Last month a new initiative #WeWearAustralian kicked off to help Australian retail brands and designers in need after The Australian Fashion Council found that 80% of fashion retailers have been negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and three quarters are currently struggling to cover the day to day costs like staff wages and rent.
The #WeWearAustralian initiative run in conjunction with Klarna (a payment provider in partnership with Commonwealth Bank Australia) aims to unite the Australian fashion industry by increasing revenue within the industry enable Australian brands to flourish during a pandemic with the added focus on community contribution. All brands signed on to #WeWearAustralian in turn contribute to charities Dress for Success or Thread Together, charities that assist people in need.
Brands involved include some large known names including Ellery, Bassike, MJ Bale, Viktoria & Woods, Manning Cartel, Rebecca Vallance, Joe Black and Carla Zampatti as well as Perth local favourites One Fell Swoop and Morrison. For a full list and further details look no further than here.
I love this initiative as it encourages Australians to choose local, with the added bonus of knowing any purchase made helps a fellow Australian in need but by also choosing to support local and purchase from our Australian brands you are ensuring that we will still have a thriving fashion industry once we get to the other side of COVID.