First Nations fashion brand Ngali set to crowdfund for global expansion

Phoebe Blogg
Phoebe Blogg Published October 23, 2023 at 2.30pm (AWST)

Despite being only four and a half years old, Ngali has become one of Australia's most celebrated First Nation's fashion brands.

Further continuing their success, lead designer Denni Francisco has announced Ngali's first ever round of crowdfunding through the leading Australian equity crowdfunding platform, Birchal.

"This upcoming round of funding will allow for the business to expand the number of First Nations artists we collaborate with, pursue global opportunities and grow Ngali's internal team", said Ms Francisco.

After recently being named Indigenous Designer of the Year by Australian Fashion Laureate 2023, Francisco certainly knows how to both scale a fashion brand and identify areas of growth and opportunity.

Fashion designer Denni Francisco. (Image: Supplied)

Having had a compound annual growth rate of 90.98% per year, the Australian-founded business has doubled its customer base yearly across Australia.

With a boost in funding, Ngali is hoping to see a further uplift in its e-commerce and wholesale customers within both Australia and overseas.

"At Ngali we want more people to know who we are, who we've always been, and that there is much to celebrate as the home to the oldest continuous living culture in the world," Ms Francisco said.

"'Ngali' translates to 'we' or 'us' in a number of Aboriginal languages and through our brand, we're creating the 'us' we'd like to see."

A model walking the Ngali runway at Australia Fashion Week. (Image: Supplied)

Striving to give more people access to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture by taking the stories of incredible artwork beyond wall display and onto garments, Ngali has already had a wealth of success appearing on runways of Australia, Milan, Jakarta and Dubai.

"We give our artists a bigger voice, a platform and a royalty-based income by promoting their unique talents on quality items, giving them an income stream, well after their artworks have been sold," Ms Francisco said.

"We celebrate the opportunity to collaborate with other Indigenous businesses in a way that serves mutually beneficial outcomes."

Model Samantha Harris wearing Ngali. (Image: Supplied)

Since making history at Afterpay's Australia Fashion Week as the first-ever standalone show by an Indigenous Australian designer, Ms Francisco and her brand are demonstrating to Australian consumers that they are here to make an impact.

Now set to become the first Australian fashion label from an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander designer to crowdfund for global expansion, Ngali is proving they are not just making a change, they are the change.

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