Photo Diary: How Collective Closets prepared for Melbourne Fashion Week

Behind the scenes.

Fashion weeks might appear seamless and glamorous when you’re peering from the sidelines (or from your phone as a digital bystander), but they’re no walk in the park for those who work tirelessly behind the scenes, often months in advance.

For the countless programmers, editors, stylists and designers who make Melbourne Fashion Week the highly anticipated and renowned event it is, the lead-up to its commencement requires some later nights and some serious resilience and grit as they clamber to the finish line.

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

But as an official media partner of this year’s Melbourne Fashion Week (and long-time attendees), the Fashion Journal team can confidently say the chaos that precedes the runway is always, always worth it. For Melbourne sister duo Fatuma and Laurinda Ndenzako, the co-founders of Collective Closets, preparing for the debut of their latest collection Collection Conscious was nothing short of a whirlwind.

On top of ensuring the collection was stitched, shot and sorted, all ready to be part of Monday’s opening proceedings, the pair were also tasked with designing and assembling the tote bags for all guests and VIPs attending Melbourne Fashion Week. Below, Fatuma gives us an exclusive glimpse into their preparation for yesterday’s Le Méridien Pool Deck Runway, the opening show of Melbourne Fashion Week.

Consulting the stylists

Stamina and an amazing group of friends who work in the industry are essential to pull you through fashion week. Here, we are meeting with our favourite stylists Karinda Mutabazi and Niki Williams. Market Lane Cafe is the perfect place to meet and get advice on our upcoming runway looks – these two powerhouses know what they are doing, and their runway looks are always amazing!

Our amazing show stylist Holly Karas and I are going through all the looks for our show. We wanted to present a super strong collection that showcased what our brand is really all about. This collection will be bold, size-inclusive (as always) and include new pieces that have never been shown before.

Shoot day

Today we’re shooting the second drop of our new collection Collective Conscious. We are so lucky to be using our fave, Jasmin. She embodies everything we are all about – empowered and worldly.

The fashion world is not all glitz and glam. I spend a lot of time organising stock, planning, transporting and answering emails. Thank god I did that logistics degree! It definitely has come in handy… that and coffee!

We need to talk about these amazing bags we used as accessories for our show! They are handmade by the incredible Australian brand, The Hold Label. Rae Pooley is extremely talented. They were definitely the highlight of the show. 

The team

Did we mention we designed and made all the tote bags for Melbourne Fashion Week!? It really took a village to get these bags packed. We are so lucky to have amazing friends and family to assist us. This is the ultimate crew!

After some crazy big highs and lows, we couldn’t be prouder to be capping off the year by showcasing our newest collection on the runway. Everything we do is a homage to our late mother and talented seamstress, Stella, but it’s equally about celebrating women and connecting the incredible African artisans who make our threads to the beautiful people who wear them.

We feel so grateful to be able to share this with a wider audience on such a prestigious platform. We know how incredibly lucky we are to have a business that people love. Thank you Melbourne Fashion Week for having us!

To check out the rest of the Melbourne Fashion Week lineup, head here.