Claudia Li NZFW 2025

A Different Place and Time

New Zealand Fashion Week played host to one of the most highly anticipated returns in recent memory: the runway debut of international New Zealand designer Claudia Li on home soil.

For us, the highlight was the way Li balanced sheer and textured fabrications with sculptural silhouettes that, remarkably, still retained a softness. The tension between structure and fluidity felt considered and masterful. It was an extremely elevated and international show, one that left no doubt that Claudia Li knows exactly what she is doing. Her pedigree and global experience shone through every look, marking this as a landmark moment in the week’s programme.

The collection, titled A Different Place and Time, marked Li’s first runway in three years following almost a decade of presenting at New York Fashion Week. It was also her very first runway presentation in New Zealand. Drawing on her archives from 2015–2018, she revisited iconic silhouettes such as the gathered and twisted sleeve, oversized bow shirt, pleated skirt, and mushroom skirt. These signatures were reintroduced with more volume, greater structure, and a palpable sense of intention.

Li describes the collection as “a return and a new beginning; a breath held between inhale and exhale, a moment of grounding before stepping forward again.” This duality was evident in how familiar forms were redefined with confidence—sleeves exaggerated, shapes fuller, garments taking up more space, yet never losing their refinement.

“Like me, it looks back to move forward,” Li noted of the collection. “These silhouettes feel like muscle memory; familiar but carrying new significance. They refuse to compromise—not on themselves or their vision.”

Ultimately, A Different Place and Time was more than a showcase of design; it was an act of reflection and recalibration. It asked the audience to consider fashion as both memory and progression, personal and universal. The show reaffirmed Li’s position not only as a designer of sculptural integrity and emotional storytelling, but also as a global talent who continues to shape contemporary fashion with purpose.

The collection will be available in store at The Shelter and online from December 2025.

Founded in 2015 in New York and now based in New Zealand, Claudia Li is recognised for her sculptural silhouettes, emotional storytelling, and playful yet grounded approach to design. Her work has been featured in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s In America: A Lexicon of Fashion exhibition and worn by cultural icons including Michelle Obama and Lady Gaga.