NEW ZEALAND: Air New Zealand Fashion Week (ANZFW) has undergone a series of changes during its summer hiatus, allowing Australian designers on the catwalk and introducing new corporate sponsors. Celebrating its eighth anniversary this year, the September 16 to 21 event will mark the first time Australians have been allowed to participate in the runway shows.
ANZFW head Pieter Stewart confirmed she was "in talks" with a number of Australia's up and coming designers with a view to confirm between six and eight for this year's event. The news follows an aborted attempt to get Australian brands to stage their own showings in a dedicated showroom on site last year.
Stewart said the initiative seemed "only natural".
"We now see many New Zealand designers successfully exporting in Australia and using Rosemount Australian Fashion Week as a platform to showcase their ranges. So we hope that opening up our fashion week will support our Australian counterparts to achieve the same success," Stewart said.
It is understood the selection process is currently underway with the list of Australian and New Zealand designers showing at the event likely to be announced early next month.
Meanwhile, ANZFW's long-standing relationship with Hilton Hotels has also come to an end, with Auckland's The Westin Hotel being named as the event's new hotel partner. Other key sponsors include Air New Zealand, Westpac Bank and The New Zealand Herald newspaper.