2013 marks the 16th year that STYLEAID has been holding what has become the annual ‘must attend’ black tie fashion fundraiser, raising funds for the WA AIDS Council. The event has become a Perth institution, yet not everyone knows its evolution and journey over the last decade and a half.
Nearly 20 years ago, in the early days of the HIV epidemic, STYLEAID was conceived as an event to be run simultaneously in New York and Los Angeles with the aim of raising desperately needed cash to support local HIV/AIDS charities. The epidemic had hit the fashion industry hard, so it was logical yet creative to develop a high-end fundraising gala. The concept involved using the very best talent from the fashion, hair and makeup industries, along with the current top models.
Two years later, fundraising was becoming crucial to support the work of various HIV/AIDS organisations in Australia, and the first local STYLEAID was presented by the Victorian AIDS Council. It was a stand-up cocktail function, showcasing the latest fashion ranges, highlighting a number of local restaurants serving tastes of the top items on their menus, and finishing with an auction to raise additional money.
In 1998, after STYLEAID had begun in Melbourne, the WA AIDS Council was looking at ways to engage with our communities and to produce a top quality fundraising event. Our idea was to create something unlike anything else being done by other Perth charities. STYLEAID premiered in Perth on the 25th of August 1998 in the Hyatt Hotel Ballroom, with 400 guests attending to see the spring summer collections from a range of local, national and New Zealand labels.
Over the next 4 years, STYLEAID developed an incredible reputation and firmly cemented its place as Perth’s number one fashion fundraising event. However, by 2002, demand for tickets was still growing strongly as more and more people wanted to be a part of the event, and so it became evident that a move to a larger venue was required.
STYLEAID moved from the Hyatt to the Burswood Resort, and then to Winthrop Hall at the University of Western Australia. From there, it moved to the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre, achieving a target of 750 guests in attendance. In 2009, STYLEAID made the move back to Burswood Resort now known as Crown Perth.
It was for the sixth year of the event that we decided to focus exclusively on our local talented Western Australian designers and deliver STYLEAID as an event to showcase all that is bright and exciting about WA fashion. This includes student designers creating one-off pieces and the presentation of a Creative Designer Award. Sponsored in 2013 by ZOMP Shoes, the competition selects an up and coming designer who receives a $5,000 cash prize with which to produce their next range of clothes to be showcased publicly at STYLEAID.
STYLEAID is not just about fashion however. Importantly, it is about raising both money and awareness for the WA AIDS Council, which helps us to develop and run a wider range of vital community-based programs. Our work never ends, and there is much more we need to do. Every single dollar raised at the event will help support our cause. Over the past 15 years, STYLEAID has managed to raise over $1 million for us.
At the end of the day, this is what STYLEAID is all about -fundraising for a cause worth supporting.
STYLAID has prospered and retained its status as a premier event because of the outstanding quality of the night. It includes fine dining, great WA wines and top quality entertainment, that over the years has included Alex Lloyd, Vanessa Wagner, Daniel MacPherson, the Dance Collective and returning this year for their ninth appearance, the WA Ballet.
STYLEAID has also been the launch pad for a number of amazing WA models. The catwalk has been graced by the likes of Nicole Trunfio, Tom Bull, Gemma Ward, Sophie Ward and Emma Booth who have all have gone on to grace catwalks around the world.
The list of incredible fashion design talent that has been showcased at STYLEAID over the years is huge, and some of the names that have been seen on more than one occasion includes Aurelio Costarella, Ae’lkemi, Flannel, Morrison, One Fell Swoop and Zsadar. In further emphasising a commitment to the local fashion industry, STYLEAID has begun to support some of Perth’s smaller fashion retailers such as Dilettante and S2, who have an opportunity to present innovative international designs from their retail stock.
This year, STYLEAID will be held on Friday 9th of August in the Grand Ballroom at Crown Perth. For more information visit www.styleaid.com.au.
Mark Reid
