The 2024 Australian Fashion Laureate winners were unveiled yesterday in a beautiful ceremony at the Sydney Opera House.

The prestigious accolade and ceremony celebrates excellence within the fashion industry, particularly in areas of leadership, innovation, sustainability and emerging talent.

Presented by IMG and founded in 2008 in partnership with the NSW Government, this year marks 16 years of the awards and saw a female-dominated pool of winners picked by a panel of over 35 industry leaders including marie claire editor, Georgie McCourt. 

“The Australian Fashion Laureate provides an important platform for honouring the creative excellence and achievements of the Australian Fashion industry, highlighting the most noteworthy innovations and conversations shaping our industry.

“We are thrilled to bring the industry together for our final event to celebrate the accomplishments of Australian designers and industry leaders who have been the driving force behind Australian fashion’s cultural and economic impact this year,” said Natalie Xenita, Vice President-Managing Director of IMG Fashion Events and Properties, Asia-Pacific.

marie claire’s Georgie McCourt adds: “The Australian Fashion Laureate is a brilliant celebration of creative excellence and showcases the industry’s most groundbreaking innovators. I was thrilled to be one of the 35 industry leaders to select the winners and recognise outstanding contributions to Australian fashion.”

2024 Australian Fashion Laureate Winners

Two years on from taking home the Laureate’s Emerging Designer of the Year award, Lesleigh Jermanus of ALÈMAIS was awarded Designer of the Year. 

Emerging Designer of the Year was awarded to Gabriella Pereira, founder of Beare Park. Founded in 2021, the label has become synonymous with refined and modern tailoring, partnered with the National Breast Cancer Foundation on a Pink Shirt campaign and created the official off-field uniform of the Matildas, in the space of just three years. 

Grace Lillian Lee, descendant of the Meriam Mer people of the Torres Strait, won the Indigenous Designer of the Year award. This year the designer was tapped by Jean Paul Gaultier for the Brisbane edition of his Fashion Freak Show where she showcased her signature, traditional grasshopper-weave technique for a stunningly sculptural garment. 

Sister duo Laura May and Hannah Gibbs of Nagnata took home the Sustainable Designer of the Year thanks to their unwavering dedication to fair trade and ethical craftsmanship. 

The Carla Zampatti Award for Excellence in Leadership went to Andie Halas of Thread Together, a social and environmental charity dedicated to the fight against fashion waste and helping vulnerable Australians. 

The Australian Fashion Laureate for Lifetime Achievement was awarded to Stephen Bennett, founder of Country Road who turned a desire for a simple, quality shirt into one of our most iconic staple brands. 

“I was so thrilled to see Andie Halas win the Carla Zampatti Award for Excellence in Leadership. Andie is an icon in the fashion industry. and a visionary leader,” marie claire’s Georgie McCourt says. 

“I was also thrilled to see that  ALEMAIS’s Lesleigh Jermanus won Designer of the Year. I don’t know a single woman who doesn’t want to wear Alemais. They’re the kind of clothes that make you smile and isn’t that what fashion is all about?” 

Maddison Hockey

Digital Editor

After studying a Bachelor of Journalism at The University of Wollongong and Fashion Business at FBI Fashion College, Maddison began her now decade-long career in the media industry. She’s worked across print, digital and affiliates at some of Australia’s biggest entertainment, lifestyle and fashion titles (ELLE, Marie Claire, The Australian Women’s Weekly, Who, Girlfriend and more) covering the latest trends, cultural moments and celeb news.

Previously, she was the Senior Shopping Editor at Marie Claire and ELLE, where she combined her digital expertise and ability to scroll through endless online shopping sites without tire to help fashion-devotees like her find the perfect item.

Currently the Digital Editor of Marie Claire, her love for and expertise in e-commerce still sees her trying on countless pairs of jeans in the name of research, that is, when she’s not covering the latest celeb news, dissecting runway trends or advocating on women’s issues.