Last year, Australian Fashion Week was thrust into a period of uncertainty. As the previous proprietors walked away from the event in the face of increasing costs and a changing industry, the relatively new Australian Fashion Council (formed back in 2018) stepped in with help from Destination NSW to deliver a ‘slimmer’ take on the week, now in its 29th year.
Unlike its Melbourne contemporaries, Melbourne Fashion Week and Melbourne Fashion Festival, who have increasingly democratised access to the runway through the sale of public tickets – even to the coveted front row – AFC’s first Australian Fashion Week sought to reclaim exclusivity this year. No tickets were available for purchase, the runways were invite only (not even allowing accredited media standing access if not invited, unlike in previous years), and reducing the number of visible personalities in the front row, preferring instead to focus on buyers and industry heavyweights.
As a result, attendance was significantly smaller – in particular, attendance to the industry talks portion of the event, which sees insiders discuss the biggest topics on hand each year. It was disappointing to see only a handful of attendees in the room for discussions on smart factories, AI advancements, sustainable manufacturing and more – not the fault necessarily of the drawcards or the pre-coverage of the event, but more likely simply because media without an invite were not allowed inside, nor could the public access tickets.
Alas, the topics covered would have done better to have a larger crowd – after all, these are the most pressing issues facing the fashion industry today. In particular, the discussion on sustainability and waste should have been accessible to consumers, in my opinion – as they are the ones who have the most skin in the game here.
Following the breathtaking news last year that Australians were the biggest consumers of clothing in the world, purchasing a whopping 56 items every year (I wrote about that here, also speaking to a few women who were shocked to discover that their own consumption aligned with this figure), it’s clear that we need more open discussion about what’s going wrong – and why most of these women are abandoning local retailers in favour of ultra fast fashion, the high street, and vintage or second hand.
The attempts to restrict this conversation to only those who are ‘approved’ to listen to it – and those who are arguably already experts on the topics presented – is a missed opportunity for genuine clarity. As someone who has written about AI in fashion, the issues with local manufacturing, and QR codes as a blockchain solution to traceability, I think the industry would be better served by stronger connections to the people who – let’s be honest – aren’t buying their clothing anymore, like they used to.
As we see endless news about local retailers shutting their doors for good, is it really the right move to shut the doors to such important conversations? For the industry to employ such an insular approach to who can attend a runway? Especially when these conversations are so important – and show such a strong commitment from local government towards reducing waste and decreasing the environmental footprint of the industry – something that I truly don’t believe the consumer believes is happening right now.
We heard about digital fabric printing, which allows for small batch manufacturing to reduce overproduction (as displayed on the Alix Higgins runway.) Nina Gbor delivered some hard truths about the industry’s assertion that “if you make sustainable fashion, people will just buy it,” – and the increasing gamification, as well as the incredibly sophisticated marketing techniques emerging from ultra-fast fashion behemoths. They spoke about labelling reform, and greenwashing, and faux textiles ‘recycling’.
A passionate Indigenous designer stood up and talked about how we spend all this time wringing our hands over increasing sustainability in the fashion industry, whilst mob designers start with sustainability, protecting country, and environmental stewardship first. (A timely reminder to support our First Nations fashion industry.)
There was an excellent conversation about how smart factories powered by AI can help to reduce manufacturing waste by refining design and fabrication processes. There was even a commitment this year to a feasibility study in order to expedite a smart factory in Australia. Surely all these insights would be valuable to consumers, and encourage them to stand behind our local industry.
But most of what I saw of fashion week coverage was off-duty models in street style galleries, TikTok videos criticising interviewers and interviewees, and ‘what I wore as a fashion editor’ articles leading to consumption-driven affiliate links.
And so, as the messenger of insider information – as journalists often are – we present the goods in the hope of getting the message through… because it surely isn’t going to reach consumers if all they see is a closed door.
Images – Liandra AFW show by Vasili Papathanasopoulos
Bianca O’Neill is a freelance journalist with bylines at Rolling Stone Magazine, Refinery29, The Age, Herald Sun, Yahoo Lifestyle, and more. Follow her on Substack or Instagram.
