With the Australian Fashion Industry Awards fast approaching, Ragtrader is taking a daily look inside each category — the finalists, the work behind the entries and the strategy that earned them their place.
Next up: Emerging Brand Award, which recognises newly launched businesses that have hit the ground running. The seven finalists are Anthem Workwear, Aur Oceà, Being Wear, Hyde & Stone, Maku, Parq and Van Brussel.
Winners will be revealed at the AFIA Awards Lunch on Thursday 6 August at The Promenade Docklands, Melbourne. Tickets are on sale now.
The AFIAs 2026 are supported by Headline Sponsor The Retail Score, Gold Sponsors Better Packaging and ReStore, Silver Sponsors Apparel21 and Williams Logistics and Bronze Sponsor Afterpay.
Here's the work that got the finalists there in alphabetical order:
Anthem Workwear
Founded by Duncan St Baker in 2020 and launched in 2021 with more than two decades of workwear industry experience, Anthem was built on a clear insight: the modern tradie had evolved, but the product hadn't. A new generation of tradespeople were training before work and bringing an athlete's mindset to their craft — yet workwear remained heavy, restrictive and disconnected from their lifestyle.
From that came the philosophy: From the workout to the worksite — the design standard behind category-defining products like the Triumph Pant and Triumph Short, which introduced lightweight, moisture-wicking, high-stretch performance fabrications to Australian workwear alongside a bold sporting aesthetic that broke with the category's conservative norms.
Anthem launched wholesale-first through 30 retail partners and is now distributed through more than 180 stockists nationwide, including national groups Totally Workwear, Workscene, Worklocker, Hip Pocket Workwear and Workwear Hub. Its direct-to-consumer channel has doubled year on year. With the Australian workwear market valued at over $1 billion, the brand is targeting more than 300 retail locations within two years — while launching a loyalty program in late 2026, building community through the Anthem Run Club and preparing international expansion across the UK, Europe, New Zealand and the US.
Aur Oceà
Aur Oceà was founded in 2025 to redefine premium swim and resort wear as trans-seasonal rather than holiday-driven — elevated pieces defined by a feminine, haute bohemian aesthetic, underpinned by responsible design, longevity and conscious fabrication, with a fluid interplay between swim and ready-to-wear encouraging multiple points of wear.
Within 18 months, the brand achieved more than $2 million in annual turnover across direct-to-consumer and wholesale channels. Commercial strength is validated by an average order value of around $519 and a returning customer rate near 30% on a three-month view — considered purchasing behaviour that reflects strong brand affinity and a quality-over-volume operating model.
The wholesale trajectory has been rapid and prestigious. Partnerships span David Jones and THE ICONIC alongside a global network of more than 60 boutique and resort partners across Australia, the US and key international destinations — all supported by strong sell-through. The future strategy centres on scaling direct-to-consumer globally with the US as the primary growth market, disciplined full-price positioning, continued investment in sustainable textile development and fit-focused technology that removes the traditional barriers of buying swimwear online.
Being Wear
Being Wear began with a deeply personal need — the founder's daughter struggled to find underwear that felt comfortable against her skin. The brand launched in August 2025 to serve people with sensory sensitivities and those who don't see themselves in traditional gender categories, removing gender labels entirely: customers choose tops or bottoms, then bottoms with or without a pouch.
The sensory-first approach pairs ultra-soft modal and bamboo — using up to 10 times and six times less water than cotton, respectively — with reduced seams, irritation-free construction, sizing spanning 5XS to 5XL and fully compostable packaging.
Traction has been rapid, with strong revenue growth putting the business well ahead of the typical break-even curve for DTC apparel, alongside excellent customer ratings, healthy repeat purchase rates, and a return rate well below industry norms; early test market success and substantial organic content engagement have built a strong community, and the business is now pursuing seed funding with the UK identified as the next market.
Hyde & Stone
Founded by designer Jemyma Kavanagh — whose early bespoke and made-to-order model was developed alongside her grandmother, informed by generations of tailoring — Hyde & Stone is an Australian luxury womenswear label built on natural fibres, refined tailoring and enduring design. The brand works exclusively with wool, silk and cotton sourced from Australia, Japan, Italy and Europe alongside carefully selected deadstock.
The model resists fashion's churn by design. Intentional capsule releases, limited production runs and pre-order models see each capsule designed to integrate with seasons past — encouraging longevity, versatility and repeat wear, all designed and manufactured in Australia.
Recognition has built steadily: the People's Choice Award at the 2023 David Jones National Designer Award, a Capsule 9 runway at the 2024 Melbourne Fashion Festival Sustainability Runway and uniform collaborations with The Calile Hotel and Raes on Wategoes that extended the brand into luxury hospitality. Editorial coverage spans Vogue, RUSSH, ELLE, Grazia and Marie Claire, including print in Vogue Australia in July 2025 and pieces worn by Vogue editors across three consecutive Australian Fashion Weeks. Future plans include selective wholesale expansion across Europe and the US, category extensions into knitwear and leather and ultimately an AFW showing and permanent flagship.
Maku
Maku began with a founder who had spent nearly 20 years making art on the side of a corporate career and couldn't find a creative, elevated T-shirt under $200 — so she painted her own. Every Maku piece begins as an original artwork by founder Maku. Not from a catalogue, not AI, not trend-led. The painting comes first and the garment follows.
In its early operating period, the brand has generated substantial revenue, shipped a large volume of units, and processed a strong number of B2C orders — with customers returning for repeat purchases time and again. A significant portion of early revenue was reached with no paid advertising, and demand has repeatedly exceeded supply, with customers willing to wait extended periods for restocks rather than taking refunds.
Operationally, the business has evolved from print-on-demand into bulk production, wholesale and robotic 3PL fulfilment. Maku is stocked through David Jones, The Iconic, Superette and more than 150 boutiques across Australia and New Zealand. US traction is building through BNTO and FashionPass, with Free People going live soon, quarterly New York showroom appointments in front of 300-plus global buyers and a physical US home via partnership with bond-eye's Bleecker Street flagship.
Parq
Parq was founded in 2025 to redefine how women engage with golf — a category that has catered to a traditional player while overlooking a new generation seeking performance wear aligned with their lifestyle and identity. Positioned at the intersection of sport and lifestyle, the brand delivers elevated apparel built on breathable knit constructions and structured stretch tailoring, designed to transition seamlessly from course to everyday life.
Growth has been built on cultural relevance rather than traditional retail pathways. Parq operates as a digitally led, direct-to-consumer business supported by highly selective wholesale with premium golf clubs and event activations. Strategic seeding prioritises cultural alignment over paid influence — driving organic adoption by high-profile figures including Tammy Hembrow, Carrie Bickmore and world champion surfer Molly Picklum.
The numbers show a premium proposition landing: an average order value of $252.46 with continued growth of 20%, a returning customer rate up 134% to 16.12% and an Instagram-led strategy that has driven an 879% increase in revenue contribution from the platform — all achieved without reliance on traditional paid marketing. Expansion plans span new silhouettes and lifestyle categories, premium wholesale across Australia and internationally and key Asian markets where women's golf participation is growing fast.
Van Brussel
Van Brussel was founded in 2025 to challenge the pace and practices of modern fashion — a contemporary premium un-gendered Australian label sitting at the intersection of refined minimalism and directional design, built for garments with lasting emotional, aesthetic and material value.
Innovation is embedded in the model. Small-run production intentionally limits quantities to reduce waste and preserve exclusivity, while a defining use of premium designer deadstock fabrics repurposes high-quality unused materials from global supply chains, making each garment inherently limited. Local Australian manufacturing enables close collaboration with makers, ethical standards and the agility to operate outside traditional fashion calendars.
Industry recognition has come quickly. In 2025, the brand showed at Melbourne Fashion Week, Melbourne Fashion Festival and Adelaide Fashion Week, winning the National Designer Award for Sustainability at Melbourne Fashion Festival 2025. It has since been selected to present at Australian Fashion Week 2026 as part of the DHL Next Generation showcase. Successful pop-ups in Melbourne and Adelaide have delivered strong sell-through across multiple small-run collections. Further activations are planned for Sydney, London and Tokyo as the brand scales with intention — balancing expansion with exclusivity and innovation with longevity.