Jordan Barrett returns to London Fashion Week with healthier glow after gaunt appearance

Australian supermodel Jordan Barrett has returned to London Fashion Week, stepping back into the spotlight at a party hosted by British Vogue and Audemars Piguet to celebrate the annual event at The Savoy. The 28-year-old arrived looking notably healthier, with a sun-kissed tan that contrasted with the leaner frames of earlier appearances. Barrett wore a navy suit paired with a pale blue shirt and a wool overcoat, finishing the look with Doc Martens and a gold chain. His hair was styled to frame his features as he posed for photographers at the venue, underscoring a confident return to the high-gloss social circuit that has long followed his career.

Barrett has been seen at other high-profile events in recent days as he works to reinsert himself into London’s fashion calendar. He attended the ONE Gin Host Opening Party at Chiltern Firehouse, and he was later photographed flying to the Venice Film Festival alongside Kate Moss. The sustained run of appearances comes after a two-year pause in which he stepped back from the spotlight and addressed public concerns about his weight. Two years ago, Barrett’s gaunt features during London Fashion Week caused alarm among fans and industry peers, with observers speculating about health issues.

Barrett later explained that the weight loss was tied to his training for a marathon, a charitable endeavor that mirrored his own long-standing willingness to use sport and philanthropy to make a difference. In a social media post from that period, he described preparing for the Vienna Marathon with the aim of raising funds for LDA Les Disparus Anonymes, an organization dedicated to recovering missing children. He noted that the founder and the team at LDA have located more than 1,000 children through their work and highlighted the organization’s psychological and legal support network for families. The post suggested a disciplined schedule and a sense of purpose behind the grueling training that had become part of his life at the time.

Barrett’s path to fashion stardom began far from the front row. He was discovered at age 13 in a Gold Coast grocery store by Kirk Blake, who has long been involved in the industry through What Model Management. The moment helped propel him into a modeling career that would eventually take him across runways in Europe and beyond. In 2013, Barrett spoke about his early days in a New York magazine interview, recounting that he had been scouted at 13 in the grocery store and later reflected on a rougher adolescence. He recalled that he once took matches from a counter because he could not obtain a lighter as a minor, a detail that provided a stark contrast to the polished public image that followed. Over the years, Barrett’s personal life has been intertwined with a string of socialites, contributing to a public persona that sat at the intersection of fashion and celebrity.

Beyond the social whirl, Barrett has remained a working model and occasionally a source of curiosity for fashion fans. His connections to high-profile names—Paris Hilton, Hailey Baldwin, Sofia Richie, Megan Blake Irwin, Lara Stone and Sahara Ray—have helped keep him in the public eye, while his philanthropic aims have offered a contrasting glimpse of the public figure. The Venice stop with Moss, in particular, underscored Barrett’s ongoing relevance in a culture that values both star power and comeback narratives. As London Fashion Week continues, the industry will watch to see whether he maintains the momentum, balances health, and sustains the renewed focus on both style and the charitable causes he has championed.

Barrett’s comeback arrives at a moment when public interest in models’ health and well-being has grown alongside their professional demands. The Australian model’s trajectory—from the initial discovery to a marathon fundraiser and a high-profile return to the front rows of fashion houses—highlights a career that remains firmly in the public eye even as he uses it to support causes beyond the runway. For now, industry watchers will likely note not only his attire and posture but also the broader arc of his career: a story of transformation, resilience and an ongoing effort to translate personal experiences into positive action within fashion’s glittering, sometimes unforgiving spotlight.