The Viva team reports live from New Zealand Fashion Week Kahuria, with coverage of the major shows on the schedule.
Today’s line-up opened with The Studio, showcasing some of the best contemporary designers in New Zealand fashion, including Adrion Atelier, Bronwyn Footwear, Claudia Li, Dominique Healy, Fringes, Harris Tapper,
We’ll also be reporting from Claudia Li’s show, as well as The Graduate Collections, which features the promising stars from Aotearoa’s leading fashion design schools: Whitecliffe, Massey University and Otago Polytechnic.
Plus, we’ll be at the much-anticipated evening headliners: Kathryn Wilson and Karen Walker.
Check back throughout the day for updates, and head to Viva.co.nz for more Fashion Week coverage, including our reports from opening night and day two.
Kathryn Wilson
It’s Kathryn Wilson’s world, we’re just living in it. The eponymous footwear designer danced the night away with the debut of her new collection, Let’s Dance.
An elevated, glossy white runway took centre stage inside Shed 10, letting the shoes shine.
My seatmate happened to be Liam Taylor, husband of Kathryn Wilson and NZFW executive director. If he hadn’t directed my attention toward the tiered podium mid-runway, I might have missed lights-up on the opening act.
A troupe of dancers made a splash in pink ruffled caps and burgundy pinup-esque swimsuits, performing a “synchronised swim” routine to Tina Turner’s rendition of David Bowie’s Let’s Dance (with giant pink stilettos as props). I couldn’t help but notice their heels: peony pink peep toes with gold horsebit hardware — now those are made for dancing.
“A vision,” I said to Taylor.
“I know,” he replied, equal parts awe and pride.
The designer accessed Bendon Lingerie’s heritage collection, with models in archival 1940s and ‘50s bustiers and bullet bras up top, cheeky satin hotpants below. Hot pink, berry red and candyfloss pink, all with a flouncy feather trim. Sexy, energetic, exceptionally feminine, and the perfect complement to the shoes.
Pointed toe slingbacks in patent pink caught my eye, as did the same silhouette in a striking cherry red with feather fringe on the point. One can only hope they weren’t just for show.
Frivolity aside, there were some beautifully practical pairs too: a stone thong kitten heel with a gold centre detail, and raffia sandals adorned with seaglass-like beads.
A designer so beloved she holds not one show but two. And yes, Taylor shed a tear. “She got me twice in a row,” he admitted. – Skye Ross, Viva writer
Following the success of Claudia Li’s 2025 NZFW debut, the designer returned to the schedule on Wednesday afternoon with an intimate, salon-style presentation at The Northern Club.
Titled ‘A Love Letter To New York’, the presentation was underpinned by a decade-old memory Claudia has of first meeting her husband on the corner of 55th and 6th Street – where the famous LOVE sculpture once stood.
“That memory has stayed with me as one of those unexpected New York moments – in the middle of the city, surrounded by noise, movement and everything rushing past, yet somehow suspended in time. This collection is my version of love in New York,” Li shared in the show notes.
The timeless charm and elegance of the Northern Club’s Members Dining Room proved the perfect setting to help convey this message. Soft afternoon sunlight streamed through the windows, further emphasising “how romance can find its way into the smallest and unexpected moments,” as Li said.
These moments formed the foundation of the collection, designed to move through different stages of celebration as it unfolds – a quiet ceremony, dinner by candlelight or dancing long into the night.
To see a selection of the looks from Claudia Li’s show, click through the photos in the carousel below.
The designer calls her newest drop “the most elevated expression” of her brand yet, marked by the launch of a new made-to-order offering that spans luxury event wear, bridalwear and special occasion dressing.
Those lucky enough to have attended Li’s show last year may recall oversized pussybow shirts and mushroom skirts, but her latest work promised drama in a different sense – whether in the form of hand-applied crystal clusters that encrusted coats and cropped bodices, voluminous sleeves and sheer sequinned dresses. For those who prefer to keep a lower profile, refined pieces appeared alongside the dramatic – tailored trousers and Bermuda shorts, fluid skirts and oversized shirts.
Makeup lead Liz Hyun must have known the weather was pegged to be sunny – she’d built her makeup look around a poppy highlight that shimmered across models’ cheeks as they passed each window.
In the crowd sat model Portia Prince with her two-month-old baby girl, Kiko (she’d recently returned from London to Auckland). New Zealand Fashion Week creative director Dan Ahwa sat next to fashion designer and curator Doris de Pont. Leading Auckland-based stylists Sammy Salsa, Levi Tan, Troi Atkins and Courtney Joe were also in attendance along with tastemakers and key media. – Ashleigh Cometti
The Graduate Collections
The Graduate Collections proved today once again why it remains one of the most anticipated shows on the New Zealand Fashion Week schedule.
Presented on the main runway at Shed 10, the show celebrated emerging designers from Whitecliffe, Massey University and Otago Polytechnic.
Across the collections, a common theme from the graduates was a willingness to push boundaries, experimenting with oversized silhouettes, dramatic draping and garments that challenged traditional construction. Several played with the ideas of absence in construction, from half-completed shirts to asymmetry.
Otago Polytechnic’s Willow Coombs impressed with her exploration of these ideas, backed by incredible craftsmanship and form, especially in outerwear.
Among the standouts was Massey University graduate Rose Mikkelsen, whose tailoring and geometric abstraction drew attention. Her striking cube coat was a highlight, reinventing a classic with playful, joyful and innovative design.
Fellow Massey graduate Claudia Di Leva also captivated audiences with a collection she explains as being inspired by “the parallels between dystopian fiction and contemporary reality”. Exceptional construction transformed complex concepts into wearable pieces, as seen on her coat and coat jumpsuit.
Whitecliffe student Kensa Munroe, winner of the 2025 Circular Design Award Clothing Design Innovation Award, combined outstanding design and attention to form with concepts that both pushed the boundaries, yet felt highly wearable in her collection, Deconstructed Heritage.
Whitecliffe students Samsara Jade and Jumaanah Vahora were also memorable, delivering dramatic runway moments that left the audience audibly gasping. – Jenni Mortimer
The Studio
Shed 10 buzzed with anticipation on Day 3.
Curated by NZFW creative director Dan Ahwa, The Studio offered an insight into the latest silhouettes gracing our shores. With 17 labels on the runway, there was plenty to peruse.
Harris Tapper opened with its sculptural workwear adorned in ostrich feathers from shoulders to toes.
Fringes followed, its standout look a cropped, boxy menswear suit decked in more than 6000 hand-sewn buttons.
The phones came out for REBE and were kept in hand. Ever a masterclass in contemporary womenswear, we saw a structured leather vest with fluid midi-length fringing, and barrel-leg cream cargos that cleverly convert from a trouser to a short. The oversized shearling collar leather jacket was my early favourite.
To see a selection of the looks from The Studio show, click through the photos in the carousel below.
Red is the colour du jour, from COMMONPLACE ESSENTIALS’ bold jacquard drawstring jacket to the elevated knitwear of Francie (and even a sequined neck scarf from Claudia Li). If not as a focal point, certainly as an accessory.
This was the first and final show for Sylvester, a casual sister label to the eponymous Kate Sylvester. Her three sons opted to continue its legacy after her label’s 2024 closure, but the tough economic climate means it won’t continue after this collection. Kate Sylvester was a cornerstone of NZFW, so it only felt fitting that Shed 10 housed its curtain call, too.
Emma Jing’s new collection, Local Hero, leaned into nautical motifs. With voluminous, dramatically draped garments embellished with tricorn hats, low-slung belts and ruched eye patches, the designer receive rousing applause. It was, dare I say, pirate chic.
True to form, Dan Ahwa’s Studio ate and left no crumbs. And with many of the collections dropping today, you don’t have to wait to shop the runway. – Skye Ross
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