean Style Magazine and a scholarship to pursue a fashionfashion programme at London College of Fashion.

Mission Catwalk is a reality series aimed at discovering and developing talented fashion designers. Last year’s season showcased 13 Jamaican designers in fierce competition. This season, the series shortlisted 15 designers (from a shortlist of 20) from accros the Caribbean including Belize, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago.