The Mercedes-Benz Fashion Festival Returns for Five Fabulous Days of Style Inspiration

The Mercedes-Benz Fashion Festival returns to Brisbane this August for another jam-packed five days of outstanding designs and style-conscious parties from 25-29 August.

As one of Queensland’s most significant fashion events of the year, the festival coincides with the arrival of new Spring/Summer collections in store and provides fashion designers and retailers with the opportunity to showcase their wares to a rapt audience of industry leaders, fashion lovers and media.

This year’s exciting program of runway shows and events will be held in an incredible new location, Howard Smith Wharves. As Brisbane’s newest entertainment and lifestyle destination, the site is uniquely positioned beneath Story Bridge and features a wonderful array of lively bars and eateries, fantastic city and river views, beautiful green spaces and a stunning new boutique hotel by Art Series.

Mercedes-Benz Fashion Festival Brisbane director, Lindsay Bennett, is delighted with the move and has expressed her belief that the new location will provide a fittingly beautiful setting for the annual showcase of local, national and emerging fashion designers.

“We are excited to once again stage the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Festival and provide a significant platform for Queensland’s best established and up-and-coming design talent. The key focus of the festival is, as always, to shine a spotlight on our incredible local fashion industry, connecting designers with customers, media and industry insiders,” said Bennett.

“Howard Smith Wharves is a historic landmark and arguably Brisbane’s most on-trend destination, so it is the perfect backdrop as we welcome in the new Spring/Summer collections from top Queensland and national, as well as emerging, fashion designers.”

Events to Remember

A sunset launch party is set to kick things off in a glitzy affair within the gorgeous walls of the Fantauzzo. An ode to the acclaimed Australian painter Vincent Fantauzzo, the hotel features the artist’s original artworks throughout the space and also has a lovely rooftop terrace and pool. Using the ‘white’ theme as inspiration, attendees will need to dress to impress before enjoying an exclusive sneak peek of some of the garments that will be on show at this year’s festival.

Those who fully subscribe to the belief that girls just want to have fun will be happy to learn that the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Festival agrees – which is why they’ve added an all-new ‘Lunch with the Girls’ salon show to this year’s program. The delicious two-course lunch will be hosted by three of Australia’s most-watched women, Kerri-Anne Kennerley, Network Ten’s Georgina Lewis and 97.3FM’s Bianca Dye. After a discussion of all things fashion and design, guests will have a tasty meal while taking in the top 40 Spring/Summer 2019 fashion trends as selected by Mercedes-Benz Fashion Festival Styling Director and nationally-renowned fashion stylist, Kimberly Gardner.

The Best of the Runways

Providing emerging designers with a platform to feature their work is a key part of the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Festival and that’s exactly why the Next Gen Group Show is going to be a show-stopper. Innovative pieces from talented designers like Kimbralou, MARAKI, Maison Garde, Stranger, Astille and Matilda Cove are sure to delight onlookers with their creativity, with all sorts of vintage-inspired and avant-garde works to look forward to.

If that doesn’t take your fancy, or you simply prefer a little more luxury, there'll also be the long-running QueensPlaza Fashion Show, featuring a curated selection of high-end Australian and international fashion brands, including alice McCall, sass & bide, Calibre, David Jones, Viktoria & Woods, Scanlan Theodore, Aje and Bvlgari. Not to be outdone, the Mercedes-Benz group shows also promise to be a spectacular representation of Queensland and Australia’s leading designers.

Top Bars

Of course, it wouldn’t be a fashion festival without a couple of fantastic bars to relax in before and after the runway shows and events. Set within Mr Percival’s, the Fashion Bar is the number one pick of the pack. The world-class octagonal bar and eatery sits just above the Brisbane River and the decor is soaked with pops of colour, interesting patterns and tasteful touches of old-world charm.

For those that like to indulge a little, there’ll also be the VIP Platinum Runway Lounge. Gold Pass access to the exclusive space will include drinks and canapes 75 minutes before each show, plus the chance to rub shoulders with some of the biggest names in Australian fashion. However, an upgrade to the Platinum Pass will ensure you have a front row seat for all the action alongside the fashion editors, power players and designers.

As always, this year’s edition of the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Festival promises to be an affair to remember, once again shining a spotlight on Queensland’s immense fashion talent. For more information or to book tickets, please visit mbff.com.au.