Positive thinking at Virgin Australia Melbourne Fashion Festival

Accentuating the positive is an underlying theme of Virgin Australia Melbourne Fashion Festival for next year.

Positively encouraging at the Virgin Australia Melbourne Fashion Festival 2017.

Buzz is still in a state of mild shock that December is upon us, and with it the forward planning for the new year.

However, one of the highlights of the annual calendar is the Virgin Australia Melbourne Fashion Festival, Australia’s biggest fashion event that connects consumers, retail and industry. Ahead of its official launch in that fine city tomorrow night, Buzz has some early intel for its 21st incarnation.

Next year’s event will run from March 1 to 19, spanning three weekends and two weeks which, while it seems like a long time, has actually brought its month-long cultural element into a tighter timeframe. Graeme Lewsey, about to deliver his sixth festival as chief executive, says organisers have tried to simplify the program next year under the umbrella of fashion, art and ideas.

The latter includes the business program, for which Buzz can reveal some early speakers at the main seminar (one of the advantages of being the host of said event). They will include Alexandre Elicha and Nicolas Dreyfus of The Kooples (recent entrants into the Australian market, Elicha is one of the three founding brothers); Luca Alessi, of the Alessi family known for its collaborations with designers including Philippe Starck; and Joanna Gunn, global chief brand officer for Lane Crawford department store.

Amusingly, following last year’s marketing breakfast at which Diesel creative director Nicola Formichetti declared that “marketing is dead”, that event has been rebranded as a business breakfast. Also included in the business program will be two fashion industry forums, hosted by Buzz peer Damien Woolnough, that will concentrate on local industry concerns.

“We’ve definitely seen in the world a lot of global concern and challenges, and people are feeling uncomfortable,” Lewsey tells Buzz. “What we feel is important is the connectivity and robustness of good relationships when running businesses.

“There is an overarching theme around heritage and reinvention this year, and we will see that certainly amongst family members and businesses, from the fourth generation of design collaborators at Alessi through to the three brothers in The Kooples.”

Continuing the familial theme, sibling brand Camilla and Marc will headline the grand showcase runway event.

“There’s a nice, positive conversation about what relationships can mean in the fashion industry,” says Lewsey. “It came from Fern Mallis (founder of New York Fashion Week and one of this year’s business speakers). She said, ‘I just want to work with nice people.’ We’re honouring this legacy that Fern delivered and we want to explore that further.”

For more information and tickets see vamff.com.au.

Buzz has been banging on about Australians’ love of online shopping for some time, and there’s a new player in the market that will allow us to purchase with more peace of mind. US online retailer Everlane has just entered the Australian market (everlane.com), and while you may think, “another day, another brand”, the business model here is a little different.

The offering, for men and women, is around basics and wardrobe building blocks — think simple dresses (pictured), knitwear, separates, shirting — but with transparency the overriding theme. To that end, each item on the website includes a link highlighting the factory where it is made, including photographs and information. There is also an outline of the true cost of the item. This lists the cost of each step of the manufacturing process — from materials to labour and shipping — then shows their final mark-up and what their competitors charge for something similar. It’s all part of the “conscious consumption” movement, making consumers think more about what they’re buying and trying to make positive impact right along the manufacturing chain.

See, more talk of positivity. That’s what we really need for next year, right?