The inaugural three-day platform gave emerging swimwear designers their biggest stage yet — and it delivered.
Miami Swim Week added a new chapter to its legacy this May, and it felt like a long time coming. PARAISO debuted RISE, a brand-new production platform dedicated entirely to emerging swim and resortwear talent — and for three nights at the Kimpton Surfcomber Hotel, it was exactly the kind of fresh energy South Beach didn’t know it needed.
Running May 28–30 during PARAISO’s 22nd edition, RISE transformed the Surfcomber’s iconic oceanfront pool deck into something closer to a fever dream than a fashion show. A custom-built runway appeared to float above the water, models walked beneath the Miami night sky, and between the live DJ sets, tropical breezes, and the soft glow of the hotel’s Art Deco bones, the whole thing felt less like a traditional presentation and more like a cultural event that happened to have incredible clothes in it.
That’s kind of the point. RISE was designed to blur the line between runway and experience — and for guests, that meant cabana activations from participating brands lining the venue, chances to get up close with the collections, and a setting that turned the usual industry formality on its head.
Twenty brands made up the inaugural RISE lineup, and the range was genuinely exciting. AJA Swim brought sculpted, LA-made luxury with a Mediterranean edge. Aura Maris showed hand-painted watercolor prints on recycled Italian fabrics — the kind of swimwear that doubles as wearable art. Vampire Surf Club out of Venice Beach leaned into their signature UPF50+ rashguards and bodysuits cut from ECONYL® regenerated nylon, proving that sustainability and editorial edge aren’t mutually exclusive. And Atelier Palacios, the French brand obsessed with the perfect tan, presented bold colorful pieces made with fabric that actually lets the sun through — a concept that feels almost impossibly niche until you’re standing in Miami in May and suddenly it makes complete sense.
On the accessories and jewelry side, Christin Marie Studio — TikTok Shop’s No. 1 handmade jewelry brand and 2026 Fashion Creator of the Year — brought demi fine pieces designed around lab-grown stones and tarnish-resistant materials. Perichette, the Palm Beach-based luxury accessories label, showed its signature Italian-crafted handbags, including the iconic Opera bag that’s been turning heads in the luxury space.
Hair was handled by MONCHO MORENO, makeup by Ere Perez Natural Beauty, who also hosted a guest activation onsite letting attendees explore the brand’s clean beauty lineup firsthand.
PARAISO Co-Founder Natalija Dedic-Stojanovic called RISE “an exciting new chapter” for the organization — one built specifically to give up-and-coming brands a stage that reflects the global influence of Swim Week rather than a side room that feels like an afterthought.
If the debut is any indication, RISE has a real future. The format works because it doesn’t ask you to choose between fashion and a good night out — it gives you both, wrapped in the specific kind of magic that Miami does better than anywhere else.
