Collette Dinnigan (1966 - ) Born in South African and brought up in New Zealand, Dinnigan has combined her creative flair with a good nose for business.  The Collette Dinnigan brand is worn by film stars including Nicole Kidman, Angelina Jolie and Halle Berry.  Dinnigan ready-to-wear parades have taken place - to great acclaim - in Paris since 1996. She has an exclusive lingerie line sold through British retailer Marks & Spencer. Collette Dinnigan shops in Sydney, Melbourne and London are magnets for shoppers prepared to pay big money for her distinctive feminine clothes.

The Collette Dinnigan story starts after her graduation from the Polytechnic college in New Zealand. Upon completion of her studies, she moved to Australia and landed a job with the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Commission) in Sydney. Working in the costume department, it is said that she brought an historical flavour to the costume design and had an eye for detail.

Collette Dinnigan became a designer label in the early 1990s. Striking out on her own, she quickly became a supplier for a number of outlets across Australasia. After stocking many local boutiques during the early 90s, the Collette Dinnigan label went international, being sold in Asia and America. But still no Europe.

As such, in 1995 Collette Dinnigan decided to target the European market. What better place to begin such an onslaught than the epicentre of fashion: Paris.In hindsight, she achieved her goal and was the first Australian designer to showcase a ready to wear range on the catwalks of Paris and she remains the only one to have been invited to do so by the Chambre Syndicale du Pret-a-porter des couturiers et des createurs de mode.

This put Collette Dinnigan firmly on the international map and she now sells to some 80 stores across the globe. There are two Collette Dinnigan stores in Australia, one in Paddington, Sydney, the other in South Yarra, Melbourne. She has also opened a store in London, hoping to get a foothold in the lucrative UK fashion market. As a final testament to her creativity and style, on two The Powerhouse Museum has identified the Collette Dinnigan label as being most representative of Australian design.