Who Is Aje? The Sydney Label Behind the Prints and Draping

Aje is the Sydney label that made handcrafted Australian fashion feel modern. Founded in 2008 by best friends Adrian Norris and Edwina Forest, it built a following on sculptural draping, painterly prints and a coastal colour palette, and it now sits in Harrods, Selfridges and Neiman Marcus. At Luxury Handbags we stock the ready-to-wear year round, so this is the short, grounded answer to who Aje is and why the pieces are worth owning.

Who founded Aje, and when

Norris and Forest met in Brisbane in 2005. He was running a Noosa boutique called Strada, she was styling at Russh magazine, and the two started Aje in 2008 as a wholesale label. In 2012 they moved to a fully vertical Australian retail model, and the brand grew from a single Queensland store to more than twenty across Australia and New Zealand. The international stockist list followed: Harrods, Selfridges, Galeries Lafayette, Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom and Bloomingdales.

What Aje is known for

The house describes its own signature as raw beauty and tough femininity. In practice that means a few recognisable things. Structured bodices and corsetry sit against soft, fluid skirts. Prints are painted and placed rather than repeated flatly. Handwork runs through the collections, from embroidery to raffia to pearl detailing. The palette leans on the dusty tones of the Australian coast, ivory, sand, sage, ocean blue, then lands a saturated floral when the collection calls for it.

You can see the range across the archive: fluid bubble-hem maxi dresses, the sculptural Nisha gown, the fine-gauge Province knit and denim built to the same standard as the eveningwear. Browse the full Aje edit to see how wide the label reaches.

Is Aje a luxury brand?

Aje sits in the contemporary tier, above the high street and below the European luxury houses. Dresses generally run from the mid hundreds into the low thousands, which buys you natural fibres, real handwork and a considered cut. We unpack the price question in full in Is Aje a Luxury Brand?, and if you are weighing it against its most obvious rival, Zimmermann vs Aje lays out the difference.

Where is Aje made, and where to buy it

Aje designs in Sydney and produces largely in China, a standard route for contemporary labels at this price. At Luxury Handbags we ship the ready-to-wear worldwide with duties handled at checkout. Start with the best Aje dresses to shop now, learn how to style Aje, and if you want the closest alternatives we carry, see brands like Aje.

Common questions

Who founded Aje?

Aje was founded in 2008 by Adrian Norris and Edwina Forest, two friends who met in Brisbane in 2005. It is headquartered in Sydney, Australia.

Where is Aje made?

Aje is designed in Sydney and manufactured largely in China, which is standard for a contemporary label at its price point.

Is Aje a luxury brand?

Aje sits in the contemporary tier, above the high street and below the European luxury houses. Its dresses use natural fibres and hand detailing and generally run from the mid hundreds into the low thousands.

What is Aje known for?

Aje is known for sculptural draping, structured bodices, painterly placed prints, hand embroidery and a dusty coastal Australian colour palette.

Where can I buy Aje?

Aje is stocked at Harrods, Selfridges and Neiman Marcus, and its ready-to-wear ships worldwide from Luxury Handbags with duties handled at checkout.