Afterpay Australian Fashion Week (AAFW) has announced the lineup of designers for its consumer program, AAFW: The Experience.
The program gives consumers access to a wide selection of fashion shows from 8pm each night of the week-long event.
Headline events include a group showcase by Indigenous Fashion Projects with designers Indii, Kirrikin, Liandra Swim, Native Swimwear, Ngali and MAARA Collective, as well as a show from sustainable designer Hansen & Gretel.
Each event will feature a selection of items available for purchase.
AAFW: The Experience also offers consumers access to select shows on the official AAFW schedule such as Adaptive Clothing Collective, Daniel Avakian, Dyspnea, First Nations Fashion and Design, Karla Špetić, Mariam Seddiq, Next Gen presented by DHL, sass & bide and St. Agni.
IMG VP-MD of fashion events and properties APAC Natalie Xenita welcomed the announcement of The Experience program.
"We’re thrilled to present this lineup of designer runway shows, special events and activations exclusively for consumers taking place in-person at Carriageworks.
"The relationship between designers and their customers has never been stronger and AAFW: The Experience gives consumers a gateway into Fashion Week to engage with the designers they follow in an intimate way.
"The five-day program offers fans a truly unmatched experience featuring runway shows from some of the newest and most notable names in Australian fashion," she said.
Returning to the program alongside The Experience, is Afterpay's Future of Fashion Collection runway, which will feature designers including Anna Quan, Cue, Manning Cartell, Rachel Gilbert and Oroton.
Additionally, AAFW: The Talks program of discussions will also see industry leaders delving into the hot-button issues of the industry including:
- Empowering Voices: Fashion’s Cultural Impact on Representation and Inclusion
- Digital Fashion: The New Frontier
- First Nations Fashion and Design: Yours, Mine and Ours
- Back of House
- Generation: NXT, presented by DHL, with Next Gen 2022’s four winning designers
- The Sustainable Business Journey, presented by City of Sydney
- AAFW: In Conversation With… presented by Shopify, a series of discussions with some of the industry’s favourite designers including Anna Quan, Bassike, Bianca Spender, Ginger & Smart and Michael Lo Sordo and Alyce Tran.
NSW Minister for Enterprise, Investment, Trade and Tourism, Stuart Ayres added that the government is excited to see AAFW come to life.
"The NSW Government is proud to support Afterpay Australian Fashion Week, which not only contributes to the cultural offering of Sydney but also helps ignite growth in our state’s creative and retail industries by providing opportunities for designers to showcase their creativity and forge new pathways to market.
"This is a signature event on our state’s event calendar, putting a spotlight on Sydney as the fashion capital of Australia and underscoring the importance of retail tourism.
"We are committed to supporting events like AAFW, which align with our Visitor Economy Strategy 2030 to make NSW the premier visitor economy of the Asia Pacific," he said.
AAFW will take place from 9 -13 May 2022 at Carriageworks in Sydney.