Australian Fashion Week 2025 | Influencer feud erupts off the runway

The manicured claws are out, with two Aussie influencers digging their designer heels in after one suggested the other looked like a “loofah” at Fashion Week.

Two influencers are digging their designer heels in, with one hitting back at the other by seemingly suggesting she arrived at Australian Fashion Week looking like a “loofah” before alleging she shopped at Kmart.

It’s too easy to say the claws are out. That’s just how everyone’s fingers look with acrylic nails at Sydney’s annual style festival which has been dubbed a “s**t show” by one fresh-faced content creator in a rant that has pushed a runway veteran to issue her a firm message: “don’t come”.

Who are we dealing with here? In one corner, we have Jamie Azzopardi, celebrity Sydney stylist with a rolodex of stars including the Hadid sisters, Kendall Jenner and musician SZA. On the opposite side of the ring is online internet personality Sopha Dophaa, the alleged human sponge.

Spray ‘n’ wipe.

News.com.au notes this story is not sponsored by Vileda or Chux.

The catwalk cat fight started when content creator Sophia Begg (best known as Sopha Dophaa on TikTok where she has about 1.4 million followers) hit out at Azzopardi, who had been interviewed in a vox pop video outside a fashion show and asked, “Who is the biggest micro trend final boss?”

Does that question mean nothing to you? Join the club (no dress code necessary). It meant nothing to Azzopardi, who doesn’t wish to reveal an age but admitted they’re not in the demographic of knowing the latest online slang.

The term “micro trend final boss” is used by Gen Z to describe an individual or outfit who regularly embraces short-lived fashion trends.

Often it is used to refer to someone who consumes fast-fashion, which is widely perceived to be a negative trait by the younger generations.

But Azzopardi, who uses they/them pronouns, told news.com.au they didn’t know that.

“I misunderstood the question of micro … whatever it was,” they said. “I didn’t understand the term. I said Sopha Dophaa is a boss, I don’t really understand her fashion but from what she’s created, she can wear a loofah and still look flawless.”

Coincidentally, that very day, Sopha Dophaa, 21, had arrived at Fashion Week wearing a woolly green ensemble.

No microfibre cloths were harmed.

Jamie Azzopardi makes an entrance at Fashion Week.

In response, Sopha Dophaa took to social media where she criticised the journalists behind the vox pop video for asking whose style “sucks” before seemingly faulting Azzopardi for wearing Shein, the fast-fashion brand shrouded in controversy for its environmental impact.

“You’re pretty much asking people to name a creator and call them out. That’s just not it,” she said in the lengthy rant. “The Australian influencer scene is already so toxic.”

She also said it breeds a culture of “bringing others down” and told her followers she was “named by someone who wore Shein” in the video, which has since been deleted after facing backlash.

Azzopardi, who wore a $70 Shein frock earlier in the week, has taken particular issue with the fast-fashion criticism and struck back by alleging Sopha Dophaa has made her own missteps.

“I think by calling people out about being called out, you make yourself sound less than smart,” Jamie told news.com.au at last night’s runway show for luxury Aussie label Mariam Seddiq, where they were wearing a $1000 frock by the label Self Portrait.

“The reason I wore Shein is because so many of my followers have said to me your fashion is great but it’s not attainable. And I think the way you choose to then say things like I wore Shein? You wear Adidas, you wear Gucci, you wear Prada. All those brands are made in China. You’ve also shopped at a Kmart. You’ve also shopped at a Supre. Every human has and we’re all guilty of fast-fashion.

“ … To come for me and say something that’s so redundantly silly as that is like calling out someone for shopping at Kmart. It’s like calling out someone for eating fast food when they could eat good quality food.”

Elsewhere in Sopha Dophaa’s almost-eight minute rant, she took aim at a journalist outside the runway event who asked her how much money she earns as a content creator. She also described this year’s Australian Fashion Week as a “total s**t show” with “a lack of diversity”.

The annual event is being led by the Australian Fashion Council for the first time after long-running partner IMG pulled out in November. AFC CEO Kellie Hush admitted to news.com.au this year’s redesigned festival is more scaled-back.

“Under the new management there was only been a few short months to produce the week, not 12 months, so this year is a step-change,” she said.

As well as a decreased line-up of runway shows and more limited invites, the outdoor bar at the event has been replaced by a Daihatsu coffee van.

Azzopardi had a harsh message for Sopha Dophaa, who said she had attended three previous Australian Fashion Weeks.

“If you want to complain, don’t come to Fashion Week,” Azzopardi said.

Jamie digs the heel in.

“I’m not saying she’s uneducated … but what I am saying is she needs to think about perspective. If you’re a fashion influencer in Australia, you want there to be a Fashion Week. And you critiquing it only puts them further behind, which allows you a limited scope. Is that the smartest thing to do? Probably not.”

Ms Hush said she will “take on any criticism” and “respect everyone’s opinion”, but also noted she can’t supervise the behaviour of influencers at the festival.

“We cannot control vox pops and every individual does has a right to not answer,” she said.

Azzopardi said they had tried messaging Sopha Dophaa following the vexing vox pops but hadn’t heard back.

“Sophia’s really young, and maybe she hasn’t thought about her forescope (sic) before she’s talked,” Azzopardi said.

Originally published as Australian Fashion Week 2025 | Influencer feud erupts off the runway