TLDR
Adairs commissioned Are Media's Belle and Home Beautiful titles to co-produce Summer House, a three-day experiential series at a Bellevue Hill villa running 23 to 25 September 2026. Friday consumer masterclasses sold out at $50 a ticket, with a $300 gift bag included, and a waitlist is now open on Eventbrite.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
What Adairs actually bought
Adairs commissioned Are Media's Belle and Home Beautiful to transform Villa Alezalia in Sydney's Bellevue Hill into a three-day event series called Summer House, running 23 to 25 September 2026.[1] The retailer did not buy column centimetres or display impressions. It bought access to two distinct editorial communities and the talent who run them.
The program runs across three days: a launch dinner on Wednesday, trade and industry masterclasses on Thursday, and two ticketed consumer sessions on Friday.[1] Belle editor-in-chief Tanya Buchanan and Home Beautiful editor-in-chief Elle Lovelock host those Friday sessions themselves, not brand ambassadors hired for the occasion.
Sold out before the doors opened
Consumer tickets for Friday were priced at AUD 50 and included an exclusive gift bag valued at AUD 300; those sessions are now sold out, with a waitlist open via Eventbrite.[2] A $300 gift bag attached to a $50 ticket puts the value inside the experience rather than beside it on a page.
The sell-out confirmed audience appetite before a single session ran. For a retailer redirecting spend away from traditional display advertising, pre-event demand at that ratio is the metric that matters most.
What both sides said they were after
Nicole Waudby, Are Media's General Manager of Homes and Lifestyle, a role created in August 2026, said the deal took the partnership somewhere a media buy could not go.[3] "Adairs Summer House takes the partnership beyond traditional media, allowing consumers to experience the collection in a beautiful, inspiring and highly relevant setting. By bringing together the trusted voices of Belle and Home Beautiful, we are introducing two distinct and highly engaged audiences to the Adairs collection through a shared passion for styling, entertaining and living well," Waudby said.[1]
Elle Roseby, Group Chief Executive of Adairs Retail Group, framed it as a values alignment rather than a media transaction.[4] "This collaboration feels incredibly natural. Adairs, Belle and Home Beautiful share a passion for beautiful homes, thoughtful design and inspiring Australians to create spaces that feel both personal and enduring. Summer House is a celebration of the season ahead, bringing together styling, entertaining and the simple pleasure of spending time at home," Roseby said.[1]
Why the structure matters
Are Media appointed Waudby as General Manager, Homes and Lifestyle in August 2026, a deliberate move to commercialise its homes titles beyond the printed page.[3] Summer House is the first public activation under that remit, arriving less than a month after the appointment was announced.
For magazine publishers watching ad revenue migrate to performance channels, the model on show in Bellevue Hill this week offers a concrete alternative. The masthead becomes the venue, the editor becomes the host, and the community, already self-selected around home and design, becomes the product sold to the brand. Summer House opens on 23 September 2026.
SOURCES & CITATIONS
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What is Are Media's Summer House with Adairs?
How much do consumer tickets cost and are they still available?
Why did Adairs choose an event format over traditional advertising?
Xaviery Malinao writes for Prompt the Market on how brands and agencies are adapting to answer engines, drawing on Bushnote's work with clients across search, AI search and content.
