Our Top Picks From Adelaide Fashion Week’s Stacked 2026 Line-Up

In its fifth year, Adelaide Fashion Week will once again bring together the best of South Australia’s creative scenes. This year’s theme is “The Threads Between Us”, with a wide-ranging schedule that includes food and music alongside designers, retailers, makers and stylists.

It’s a fashion week geared for industry professionals and fashion fans alike. But with 30 events spread across the five-day program from October 7 to 11, it’s also intimidating. Here are our five top picks.

South Australian Showcase: The Threads Between Us

Kicking off the headlining runways is this mixed-designer showcase at Adelaide Town Hall, highlighting the city’s established and emerging talent. Some standout names to look for include year-old contemporary womenswear label 23rd August; eveningwear label Acler; natural-fibre label Yaneth; and Van Brussel, which received an honourable mention for sustainability at this year’s 2026 National Designer Award.

By Johnny: A Fashion Homecoming Runway

It’s been a decade since By Johnny’s last solo runway, and founder Johnny Schembri has chosen to break his dry spell at this year’s Adelaide Fashion Week. For the label’s 15th anniversary, the Australian womenswear and menswear designer is revisiting some of his signature pieces for the show and bringing out exclusive pieces for the runway. “Adelaide has quickly become one of our strongest growth markets, so being part of Adelaide Fashion Week felt like a natural next step,” Schembri said in a statement.

The Couture Ball Runway 

The Couture Ball Runway will be a riot of a night. Inspired by Lady Elizabeth Smith’s 1887 children’s fancy dress ball in Adelaide Town Hall, this runway celebrates couture fashion and glamour in the same building. Some notable labels include bridal designers Couture Love Madness, J’Aton Couture and Priv’elle Atelier, who will be presenting Steven Khalil. Audience members are encouraged to dress for the theme.

Viktoria & Woods x Christian Kimber: The Sartorialists Runway

Melbourne fashion labels Viktoria & Woods and Christian Kimber are heading west and holding a special one-off collaborative runway. While the former creates womenswear and the latter menswear, there’s crossover between the two brands. Both prioritise sharp tailoring, directional design and distinct identity. A dual runway like this is rare, and an exciting instalment to the program. “There’s something incredibly exciting happening in Adelaide right now. [This] is an opportunity to celebrate the city’s evolving fashion identity while sharing our vision with a community that has always embraced the brand so warmly,” Viktoria & Woods founder, Margie Woods, said in a statement.

The Wolf Gang: 10 Years Celebration Runway

It’s not every day a label turns 10. This joyous, colour-filled event will be The Wolf Gang’s first solo runway – a fitting celebration. The South Australian label will be showing its signature resort wear, but founder Vanessa Pearce says to expect the unexpected. “Expect bold design, unexpected styling, statement prints, and lots of movement and texture, all brought together in a showcase that will be anything but an ordinary runway,” she says.

Other highlights

There’s also the New Talent Showcase, where students from Tafe SA and Flinders University send original designs down the runway, and Fashion x Frequency, an energetic night fusing live music and fashion.

Mariam Seddiq will also make her Adelaide Fashion Week debut with a solo runway held in the State Library of South Australia, and Couture Love Madness will hold an immersive dinner retrospective to celebrate the label’s 15 years.

For those after hands-on experience, celebrity stylist Donny Galella will guide a styling masterclass at Koomo, and vintage seller Thrifty Gal will lead a denim revamping workshop. 

Adelaide Fashion Week runs from October 7 to 11. Browse the full program at adlfashionweek.com.au.