Australian Fashion Council to launch dedicated showroom at Paris Fashion Week

The Australian Fashion Council (AFC) is set to broaden its horizons with the launch of a new showroom at Paris Fashion Week’s SS27 edition dedicated to Australian designers. The initiative comes as a continuation of the organisation’s Global Gateways export programme, and marks what the council said is a “structural step-change” in how the local sector approaches the international market.

Taking place during Paris’ womenswear season between September 28 and October 6, the showroom will spotlight 15 emerging, established and First Nations designers, who will be introduced to international buyers and press while also attending the Australian Ambassador’s Residence.

Applications for the programme are open via two pathways; the AFW Track, for designers who presented during Australian Fashion Week 2025 or 2026; and a national competitive track open to wider AFC members. The final cohort will be announced in July 2026, with a pre-departure export readiness programme to then commence immediately.

Through Global Gateways: Paris 2026, the AFC hopes to address the prior lack of infrastructure and government-backing that has previously disabled designers from accessing sustained international relationships. The ability to venture further afield comes after the council was selected as one of a number of organisations to participate in the government’s Accessing New Markets Initiative (ANMI), a 50 million dollar Austrade export diversification programme bolstering sector-specific export initiatives.

Global Gateways: Paris builds on first ever government-backed fashion sector strategy

The Paris activation received further investment from New South Wales’ Create NSW as part of its NSW Fashion Sector Strategy 2025-2028, which was developed alongside the AFC and has been pitted as the first government fashion sector strategy. Establishing international export opportunities is a core pillar of the strategy, with 250,000 dollars made available to back emerging designers specifically, as they grow their business. Dedicated places in the showroom have been set up for NSW designers.

On a broader scale, Australian government officials have also recognised the importance of the country’s fashion sector, which is said to contribute 27.2 billion dollars to the national economy and employs nearly 500,000 people. Elsewhere, the recently secured new deal between the EU and Australia, which includes the elimination of tariffs on exports to the EU, has also opened up the market to 27 countries.

At the crux of the mission is getting designers in front of international press and buyers. Interest is already evident at Australian Fashion Week, where representatives from the likes of Revolve, Net-A-Porter, Revolve and Selfridges have previously been in attendance, including at its most recent edition held May 11 to 15.

By venturing into Paris, however, AFC’s executive chair, Marianne Perkovic, said designers will gain access to “the single most concentrated buyer market in the world”. “This will be a significant moment for Australian fashion on the world stage and we look forward to working with our partners at Austrade and Create NSW to support the global growth of the Australian fashion sector,” she added.

From the perspective of Jay Meek, general manager of Austrade’s Trade Diversification Taskforce, Global Gateways: Paris reflects efforts to combine the reach of Austrade’s global network and the sector knowledge of peak bodies like AFC to broaden the global scope of Australian businesses. He called the showroom concept “structured, commercially focused, and built on a clear understanding of where global buyers are and what they need to see”.