SYDNEY, Australia — IMG-owned Australian Fashion Week, presented by Pandora, will return in 2025 from May 12 to 16 at Sydney’s Carriageworks — an urban arts cultural precinct in the former Eveleigh Railway Workshops. The fashion week’s content programming will be supported by The Business of Fashion (BoF) through a series of events on the official schedule, including panel talks, intimate designer conversations and presentations. The talks will be open to industry attendees, the public and live streamed at australianfashionweek.com.

“We are thrilled to announce our partnership with Australian Fashion Week 2025,” says Nick Blunden, president of The Business of Fashion. “We are looking forward to putting together a series of events that will engage the Australian fashion community and highlight the extraordinary talent featured at such an important part of the global fashion calendar.”

“The Australian fashion market is incredibly dynamic and exciting, showcasing an impressive mix of creative talent from both well-established fashion businesses and a new generation of independent brands. It is no surprise that Australian fashion is reclaiming its rightful place on the global stage,” he adds.

Australian Fashion Week is the largest international fashion event in the Asia Pacific region. Held annually in Sydney in May, the event features many celebrated names in Australian design, from established brands like Bec & Bridge and Bianca Spender, alongside the next generation of talent shaping the Australian fashion industry, like emerging brands Alix Higgins and Ngali.

“IMG is excited to be bringing The Business of Fashion to Sydney for Australian Fashion Week presented by Pandora 2025,” says Natalie Xenita, vice president-managing director of IMG Fashion Events Asia Pacific. “For 30 years, Australian Fashion Week has been the leading international fashion trade event in the Asia Pacific region, providing a global platform for Australia’s most innovative designer talent to showcase their creativity. We’re looking forward to working alongside The Business of Fashion to further amplify the voices and visions of Australia’s leading designers, creatives and fashion leaders.”

The fashion industry in Australia has historically faced challenges with its geographical positioning: logistically, a flight from London to Istanbul takes less time than a flight from Perth to Sydney, as one example. With a population of only 26 million, Australia also has a relatively small local marketplace — although the Australian Bureau of Statistics projects the population to reach between 34.3 and 45.9 million people by 2071.

However, Australian designers today are putting the country’s creative talent back on the fashion map. Notable success stories include Zimmermann. Recently valued in deal at more than $1 billion, it has over 55 international stores, investment from Italian backers Style Capital and offices and showrooms in New York and Paris. Other independent labels are gaining global traction: Camilla boasts 264 wholesales accounts in 65 countries on top of its 25 Australian stores; Aje has 75 overseas wholesale accounts and is growing at pace in the US and Middle East; Rebecca Vallance is growing its physical retail footprint both in Australia and further afield. All these designers have shown on the Australian Fashion Week schedule.

Scanlan Theodore, Carla Zampatti, Camilla and Marc and heritage high street label Cue are other notable names with a strong presence in all major Australian cities, while Maticevski and Alex Perry have strong international presence through wholesale channels.

Dion Lee is another notable Australian talent and export — the creative director and Tafe NSW graduate established his namesake label in 2009 and debuted at Australian fashion week at the age of 23. He has since operated out of New York and shown on the New York fashion week schedule since 2013, although the business went into voluntary administration earlier this year.

The Australian Fashion Council (AFC) shares the most recent statistics from a 2021 survey on the region’s fashion and textile industry, citing its economic contribution as AUD 27.2 billion, of which AUD 7.2 billion was in export revenue — more than the export value of Australian beer and wine. The Australian fashion industry employs half a million workers.

The local fashion industry has historically struggled with the lack of local manufacturing opportunities available, with the need to produce offshore presenting both creative, economic and environmental challenges to young designers.

However, the textile, clothing and footwear (TCF) sector in the southeastern state of Victoria alone has grown 9 percent year-on-year to $318 million, according to a new report ‘Moving the Needle: The State of Play of Victoria’s Textile, Clothing & Footwear Manufacturing Sector’, due to be published later this year. It also states that the sector currently generates over $960 million for Australia’s economy.

The country is also experiencing increased attention from major international players vying for growing consumer markets in even one of Australia’s most remote locations: Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Tiffany & Co and Gucci are among the brands expanding in the Western city of Perth, while Dior, Fendi and Cartier are reportedly opening stores there — all looking to benefit from its newfound status as a travel hub and relative economic stability with its booming mining and petroleum industries.

Perth also had the highest population growth rate at 3.6 percent from 2022-23. However, the state capitals all grew by 517,200 people, or 3 percent, in the same period, with overseas migration the largest driver of growth, accounting for 454,900. Consequently, local opportunities in the fashion space are growing — and Australian Fashion Week, in partnership with strategic sponsor Destination NSW (New South Wales) and with the support of the New South Wales Government, is looking to nurture the creative talent in this space accordingly.

Event organisers are also waiving designer participation fees for the 2025 event, to support brands showcase their latest collections. Australian Fashion Week also supports emerging designers through its programme DHL Next Gen, which has helped discover and launch the careers of leading names, including Akira, Anna Quan, Bec & Bridge, Camilla & Marc, Sass & Bide, among others. The prize is valued at over $100,000 and includes runway show production, runway photography and livestream.

Over the last four years, Australian Fashion Week has also included the Australian department store David Jones’ Indigenous Fashion Projects (IFP) runway event, in a celebration of culture, community and country, featuring some of Australia’s First Nations designers and brands: Ngali, Liandra, Miimi & Jiinda, Maara Collective, Joseph & James and Gali Swimwear.

Brands who participated in the most recent season of Australian Fashion Week are: Acler, Albus Lumen, Alix Higgins, All Is a Gentle Spring, Anna Quan, Asiyam, Beare Park, Bec & Bridge, Blanca, Carla Zampatti, EM on Holiday, Inury, Iordanes Spyridon Gogos, Karla Špetić, Liandra, Madre Natura, Mastani, Michael Lo Sordo, Nicol & Ford, P.E Nation, Romance Was Born, Rory William Docherty, Speed, Third Form, Verner, Viktoria & Woods and Wackie Ju.

This is a sponsored feature paid for by Australian Fashion Week as part of a BoF partnership.