On the cusp of winter, Alemais designer Lesleigh Jermanus is certain that an islet, off an island, off the coast of Spain, is the perfect place to showcase Australian fashion.
Leaving grey clouds at home, Jermanus packed her bags with green net dresses that offer little resistance to warm breezes and Rorschach floral prints that warrant sunglasses, for the label’s second international runway show on the Ilia Dei Rei off Menorca.
“Who doesn’t want to come to a beautiful sunny island and jump in the sea?” Jermanus asks before the start of the runway show for the resort 2027 collection on Wednesday.
Last year, the brand staged its first international show in Marrakech, attracting buyers, press and landing a place on the Business of Fashion 500 List, a better-dressed equivalent of the Time 100 Most Influential People.
“I was jaw-to-the-floor when that was announced,” says Jermanus, who was listed alongside Zimmermann and Aje. “That inclusion felt rewarding, to be alongside people that you have admired for so long.
“They must have seen the Marrakech show, which means that it’s worth taking risks as a brand. With incredibly steady growth, mostly in the international market, we need to continue to put our energy there, without discounting the local market and their loyalty. There’s space for both.”
International events have been a part of Zimmermann’s growth strategy for years, with the label preparing to show its resort collection in Antibes this week. Chanel presented its resort show in Biarritz and Dior went to Los Angeles.
“You have to pick where you put your energy,” Jermanus says. “I did have FOMO looking at Australian Fashion Week. Ultimately, we are Australian through and through.”
With 741 stockists worldwide, the majority in the US and Europe, including pop-ups in London department stores Harrods and Harvey Nichols, hosting buyers in the northern hemisphere is as much about strategy as sunshine.
That doesn’t mean that everything always goes according to plan.
“Our Middle Eastern stores couldn’t take orders for a little while. We’ve got shipments sitting in warehouses,” says Jermanus. “There’s a reality to doing business in international markets, but I am always hopeful and optimistic that things evolve and move forward. One thing can go wrong here, and it goes right somewhere else.”
Everything went right on the Ilia Dei Rei, in a collection inspired by the ceramics of Mallorca-based artist Sophie Wahlquist.
Before launching Alemais in 2021, Jermanus took solace in ceramics during COVID-19 lockdowns.
“You look at ceramics, and they’re dry, and then they’ve got this gloss and shine and textures, which we’ve tried to emulate in the clothing.”
Surely, there’s an easier path to the runway than through a kiln?
“It would be way easier for the team if we started with the same process, like a recipe,” Jermanus says. “Unfortunately, it doesn’t happen that way. If I’m not scared by something we’re doing, we’re not evolving the brand.
“I feel like I have to trust that.”
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