Executive Director, PayPal Melbourne Fashion Festival

About PayPal Melbourne Fashion Festival

As Australia’s leading consumer fashion event, the PayPal Melbourne Fashion Festival plays a significant role in celebrating and advancing the nation’s fashion industry through a dynamic program of runway shows, exhibitions, industry events, and cultural activations.

Established in 1996, the Festival has built a strong reputation for championing Australian designers, fostering innovation, and connecting fashion with broader cultural, creative, and commercial audiences. Operating as a not-for-profit organisation, it has become a key fixture in Victoria’s Major Events calendar, contributing meaningfully to tourism, economic activity, and Melbourne's cultural vibrancy.

Beyond the runway, its diverse program spans thought leadership, industry development, live performance, and public experiences, reinforcing its position as one of Australia’s most influential cultural events.

The Board now seeks an outstanding Executive Director to lead the PayPal Melbourne Fashion Festival into its next phase of growth, impact, and transformation. This is a rare opportunity to lead one of Australia’s most influential cultural and fashion events at a pivotal time of strategic evolution, with the opportunity to strengthen its position as a national fashion platform, a major Melbourne event, a destination driver, and a more sustainable commercial enterprise.

The Role

The Executive Director will lead the business, operational and commercial engine of the Festival as it transitions into its next chapter. This role turns strategy into structure, ambition into execution, and creative potential into a sustainable operating model.

The Executive Director will be responsible for organisational performance, revenue growth, stakeholder confidence, business planning, budget discipline, partnerships, team effectiveness and delivery oversight. They will work in close partnership with the Creative Director to ensure the Festival is both creatively excellent and commercially viable. The Festival needs ambition. It also needs rigour. The Executive Director must bring both.

Key responsibilities include:

• Translate the Board’s strategic direction into a clear annual and three-year business plan, with defined priorities, into clear workstreams, budgets, KPI’s and delivery accountability.
• Lead the Festival’s commercial and financial strategy, including revenue growth, identify new income streams, pricing, and disciplined management of cost, margin and performance.
• Build and manage a high-value portfolio of sponsors, partners and stakeholders across government, corporate and industry sectors, ensuring long-term value and engagement.
• Work closely with the Board on governance, reporting and decision-making, including financial performance, risk management, funding and compliance obligations.
• Provide strong organisational leadership, shaping a high-performing, accountable and collaborative culture across creative, commercial, production and operational teams.
• Oversee end-to-end Festival delivery, including planning, production, ticketing, supplier management, partner deliverables, risk and post-event evaluation.
• Drive operational excellence by ensuring strong systems, clear priorities, effective cross-functional coordination and continuous improvement.
• Lead the Festival’s digital, data and audience strategy to strengthen engagement, improve decision-making and unlock year-round commercial opportunities.

About You

We are seeking a visionary and strategic executive with the ability to lead one of Australia’s most significant fashion and cultural events.

The ideal candidate brings:

• Senior leadership experience in major events, festivals, arts, culture, fashion, retail, tourism, media, sport, not-for-profit or a related commercial environment
• Strong commercial and financial capability
• Experience developing business plans, operating models and revenue strategies
• Proven ability to manage complex stakeholder environments
• Experience with Boards, government funding, sponsors or major partners
• Strong people leadership and culture-building capability
• Excellent project management and delivery discipline
• Ability to lead through ambiguity and transition
• Strong written and verbal communication
• Confident with budgets, contracts, reporting, risk and performance management
• Understanding of brand, audience and cultural value, even if not from a purely creative background.

How to apply

Fish Nankivell is managing the recruitment process for this critical leadership role. To receive a candidate brief or to arrange a confidential discussion about this opportunity, please contact Tori Best, Managing Partner at Fish Nankivell, on +61 403 268 224.

The closing date for applications is Friday, 19th of June 2026. A concurrent search is being conducted.

To apply, please submit your CV and a cover letter outlining your suitability for the role to ***email_hidden***.