“It’s a surreal time to be an emerging designer”. That was the message of Esse Studios founder Charlotte Hicks, way back in 2020, as the pandemic forced the postponement of that year’s Australian Fashion Week (AFW). Four years, and an Australian runway debut later, Hicks is of a similar mindset.

“This landscape is changing almost monthly,” Hicks says to Vogue. With Hicks, Esse Studios had its first runway show two years ago, using the vaulted halls of the Sydney Opera House as its stage. There, Hicks presented a meditative collection that showcased the elegance and considered approach she had taken in the years leading up to the show.

“I did show at a rather peculiar time in 2022,” she says of that period. “I feel like things are changing faster and in a constant state of flux. There is no doubt though that there are more and more demands on brands across all parts of the business to really have everything ‘nailed’ and be ‘doing it all’”.

Despite being one of the most well-loved and lauded shows of the 2022 calendar, Esse Studios did not show in 2023, and again in 2024. The decision shines a spotlight on the challenges emerging designers face, and the impact holding a runway show can have on the other areas of the business. Hicks laments the expectation placed on emerging designers like her to continue to show. And she’s not alone in highlighting that any runway presentations require considerable resources, taking attention away from key elements like logistics, brand awareness, online experience, and product.

“There is just more and more pressure for everything to work, and it's a lot for any business whatever the size. You can’t drop the ball…. it all has such a ripple effect. That’s just a sign of the precarious economic times we are all enduring.”

Esse Studios at Australian Fashion Week 2022. Image credit: Lucas Dawson Photography

Ultimately, for Hicks, the decision not to show boiled down to needing to stay focused on what she dubs “key strategic manoeuvres.” Fashion shows are not planned overnight, they are all-consuming logistical masterstrokes that involve many moving parts, as well as financing. “You need to think about the sequencing of events when you are growing a business… you do have to focus on the milestones that are going to ‘unlock’ the next one.”

“I always say it's a constant ‘dance’ between all things ‘inward’, refining the internals of the business and all things ‘outward’ focused,” she says, “we don’t talk enough about the importance of the ‘inward’.”

Hicks also points to the culture she is trying to nurture within her business. “Burnout is a very real thing in this industry, so it also comes down to the company culture you are trying to build too. A longer term focus and building a sustainable business is what I am all about.”

2024 was a time to take stock. “We are focusing a lot on our Atelier space in Paddington; a new private showroom and retail space we have opened by appointment, nurturing our beautiful Esse community, and really cultivating our women’s direct experience of the brand and the product.”

Two looks from Wynn Hamlyn resort 2024. Image credits: InDigital

Given the smaller scale many brands showing at AFW are operating at, the decision to prioritise the team was not only found at Esse Studios. New Zealand designer Wynn Crawshaw of Wynn Hamlyn echoed Hicks’ sentiments. “As a small team, the drain on us from a time and HR perspective is huge,” he says, “the show is only 12 minutes but the impact seems to stretch out to a month or so—before and after.”

Last year, Wynn Hamlyn staged a high-octane show at a go-karting track in Sydney’s Inner East. Illuminated by neon lights, the presentation of both womenswear and menswear was high-paced, tire marks not the only things burned into the eyes of watchers-on. But despite all this grandeur, and the success the brand has enjoyed since—the slinky tracksuits have been spotted on the likes of Pete Davidson and rapper Jack Harlow—the decision to keep viewers waiting, was economical.

“We have all had a tough year,” he says, “and are bracing for the year to come. Businesses are gravitating towards marketing that has direct and instant results—rather than shows—which I see as more of a long-term, brand-building investment.”

A runway beneath the city of Sydney for Wynn Hamlyn resort 2023. Image credit: Getty Images

It’s likely not the end of Wynn Hamlyn at fashion week. Just as the designer echoes, it’s a break to focus on the more business-oriented aspects of the brand. “When you are a smaller business, showing can make you focus on the show rather than the collection,” he says, “It's not until much later in sales that you realise that a great show doesn't mean a good collection from a sales or even wearability perspective.”

Crawshaw is using the time off to reflect, and re-energise, something that will no doubt prove invaluable upon the brand’s return. “I think creatively, it's good to have space to realise new ideas and concepts. Having a break allows time, without so much of a churn-it-out mentality.”

More and more Australian designers have been gaining domestic, and even global recognition consistently over the past decade. In 2023, Jeremy Hershan’s Haulier closed the week’s shows with a triumphant celebration of colour and craftsmanship in one of Sydney’s most iconic locations; the Harry Seidler-designed, 25 Martin Place.

Haulier’s closing walk in 2023. Image credit: Getty Images

“Haulier is not necessarily a runway brand,” Hershan told GQ Australia after the show in 2023. “It was more an opportunity to have a presentation that felt, and spoke to, our ethos and our brand language.” Awash with vintage styling and a matching backdrop, the presentation of the collection felt like a complete being with its setting, announcing Haulier to its audience.

Since then, Hershan has won Australia’s National Designer Award for 2024. It’s of Australian fashion’s most prestigious awards, with past winners including Toni Maticevski, Dion Lee, and Romance Was Born. Hershan echoed again the desire to focus on other business priorities, as Haulier’s fans await the full collection from that presentation to release.

“As an independent brand, Australian Fashion Week is a significant investment in terms of both resources and capital,” Hershan says. “Securing financial sponsorship upfront is essential, which is a challenge in the current economic climate… Instead, our focus has shifted to our Paris showroom.”

From a business perspective, these international showrooms are where the significant buyers, and thus cash flow, are achieved. Here, buyers from all over the world can experience first-hand the materials and diligent approach to design that sets Haulier apart. Hershan remarked he’s excited to return to the calendar—adequate planning and sponsorship permitting—and “up the ante on our previous effort”.

Esse Studios’ opening look at Australian Fashion Week 2022. Image credit: Lucas Dawson Photography

But as a showcase of talent, fashion weeks still play an important role. For Hicks, it marked an important moment in her brand. “In 2022 we were all just coming out of the pandemic and it felt like the perfect time to have a moment, and announce to the world what Esse is about, showing at Australian Fashion Week did just that,” she says, “as a designer that has been in this industry for so long, personally, it almost felt like all the decades of hard work fell into place and for that I am so grateful.”

It’s widely appreciated that Australian Fashion Week is a vital stepping stone for emerging designers entering the global market, something Nicky Zimmerman dubbed a “launching pad” in Vogue Business. But for designers not as established as those with a global business, it is also understood that this pivotal stage still has a high cost for entry, something Hicks, Crawshaw, and Hershan all elucidated in their experiences. Amidst the wider luxury slowdown and adapting business tactics, even with the celebratory elements of shows, the struggles are by no means unique to just these designers. Many emerging designers in Australia are faced with speed bumps to continue their business, even if the rewards of the showing are within vision, and especially as more established names migrate to overseas fashion weeks.

Australian Fashion Week doesn’t exist in a vacuum, it relies on the designers just as much as designers benefit from it. The fight to support emerging and established designers is not unique to Australia, but a universal tale of fashion. For us consumers, noticing a favourite designer missing from schedule is a sign of the times, yes, but can also be read as a cue to play our part. They’re off-schedule, but still there, and needing our support.

Sign up to our newsletter