On September 9th, 2022, Australian fashion house Aje made its first off-schedule appearance at New York Fashion Week. We caught up with Aje designer Adrian Norris to learn more about Aje’s presence in America and the SS23 collection.
See also: Inside Aje's SS23 Presentation at NYFW
How has your Australian background influenced Aje?
We are quintessentially Australian. We’re always using color and our prints are inspired by the surrounding nature and light. Our SS23 collection is called Lumen and is inspired by dawn in Australia. Every morning we wake up to purples, oranges and rust that are so beautiful, and whenever you have such an amazing environment, it’s going to influence your designs. We also channel the relaxed culture in Australia. We design dresses, but they bring lightness and fun to formal settings.
How has the American market received the brand so far?
It has been incredible to come here and find so much support. Multiple people have told me there’s nothing like this that they can buy in America, so being different from what’s available has been a strength of ours.
How do you intend to grow the brand in the American market?
Our wholesale business is thriving and continuing to grow with retailers such as Saks, Neiman Marcus, INTERMIX, Shopbop and more. We’re seeing really great results with wholesale right now, but who knows what the future holds.
Tell me about the inspiration behind the Lumen collection.
It’s about the breaking of dawn, freshness and renewal. The sunray pleating and prints are based on light and clouds. When we’re being creative we sometimes get caught in a theme each season, so each piece was designed very intentionally with that essence in mind.
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What trends are you excited about this season?
Color! Color has come back after the pandemic, and more and more people want to wear beautiful and bold colors. Details are also so important and are something we really focus on in our clothing. Fast fashion has no place in the industry, and people are gravitating towards buying pieces that are made with love by artisans, which I hope continues to be a trend going forward.
Photography by: courtesy of Aje
