Australia’s Elle Macpherson will join luxury lifestyle brand Lexus as a guest of honour in the coveted Lexus Design Pavilion at this year’s Victoria Derby Day, the opening event of the Melbourne Cup Carnival.

Ms Macpherson will visit the prestigious international race event coinciding with the first year of Lexus as the principal partner of the Victoria Racing Club and naming rights sponsor of the Melbourne Cup.

Elle Macpherson, co-founder of Wellness brand WelleCo – has long been an advocate for female empowerment.  She has received numerous international business awards and continues to demonstrate a strong affinity between femininity and the future of women in business.

“I am excited to be coming back to Australia in November as a guest of Lexus.  I’ll be spending Derby Day in the Lexus Design Pavilion - and this is their first year as the new principal partner of the Victoria Racing Club,” Ms Macpherson said.

Lexus will also stage the Australian premiere of its all-new UX luxury compact SUV at this year’s event. Development of the innovative UX – which will become a new gateway vehicle to the Lexus brand – was led by the luxury carmaker’s first female chief engineer and executive vice president of Lexus International, Chika Kako.

Kako’s vision for the UX was to break with the conventions of the segment and create a compact design that is strong, stylish, distinctive and dynamic, and showcase Lexus as progressive global luxury lifestyle brand with leading levels of design, technology and innovation. 

Lexus Australia chief executive Scott Thompson said Lexus is thrilled to have a prominent Australian icon and businesswoman attend the Lexus Design Pavilion.

“Elle is synonymous with Lexus’ core brand values – progressive, innovative and sophisticated” Mr Thompson said. 

“As an entrepreneur in business and role model for young Australians, she adds an exciting dynamic to this year’s carnival,” he said.

“The Lexus Melbourne Cup holds a special place in people’s hearts and we are proud to be the new custodians of the race that stops the nation™.  As the new principal partner, we look forward to driving the Melbourne Cup Carnival to new heights.”

The Lexus Design Pavilion, located within the exclusive Birdcage enclosure at Flemington racecourse, is Lexus Australia’s key annual design project. Its exquisite design reflects the timeless craftsmanship within every Lexus vehicle and is inspired by heritage Japanese design philosophies.

This year the Lexus Design Pavilion will reside at pole position in the exclusive Birdcage enclosure and cover an expansive 1000sq. m. across three levels of luxury and opulence. 

Designed with Lexus’ core values and guiding principles of Takumi craftsmanship and Japanese philosophies surrounding anticipation, consideration and hospitality — in mind, the unrivalled all-black structure features 1,280 louvre windows and will house up to 300 guests per day and service approximately 1,200 guests throughout the carnival.