The premiere fashion event is preparing for a new year of connection.

New Zealand Fashion Week: Kahuria is making a welcome return to our calendars for 2024, with organisers saying the event will be even bigger and better, building on the momentum of this year’s Fashion Week.

The scheduled dates for 2024 are August 20-24, and will again build on this year’s focus on inclusivity with a range of public programming and tickets.

For those who live outside Auckland, it’s an opportunity to save the dates now for New Zealand’s premiere fashion showcase, accessible for all.

An Exploration Of Identity

After four years of interruptions from Covid restrictions, New Zealand Fashion Week returned this year with a fresh perspective. General manager Yasmin Farry and the NZFW team made a concerted effort to connect with the tangata whenua of central Tāmaki — Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei.

The name Kahuria takes inspiration from “Te Kahu Topuni o Tuperiri”, a figurative term Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei use to signify their tribal area of interest in central Tāmaki Makaurau. Meaning “dog skin cloak of Tuperiri”, who is the revered ancestor of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, this iwi narrative also aligns with themes of beauty, innovation and unity — all things vital to shaping who we are during this moment in history.

To mark the fresh partnership, Viva documented a mix of emerging and indigenous designers at the heart of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei on Takaparawhau (Bastion Point) on the southern shore of Auckland’s Waitematā Harbour, a site imbued with deep historical significance, photographed by Rob Tennent. Contributing features editor Jessica Beresford spoke with a range of local designers to unpack what New Zealand fashion looks like now and canvassed Aotearoa’s diverse fashion landscape for an answer.

During the official schedule, Viva also hosted a panel discussion that looked at what New Zealand fashion means in both a local and international context, moderated by The New Zealand Herald’s Front Page podcast host Damien Venuto, Professor Dr Margo Barton, Huffer co-founder Steve Dunstan, fashion designer Jeanine Clarkin, writer Jessica Beresford, and Viva fashion and creative director Dan Ahwa. Revist the insightful panel talk here.

The week was also reflected upon by fashion director Dan Ahwa, who observed a range of highlights, including how established names reasserted their mana and new designers gave us hope.

“Designers displayed collections created with some of the learnings gleaned from the past four years. There was a concerted effort around circular design techniques, particularly with upcycled textiles, along with less-heavy collections, a result of in-season fashion available to shop straight from the runway,” said Dan.

“We also saw the type of clothes more attuned to our changing climate — shorter jackets and lighter coats, for example, and collective menswear that went beyond streetwear and suits. There was a strong display of Māori excellence from a range of designers, reinforcing the reimagined event’s commitment to its newly minted partnership with local iwi, Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei.”

The State of Our Modelling Industry

Over the years we’ve worked with local modelling agencies to ensure best practices are adhered to, whether it’s on a photo shoot or on the runway during New Zealand Fashion Week. With so many fashion designers relying on the casting process to book models that can help convey a brand’s message or the inspiration behind a collection, we took a closer look at the changes in the modelling industry and what the reality is like for a model during the week.

Award-winning features writer Kim Knight joined the Viva team this year as part of our reporting team on the ground, and followed 24-year-old model Hope Phillips around backstage at three shows on their schedule on Tuesday: Kiri Nathan, Jacqueline Anne and Juliette Hogan. The insightful character study drew the curtain back on the reality of what a 14-hour day at Fashion Week was like for one of the week’s top models.

The state of the modelling industry was also under the microscope as Emma Gleason took a closer look at who was in the spotlight this year and talked to industry insiders about what’s changed in their field. The update also explored the new crop of talent, as well as some old favourites who made the most impact at this year’s event.

A Buyer’s Perspective

At every Fashion Week, Viva catches up with invited buyers and delegates whose business it is to shop the runway to sell to their respective customers. This year, Madeline Crutchley caught up with buyers pre-Fashion Week and also during the week, reporting from the ground and staying in contact with influencers of a different kind.

Buyers, representing stores from Wānaka to Melbourne, travelled to Tāmaki Makaurau and the sunny Viaduct surrounds to see the collections of various New Zealand designers last week. Here’s what they had to say about the week.

A ‘Non-fashion’ Person’s Perspective

Kim Knight also lent her observations to what Fashion Week might be like for someone not entrenched in the fashion industry daily. Reporting from Row-B, her insightful commentary offered a grounded perspective on the event.

“Last week, approximately one million shoes, dresses, pants and other garments I will never have the words for paraded Auckland’s Viaduct Events Centre,” she noted. “It was the first New Zealand Fashion Week since 2019; a collective celebration of sartorial style not seen for the past three Covid-plagued years.”

The Key Takeaways From A Week of Beauty Trends

This year, a new makeup sponsor, Basalaj Beauty, was ushered on board to help support this year’s event, with founder Amber Basalaj speaking to Viva beauty editor Ashleigh Cometti in the lead-up to the event.

What were the key beauty trends from backstage? Ashleigh was behind the scenes every day reporting on some of the key looks presented, interviewing hair and makeup artists and exploring what inspired the designers and their teams to create specific beauty looks. These were her best picks of the most impactful beauty moments from NZFW.

Metallic makeup, colourful wigs, pearl embellishments and towering topknots — this year’s runways had it all, and Ashleigh proffered a selection of looks that could easily be recreated at home, with some timely inspiration as we lead into the festive season.

... and What About The Clothes?

Beyond the parade of street-style looks outside the NZFW hub of Tāmaki Makaurau’s glistening Viaduct Events Centre, on the runway was a medley of in-season fashion that the public could purchase straight after the show, as well as next winter’s wares. A unique mix of emerging designers and Maori fashion was a welcome reminder of the rich diversity of our fashion talent in Aoetearoa.

Viva had the honour of presenting six promising labels, from new and noted, to designers who have been honing their craft for several years, immersing themselves only recently into commercial opportunities for their brands. The Viva Next Gen showcase was a highlight on the schedule, introducing these six designers to the wider industry. Revisit Annabel Dickson’s one-on-one interviews with these brilliant designers: Sandra Tupu of Flying Fox menswear, Phillip Heketoa of Lipo, Nicole Hadfield of Oosterom, James Bush, Tess McCone of label Su`mar, and Nicole Van Vuuren.

There was a range of in-season items the Viva team wanted to shop immediately after the runway too, along with an assortment of standout looks from the week that the team selected as their favourites.

Wool was also high on veteran designer Liz Mitchell’s agenda, who caught up with Dan Ahwa during the week to discuss her commitment to advocating and supporting the return to more natural fibres, and to explore more innovative ways to use upcycled wool in our designs.

New Zealand Fashion Week: Kahuria returns August 20-24 2024. Stay tuned for event updates, programming and ticket sales at NZFashionweek.com