Womenswear label Albus Lumen has won favour with both buyers and critics, scooping out the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia 2018 darling.
The brand's resort 2019 collection, Pablo/Paloma, featured extended product ranging with a range of highly wearable dresses and separates.
It particularly resonated with international buyers in town for the industry event.
"I really love Albus Lumen," Net-a-Porter fashion director Lisa Aiken told ragtrader.com.au. "We launched the brand on site for resort 18 and the aesthetic is beautiful and understated."
Aiken said this was her third visit to Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia, with 10 Australian brands secured as a result of the event.
"Based on these experiences I am out here to scout more new talent as well as meet with our existing Australian brands."
Albus Lumen also proved to be a hit with UK luxury platform MatchesFashion.com. Fashion and buying director Natalie Kingham said the brand has proven selling power.
"I was first introduced to the brand when I was in Sydney for Fashion Week a couple of years ago and it’s one that our customers have really loved since we launched it. The brand has gone from strength to strength each season."
Critics also gave the brand a thumbs-up. In describing the resort 2019 collection, Vogue Australia's Zara Wong praised its wearability and extended ranging.
"Showing at Carriageworks gave its designer Marina Afonina more leeway to work on a larger scale as she tells Vogue, catapulting the label from emerging to – we hope – a fashion week mainstay," Wong wrote in her review.
Grazia Australia's Nicholas Carolan also noted its move beyond relaxed linen separates and swimwear, with tailoring and eveningwear extensions.
"Despite the simplicity of many of the looks, the designer succeeded again at telling a transportative story through staging and styling."