The official lineup for Afterpay Australian Fashion Week 2023 is here

Unmatched talent.

Australia’s biggest fashion week is set to return to Sydney’s shores this May. Afterpay Australian Fashion Week (AAFW) has just released its highly anticipated schedule and naturally, it’s brimming with local talent.

This year, there will be 46 designer runway shows and presentations held between May 15 and 19. Taking place in Sydney’s iconic Carriageworks location, AAFW will see a mix of established and emerging brands showcasing their Resort 2024 collections.

Discover more up-and-coming local designers in our Fashion section. 

Over five jam-packed days, panels, runways and pop-ups will pull fashion creatives into the fold. And for its second year in a row, AAFW will be opening up select events to consumers through its AAFW: The Experience initiative. Eager fashion goers will be able to purchase a seat at shows including Michael Lo Sordo, Gary Bigeni, Karla Špetić, Iordanes Spyridon Gogos and Erik Yvon.

“The 2023 schedule features the next generation of Australian designers defining the future of Australian fashion alongside some of the industry’s biggest names and celebrates the ingenuity and unmatched creative talent of our country,” says Natalie Xenita, Vice President-Managing Director of IMG Fashion Events and Properties, Asia-Pacific.

Among these next-generation designers is Alémais, the winner of the 2022 National Designer Award, Auckland label Wynn Hamlyn, digital fashion house Injury and contemporary designer Alix Higgins. You’ll find Fashion Journal regulars like Phoebe Pendergast, Wackie Ju and Verner there too, as well as New Zealand label Maggie Marilyn and slow fashion brand Joslin making their runway debut.

Eleven First Nations fashion designers will also be part of the mix. Take note of the Indigenous Fashion Projects runway, Ngali’s stand-alone show, as well as the Next Gen runway.

AAFW: The Talks makes space for industry-led conversations and special events, covering topics from gender to sustainability. On our radar is the Gender Diversity and the Fashion Industry talk, featuring designer Jackie Wu, and models Manahou Mackay and Kai Clancy.

Panel conversation I Love the Nightlife: Club Culture and Fashion will look at the intersections between queer culture and style, in an open discussion between artist Byron Spencer, model and casting director Basjia Almaan, Sydney queer icon Jonny Seymour and fashion journalist Isabelle Truman.

Fashion is only made possible by the teamwork of those involved behind the scenes. In an attempt to highlight the incredible array of diverse stylists, models and various other fashion professionals, IMG’s Changemakers program is here for its third year in a row. Changemakers Asia Hassan, Basjia Almaan, Jackie Wu, James Parr, Miguel Urbina Tan and Mike Nguyen will be spotlighted through AAFW runway shows, content and programming.

To take a closer look at AAFW’s full schedule, head here.