PayPal Australia has extended its naming rights sponsorship of the Melbourne Fashion Festival for an additional three years.
This contract renewal, first signed in 2022, will see the festival supported through to 2027.
The announcement comes just weeks after the 2024 festival, which featured over 100 events and almost double the number of featured designers year-on-year. It is Australia’s largest consumer fashion event, and has now been running for 28 years.
Melbourne Fashion Festival CEO Caroline (Ralph) Ralphsmith said this sponsorship extension will strengthen the fashion event’s ability to expand its scale and influence ahead.
“This extended commitment confirms the confidence in our Festival and the consumer facing event model we are so proud of – a true world-class festival with fashion at its core,” Ralphsmith said.
In its third year as naming rights sponsor, PayPal kicked off the Premium Runway Series on Monday March 4, presenting a runway featuring supermodel Elle Macpherson as she returned to the runway for the first time in over a decade. The runway included locally grown fashion brands Aje, Anna Quan, Oroton, Martin Grant, Ngali, Viktoria & Woods and Bianca Spender.
“By partnering with Melbourne Fashion Festival, we’re creating even more connections between the Australian fashion industry and our 380 million consumer customers in Australia and around the world,” PayPal senior director of consumer engagement Shane Capron said.
The Festival’s 15-day 2024 programme commenced on February 24 and continued until March 9.