This October, Ireland steps into the global fashion spotlight with the launch of the first-ever dedicated Ireland Fashion Week (IFW). 

Kicking off the celebrations, Tuesday, April 22nd saw the official launch for the countrywide celebration of creativity, culture, and creation, with a showstopping celebration of fashion on the rooftop of Anantara The Marker Hotel, Dublin 2.

The who’s who of the Irish fashion scene flocked to the central location to celebrate this spotlight of homegrown design, all while sipping a delectable Malfy Gin and taking in the spectacular skyline of Dublin City.  On the night Ireland Fashion Week founder Ashley McDonnell shared her vision for the week, as well as announcing the hotly anticipated designer applications.

Running from Wednesday the 23rd of April to Friday the 23rd of May, Irish designers, established, emerging and students of design, are urged to apply for Ireland Fashion Week shows, with an array of key industry insiders assigned to judge the sensational talent. These judges will select between 50 – 60 designers to show front and centre throughout the week, across Flagship, Spotlight, Graduate and Independent and Emerging designer shows.

The launch event brought together the core Ireland Fashion Week team, including Board of Directors, Judges, Sponsors and Ambassadors. Alongside founder Ashley McDonnell, those in attendance included Board members – Fashion Editor Bairbre Power, Designer Aoife McNamara, Industry trailblazers Rachel Reidy – former Conde Nast and now Sheer Luxe, Aimee Hazeldine – acclaimed fashion buyer and lecturer in Fashion and Sustainability and Shana Chu – founder of tech platform Tailr. Also in attendance were Ireland Fashion Week ambassadors and insiders including top models Celia Holman Lee and Mandy Maher, broadcaster Triona McCarthy, industry photographer Christian Tierney, Stylists Rosalind Lipsett, Zeda, Corina Gaffey, Kwanele Nomoyi and Host Louise Cantillon as well as Jess Colivet and Anne O’Shea who will be producing two of the scheduled shows during Ireland Fashion Week. 

Sponsors, also in attendance, for Ireland Fashion Week include:

• DS Automobiles – Ireland Fashion Week is delighted to announce DS Automobiles as its Official Vehicle Partner. The French luxury car brand, also the Official Vehicle Sponsor of Paris Fashion Week, will provide a fleet of branded vehicles to transport VIPs, guests, and the core team to and from events nationwide. This partnership ensures stylish and seamless travel throughout the year and in the lead-up to the main October event.
• Medik8 – B-Corp certified, British dermatological skincare brand are the Official Skin Partner of Ireland Fashion Week, taking care of all skin needs throughout the week.
• SOSU Cosmetics – The beloved home grown brand are the Official Makeup Partner of Ireland Fashion Week, ready to prep an array of models and VIP guests pre-shows.
• Bare by Vogue – Tan and Skin Finish Partner for Ireland Fashion Week will prep all models, and VIP guests, with both a pre-show developing glow as well as a skin finish right before they take the runway.
• National B -Ireland’s premier beauty distributors, who will take care of hair throughout the week as Official Haircare Partner with their array of their core brands including Aveda, Bumble and Bumble, Color Wow, Kevin Murphy and Eleven. 

What to Expect at Ireland Fashion Week:

• 3 flagship shows in breathtaking heritage locations.
• 2 spotlight shows featuring Ireland’s sporting success and rich culture through fashion.
• A graduate show celebrating students of design.
• Independent and emerging designers show spotlighting Irish roots.

When speaking about the inaugural annual event, Ashley says, “The idea to create a nationwide Ireland Fashion Week came from a realisation that Irish fashion designers were lacking both the platform and the funding to showcase across the country. By creating an entity dedicated to producing events and experiences around the country, we’re now in a position to bring a world class fashion week to the island and help brands with the funding of their shows, subsiding selected designers and offering incredible additional support.”

“Ireland Fashion Week is a testament to the incredible creativity of the Irish people – both at home and abroad. We will see the best of Irish talent across fashion, design, music, film and beyond all coming together for the inaugural Ireland Fashion Week.”