Indigenous talent from Manitoba set to strut the runway in Paris

‘This is an astonishing moment’ An Indigenous model from Manitoba will be walking in Paris Fashion Week.

A double dose of Manitoba talent will storm the runways of Paris Fashion Week, wearing distinctly homegrown designs.

Madison Moore, who is Swampy Cree and a member of Opaskwayak Cree Nation, and Aaliyah Tait, a Winnipegger of Cree-Mi'kmaq and Trinidadian descent, will make their debuts at the womenswear spring-summer event next month.

"I'm super nervous, but I'm also very excited," Moore told CTV News Winnipeg in an interview.

Moore and Tait will model designs from Ally's Ribbons, a couture ribbon-work line created by Alyssia Sutherland, who is a member of Peguis First Nation.

Moore met the Manitoba designer just last May at the Manito Ahbee Festival's Red Road Cultural Clothing showcase. She pulled her aside, wanting to know if she had plans this September.

"She asked me, 'Are you wanting to travel across the world with me?' And I looked at her like, 'Yes, of course. How can I say no?'"

Since then, Moore has been prepping to put her best foot forward on the catwalk, from practicing meditation to walking in heels.

She knows she will step onto the runway as a representative of her community – something she finds both overwhelming and empowering.

"I feel very confident. I feel very strong. I know that my ancestors are watching me, and I get to carry them with me and show them that we are making a movement. We are making a move for everybody, making space for our Indigenous people across Turtle Island."

'It's just life-changing'

After a COVID-era sidelining, Aaliyah Tait's modelling career has experienced a similar jump-start in recent months.

Tait inked a contract with an agency right before the pandemic, but put it on hold as the world shut down around her.

"I didn't get the opportunity to do anything with that agency, and then I kind of just let it be for the longest time."

It was Moore who inspired her to give it another go. Tait applied to model at the Manito Ahbee Festival, like her friend. Since then, she appeared at an Indigenous fashion showcase in Calgary, and landed invites to model for other Indigenous designers at both Paris and New York fashion weeks.

Like Moore, she got a call from Sutherland to wear her ribbon-work pieces on the runway in France.

"Things are falling into place, and it just feels like not even real life, if I'm being honest," Tait said.

Moore and Tait are currently fundraising to cover the costs of their Parisian modelling debuts. They are seeking corporate and brand sponsorships to cover airfare, accommodations and food.

Both Manitoba models have never left North American before, and Tait has never been outside of Canada.

"It's just so unreal how much support I've been getting and gaining from this. I never realized how much people were rooting for me and honestly, it's just life-changing."

- With files from CTV's Alexandra Holyk