ADL Fashion Week returns for its fifth year from 7–11 October 2026, with five runway shows staged against the grand backdrop of Adelaide Town Hall.
This year’s creative campaign, The Threads Between Us, celebrates the people, places and connections that shape Adelaide’s fashion culture. It’s an acknowledgment that fashion here extends well beyond the runway, linking designers, artists, venues, makers and audiences in ways that larger cities simply cannot replicate.
Five icons, five stories
The campaign features five figures whose creativity spans fashion, food, culture and nightlife. Styled by ADL Fashion Week Creative Director Chris Kontos, each has been photographed in a location synonymous with Adelaide.
Pat and George Georgiou, Creative Directors of Alexis George, have been dressing the likes of Nicole Kidman and Kylie Minogue with their handmade gowns since 1980. Their story crosses intergenerational craftsmanship, history and beauty. “The creative parts, the mundane parts, the family parts, we shared all of it,” says George. “Our children grew up around gowns being made,” adds Pat. “In the workroom, there are paper patterns made by hand, pieces of every era.”
Vanessa Pearce, Founder and Creative Director of The Wolf Gang, has dressed celebrities including Kylie Jenner and Hilary Duff. Adelaide remains central to her creative process. “Adelaide gives me room to breathe, to be creative in my own time, to find the brand’s voice without rushing it,” she says.
Rachel Van Brussel, winner of the 2026 National Designer Sustainability Award, creates every piece of her VAN BRUSSEL label on Australian shores using designer deadstock. “I see it as something beautiful waiting for the right form,” says Rachel. “My garments are made by people I know by name.”
Bel Sloane, SAFM radio breakfast co-host, brings her own sense of personal style. “I actually love my quiet mornings,” she says. “Then I start putting myself together. Lip liner, denim, the things that make me feel ready, but still like myself.”
Duncan Welgemoed, Owner and Head Chef of Africola, embodies fashion beyond the runway. “Six o’clock is showtime,” he says. “We get excited by things that mean something to us. For me, the East End is the heart of that.”
Adelaide’s advantage
Michael Rossi, Adelaide Economic Development Agency Executive Marketing and Tourism, says the event’s strength lies in its intimacy. “ADL Fashion Week provides opportunities to discover local designers, the creative process behind their work and experience Adelaide fashion up close,” he says. “In Adelaide, we know that fashion goes beyond the runway.”
Adelaide Town Hall provides a grand heritage setting that links fashion to history as the event grows into its fifth year. The week is presented by Adelaide Economic Development Agency, a subsidiary of City of Adelaide, and supported by the South Australian Fashion Industry Association.
Tickets and program
Newsletter subscribers receive exclusive first access to purchase tickets through a 24-hour presale, running from 10am Monday 7 September until 10am Tuesday 8 September 2026, ahead of public ticket sales opening via ADLFashionWeek.com.
The full festival program, including the 2026 runway lineup, will be unveiled on Monday 7 September.
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