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Australian Fashion has the potential to become a $38 billion industry by 2032. The Growth Activists managing partner Rosanna Iacono unpacks the latest jewel in this crown: the launch of the Australian Fashion certification trademark.
When looking at fashion on the global stage, the mention of a country or region immediately conjures up images of a collective style. Italian fashion draws an immediate visual of quality and elegant sophistication. Scandinavian style evokes a clear association with minimalism and natural tones – Danish style even has its own descriptor, ‘hygge’, borrowed from the broader lifestyle and cultural practices of the region.
Up until recently, Australian fashion had lacked that same collective identity. The local industry’s image has evolved tremendously in recent decades. Whilst we started as a nation known for our surf brands and to which international buyers would occasionally travel to cherry-pick from resort collections at Australian Fashion Week, today it is an industry brimming with creative talent across all key categories.
What has also changed is the perception of a market constantly lagging six months behind the Northern hemisphere, waiting to see what trends would take off before adopting them locally. Today Australian designers are leading from the front with originality that pays no heed to other markets, and that is recognised and admired by consumers globally for its confident leadership.
If there was ever a time to collectively promote Australian fashion to the world, that time is now. And to do so required the creation of a brand platform from which to communicate a common set of attributes. This led to the Australian Fashion Council’s (AFC) recent launch of Australian Fashion™, a certification trademark enabling Australia’s best and brightest designers to take on the world.
Why create Australian Fashion™ now?
There is no doubt that the fashion industry is emerging from one of the most disruptive periods in recent history. Businesses are evolving quickly to maintain relevance in a post-pandemic world where buying habits have changed. Consumer values are also shifting towards more ethical consumption. Labels that have already been negatively impacted by lockdowns over the last two years are also having to make investments into new channels, and into more socially and environmentally sound operations.
A common platform from which to promote the Australian fashion industry both at home and abroad will have an exponential impact versus individual brands trying to cut through alone. There are excellent examples of this augmented collective effect already in the market for other sectors, ranging from Tourism Australia to the Woolmark. The increased demand such a platform will create will help drive the critical fiscal headroom these businesses need not only to survive disruption but to invest in evolving their operations. A certification trademark creates an opportunity for industry players to come together with a shared purpose to amplify awareness. It enables them to join forces to reactivate the industry and also to reshape it by committing to a common set of values.
Why Australian Fashion™ matters
The big question I’m often asked is why does any of this matter, for an industry that is often perceived as peripheral and frivolous. The reality is that there is nothing peripheral or frivolous about the Australian fashion and textile industry. In fact it is a seriously important contributor to our national economy and deeply embedded into our daily lives.
In 2021 it contributed over $27b to the economy, equal to 1.5% of Australian GDP. It employed 489,000 workers, which is about 3.8% of the Australian labour market – that is more than mining, utilities and the arts combined. And it generated $7.2 billion in exports, which is more than double the export revenue of wine and beer. The industry also provides life-saving uniforms for frontline workers from nurses to firefighters. It is in many senses an essential industry – we simply cannot do without our clothes.
With such a significant economic contribution at stake, it is key to deliver strategies for evolving and future-proofing the industry. The certification trademark, with its dual goal of creating awareness and lifting practices, works diligently towards both industry growth and sustainability.
What is Australian Fashion™?
Australian Fashion™ is a world-first industry certification trademark that spotlights our country’s unique creativity and progressive values to both consumers at home and around the world. Instantly recognisable, the trademark will drive demand by helping customers discover, explore and buy the best of Australian fashion talent.
Not only will it achieve the strategic purpose of creating fiscal headroom for Australian fashion and textiles brands, it will also cement Australian fashion in history. This is the first time globally that a ‘nation brand’ has been developed specifically for the fashion industry.
Australian Fashion™ is both a brand and a platform. At a brand level it is a visually incisive mark backed by a comprehensive brand architecture, outlining brand attributes, values and other essential brand elements. And at a platform level it is a digital-first ecosystem, comprising a Code of Practice to which licensee brands must adhere, and a website and campaign enabling buyers (both B2B and B2C) to discover and purchase Australian fashion brands. The Growth Activists team led the process for building both the brand architecture and the operational framework for the certification trademark.
The Australian Fashion™ brand architecture
An easy route would have been to have focused singularly on a set of aesthetic attributes to define Australian fashion. But in a post-purpose world where customers expect deeper values and meaningful connection this would not have been appropriate. We took the opportunity to build a brand where the values were as deeply embedded as the visual style.
In constructing the Lean Brand Canvas for Australian Fashion™ we identified four brand pillars – Effortless Style, Raw Nature, Boundless Optimism and Fearless Innovation. These were tested against research conducted by Austrade and Nation Brand, who generously shared with us insights from recent global research they had undertaken. They were also tested against additional fashion industry specific research and futures analysis conducted by The Growth Activists’ research team.
In addition, the pillars were endorsed by the Advisory Panel that was set up specifically to provide expert counsel at the key project milestones and to play a governance role. They are attributes that the majority of Australia’s leading labels already see in their own identities, and which simultaneously set the challenge for others to aspire to. For example the attribute around Fearless Innovation calls for brands to abstain from any form of plagiarism and to commit to original design.
We landed on five brand values – Collaborative Community, Generosity, Commitment to People & Planet, Honest Quality and Diversity & Cultural Integrity. In defining these values for a certification trademark, we created an automatic challenge to the industry to commit to a high set of standards. Essentially, it triggers a requirement for all brands signing up to the certification trademark to commit to aligning with these values. It also unapologetically filters out brands that do not align – for example businesses producing cheap, disposable items that do not have enduring quality and true cost built into them.
Embedding an ambitious brand purpose
In embedding these important human and planet-centric values into the certification trademark, we are not only reflecting what leaders in the local industry are already standing for, but challenging the rest of the industry to rise to the occasion, to evolve towards improved Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) practices.
We purposely created a trademark that is aspirational not only in image, but also in values, with the purpose of lifting and reshaping the local industry to be future-proofed. Is it an ambitious goal? Yes, absolutely. But to have avoided the challenge when the opportunity was before us would have been a cop-out. The endorsement of every stakeholder in the process, from the AFC to all the advisors, was the reassurance we needed to create a brand with a powerful purpose. We have ultimately created a brand platform that demonstrates Australian fashion as world-leading, in both creativity and values. That is the powerful collective story we are now ready to tell and take to global markets.
Becoming certified Australian Fashion™
For brands to attain certification, there are two components they must fulfil. The first part is a compliance test proving that they are actually Australian fashion businesses. This has been defined as being a business that creates positive economic impact primarily for the Australian economy. To prove this they must meet two or more of the following criteria: 50% Australian made products, 75% Australian owned, 75% employees in Australia, and Australian tax-domiciled.
The second part of certification entails meeting a set of key criteria around design, brand alignment and environmental and social practices. Brands must commit to authentic Australian design, avoiding all forms of plagiarism or cultural appropriation. They must commit to aligning with the Australian Fashion™ values and attributes. And finally they must commit to transparently communicating where they are up to in terms of their social and environmental impact efforts.
It’s important to note the certification is not evaluating the business’s actual ESG policies and practices, but rather their commitment to having reflected and published their current status, whatever that may be. The purpose of this element is to encourage brands to be aware and take the first steps in considering an ESG plan, if they haven’t already done so.
There is a responsibility that comes with using the certified trademark, which not only reflects on brands themselves but on the whole of the Australian fashion and textiles industry. For this reason a Trademark Administration Manager will work closely with brands to monitor and support their compliance, and to optimise opportunities for them.
From inception to beyond
Since the launch of Australian Fashion™ to trade at Australian Fashion Week on May 9, over 30 leading brands signed up for the certification, and were part of the inaugural campaign officially launched on Thursday October 12 during Melbourne Fashion Week. Creative agency Fabric, who created the logo and campaign creative concept, crafted a leading world-first campaign, aptly titled Down Under In Front. The campaign launches domestically to begin with, with details of the international launch to be announced soon.
Industry feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, including from Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources officials, who provided the initial grant to create the certification trademark and platform. With the initial launch to industry proving an unequivocal success, all signs point to an equally warm reception by both Australian and global consumers in the months ahead.
May 9 also saw the AFC launch its latest industry economic report, a project we also proudly supported the AFC with. Produced by EY, the report titled Fashion Evolution: From Farm to Industry, outlines how four key policy pillars can propel the growth of the industry from its current $27b contribution to $38b in 2032. One of the key pillars is the promotion of Australian Fashion™ to drive global demand, and increase economic output and exports. With continued commitment Australian Fashion™ can be a significant contributor in driving the industry’s growth trajectory over the next 10 years and create substantial economic, social and environmental gains for Australia. This is a worthy goal that we are proud to continue to support in our work with the AFC and with the industry at large.
About the author: Rosanna Iacono, is Managing Partner at The Growth Activists. With over 25 years experience in global leadership roles with multinationals Nike and Levis and C-Level roles with some of Australia’s leading brands, Rosanna leads The Growth Activists retail & consumer goods practice across strategy and ESG and was engaged by the Australian Fashion Council to develop the strategy for Australian Fashion™.
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