NZFW 2026 Officially Open

NZ Fashion Week 2026 Opens with a Powerful Celebration of Creativity and Resilience

There was a real sense of occasion at Giltrap Group’s Grey Lynn headquarters last night as New Zealand Fashion Week presented by Giltrap Group officially opened its 25th anniversary edition.

With 375 VIP guests gathered at 119 Great South Road, the evening was as much about coming together as it was about marking a milestone. Designers, creatives, industry leaders, sponsors, media, influencers and supporters filled the space, alongside Honourable Minister Louise Upston, Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown, Deputy Mayor Desley Simpson and members of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei.

The mood was warm, celebratory and, importantly, optimistic. After a difficult period for the fashion industry, there was a palpable sense of the community rallying around its own — reconnecting, championing creativity and looking forward.

Among those in attendance was our Together Journal editor Greta Kenyon, who joined the fashion crowd for an evening that felt like a genuine celebration of New Zealand fashion and the creative community behind it.

The 25th anniversary of NZFW arrived at an interesting moment for the industry. Economic pressures have tested fashion businesses both here and internationally, but last night offered a spirited reminder that creativity is remarkably resilient. If anything, the challenges have made the desire to collaborate, support one another and create something meaningful feel even more important.

There was a buzz throughout the evening — old friends catching up, new connections being made and a strong sense of camaraderie among the people who continue to put their time, money, talent and belief behind New Zealand fashion.

For NZFW owner Feroz Ali, the future is looking bright.

“New Zealand Fashion Week belongs to an extraordinary community of people who believe in the creativity and potential of this industry. We have an incredibly bright future ahead of us, and that future is made possible by the designers, creatives, partners and sponsors who continue to invest their time, energy and belief into New Zealand fashion.”

That sense of collective belief was reflected in one of the evening’s significant announcements: the creation of the New Zealand Fashion Design Council (NZFDC).
Operating alongside NZFW as an independent organisation, the council will aim to help New Zealand designers develop international sales and marketing networks, beginning with a cross-market partnership with the Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI).

As part of the partnership, NZFW will support the FDCI in 2026 with Khadi – Beyond Borders, a runway show featuring six designers from India. In return, pathways will be created for Kiwi designers to showcase their collections in India, with further developments for the NZFDC expected in 2027.

It is a move that signals a desire not simply to celebrate New Zealand fashion at home, but to build stronger international connections and create new opportunities for the designers behind it.

NZFW 2026 has been spearheaded by Executive Director Liam Taylor, who helped reinvent the event in 2025 and has continued to build its cultural relevance while focusing on tangible economic opportunities for designers and the wider industry.

“Twenty-five years is an incredible milestone for New Zealand Fashion Week, but this week is as much about the future as it is about our past,” Taylor said. “Our ambition is to create an event that generates genuine cultural currency for New Zealand fashion while delivering meaningful commercial opportunities for the designers and businesses that make up our industry.”

THE ART OF STYLE

The evening’s centrepiece was The Art of Style, the opening-night show of New Zealand Fashion Week Kahuria presented by Giltrap Group, curated by NZFW Creative Director Dan Ahwa.

Beginning with the whakataukī He toi whakairo, he mana tangata — Where there is artistic excellence, there is human dignity, the presentation explored the relationship between fashion, performance and art, bringing new-season collections into conversation with pieces from New Zealand’s creative past and present.

And it was an ambitious way to open Fashion Week.

Rather than presenting fashion simply as something to be consumed, The Art of Style considered why we dress, how clothing shapes identity and what personal style means at a time when algorithms can increasingly predict — and influence — what we like.

The answer was decidedly human.

The show drew together contemporary New Zealand designers with costume collections from New Zealand Opera and the Royal New Zealand Ballet, alongside references to poets, Impressionist painters, choreographers and significant Māori and Pacific artists.

It also celebrated the often unseen hands behind fashion: dyers, milliners, embroiderers, pattern cutters, machinists, wardrobe teams and technicians — the skilled people who transform an idea into something tangible.

In a world increasingly experienced through screens, The Art of Style made a compelling case for clothing as something physical, personal and alive. Something we put on our bodies, move through the world in, and ultimately make our own.

The setting was equally considered. Giltrap Group’s multi-use headquarters, designed by Warren and Mahoney, provided a striking backdrop, its balance of the practical and the beautiful echoing many of the ideas at the heart of the show.

For Ahwa, the presentation was an opportunity to look both backwards and forwards.

“New Zealand fashion has always been at its most compelling when it reflects who we are and where we come from,” he said. “Opening night is an opportunity to celebrate that history, but also to capture the energy of where our fashion culture is heading next.”

And perhaps his most fitting observation was this: “The Art of Style isn’t about having perfect taste — personally, I prefer bad taste, whatever that is. It’s about developing your own.”

That sentiment felt particularly apt last night. In an industry where trends can be predicted, copied and rapidly consumed, personal expression remains one thing that cannot easily be automated.

A NEW CHAPTER

The evening also acknowledged the significant support of Tātaki Auckland Unlimited, whose financial contribution and support through Auckland’s venues continues to help bring NZFW to life and reinforce Auckland’s position as the home of New Zealand Fashion Week.

The 2026 event has also received significant investment from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment through the Government’s Major Events programme, recognising the economic, cultural and tourism value generated by major events in New Zealand.

Presenting partner Giltrap Group played a central role in opening the 25th anniversary celebrations, hosting the evening at its Grey Lynn headquarters and supporting NZFW’s ambition to provide an internationally relevant platform for New Zealand creativity.

From today, the focus shifts to the runways, with six days of shows, presentations, conversations and experiences bringing together some of New Zealand’s most established fashion names alongside an emerging generation of designers and creatives.

But if last night was anything to go by, this anniversary edition is about much more than looking back.

For 25 years, New Zealand Fashion Week has provided a stage for the people, ideas and talent shaping fashion in Aotearoa. Last night, surrounded by the community that has helped build it, the event celebrated that legacy — while making it clear that the next chapter is already underway.

And after a challenging few years, there was something particularly encouraging about seeing the fashion industry show up for itself.

The creativity is still there. The ambition is still there. And, perhaps most importantly, so is the community.

New Zealand Fashion Week presented by Giltrap Group runs from 17–22 August 2026 in Auckland.