Occasionally, I like to post about Māori fashion, because I think it is so cool, and their model of creating a central Indigenous fashion board to promote Maori fashion designers is an inspiring one, and one that we should look to construct here in the States. Miromoda was founded in 2008 to advance the quality of Māori fashion design and to raise its artistic and professional standards. Every year, Miromoda hosts a competition that is open to all entrants who identify themselves as Māori. Winners of this competition advance to represent the Miromoda section of the national New Zealand Fashion Week, in the presence of international buyers and media. Miromoda has traditionally been one of the most talked-about shows at the New Zealand Fashion Week.
Last year’s winner was Adrienne Whitewood, who explained, "The [international] shows confirmed how edgy we are back home and that the Māori story is unique to the world; so our prints and æsthetic definitely give us a global point of difference." (Above: 2011 New Zealand Fashion Week » Shona Tawhiao)