Despite the public roasting Levi’s took for flirting with AI, smaller clothing sellers who model their own products online maintain a growing interest in replacing themselves with the computer-generated kind.



On Tracy Porter’s&nbsp;clothing site, it’s all Tracy Porter.



Thin, blonde and 5-foot-10, the 55-year-old entrepreneur poses in each and every one of her designs. Her husband uses his iPhone to snap pictures, which they often take on the wildflower-strewn bluffs overlooking the beach 15 minutes from their home in California’s Santa Ynez Valley, before uploading them to their e-commerce site, The Porter Collective. There, you can see Porter in her striped midi dress, in her multicolor crocheted cardigan and in her black-and-white rattan visor.



Porter said she’s been searching for ways to replace herself as a model, not only to lighten the load but to bring some diversity to the site. Humans, however, are prohibitively expensive. So she’s been testing a new artificial-intelligence service from Israeli startup&nbsp;<a href="https://botika.io/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Botika</a>. She said the images look so realistic that when she showed her sons, they told her she was out of a job.



“I’m actually excited about that. I don’t want to be our model anymore,” Porter said with a laugh.



After Levi’s endured a scorching backlash in March for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.levistrauss.com/2023/03/22/lsco-partners-with-lalaland-ai/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">its plan</a>&nbsp;to bring more diversity to the site with AI-generated models – critics flayed the company, which had 2022 sales of $6.2 billion, for not simply hiring more humans – it would be no surprise if big clothing retailers have gotten skittish about using, or admitting they use, nonhuman models. That same public disapproval hasn’t yet extended to the many mom-and-pop clothing shops, whose budgets, like Tracy Porter’s, would collapse under the costs of professional hair, makeup and photography – even without inflation, rising borrowing costs and a recession that feels as if it’s been looming forever.



Services like Botika let brands easily display their clothing on various (computer-generated) fashion models. However, they are still working to add more ages, body shapes and ethnicities.BOTIKA



“In the current economy, customers are mostly looking to optimize costs,” said Eran Dagan, cofounder and CEO of Botika, which caters to small businesses and plans to start subscriptions for its AI model service at just $15 a month. It’s preparing to launch on Shopify and has a waiting list of over 1,000 customers. Dagan said Botika has gotten interest from sellers on resale platforms like Poshmark and Depop, where entrepreneurs typically photograph clothing on themselves and crop out their heads.



Another company in the space,&nbsp;<a href="https://lalaland.ai/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Lalaland</a>&nbsp;— which is still set to power Levi’s attempt to go AI — said its recent growth has been driven mainly by small and medium-sized businesses. While the company declined to disclose revenue figures, cofounder and CEO Michael Musandu said business has picked up significantly over the last eight months and sales have grown by eight- or nine-fold.



“We’re helping emerging brands that are just starting out and have zero budgets, or low budgets, to actually plan photoshoots,” said Musandu. “We really help level the playing field by representing the underdog.”



The fact remains that for everyone, photoshoots are pricey, and while shoppers are increasingly demanding that clothes be shown on a variety of models, no brand has an unlimited budget to do that. Tracy Porter used to hire outside photographers, models and hair and makeup stylists to shoot her products, but it would cost $5,500 every time she brought them out. If she outsourced photography for her multimillion-dollar business today, she estimates it would set her back $500,000 a year. “It’s just too much money,” she said.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
“What I’d like to do is take an image and see it on different sizes. Small, medium and large. But I don’t want to have to hire all the people to do that.”Tracy Porter, small business owner
</blockquote>



Which is how Porter landed on modeling the clothes herself. However, that makes it difficult for shoppers with a different body shape or ethnicity to get a sense for how her products would look on them. “What I’d like to do is take an image and see it on different sizes. Small, medium and large. But I don’t want to have to hire all the people to do that,” said Porter. “Because there will be no profit left in our company and we’ll have to close.”



Another small business owner, Jacob Flores, is looking forward to more easily finding models that reflect his customer base. The 50-year-old former web designer from San Antonio, whose online store Blissfully Brand sells skintight dresses, skater skirts and bell bottoms in colorful prints inspired by fashion from the 1960s and 1970s, has a lot of customers in their 40s and 50s. But many models for hire tend to be much younger.



Flores recently started using Lalaland, where he can hand-select digital models from a library, dress them in his products and upload the images to his site without leaving the house. For $300 a month, he gets 50 images, enabling him to display more of his clothing on models much faster. He was previously limited to doing photoshoots four times a year, where he would pay $900 to get as many shots of a few models in 20 outfits as he could in two hours.



Now he plans to do photoshoots just once or twice a year on location so he can show his clothing at the beach or on a city street. He also sees AI being helpful with social media ads, allowing him to target certain audiences with tailored images.



Richard Evans, founder of wellness startup Juro Miru, also opted to include some shots on AI models to launch his new e-commerce site, in addition to images of clothing laid on a flat surface.



Startup Juro Miru displays some of its products on AI models.SCREENSHOT OF JURO MIRU WEBSITE



As for shoppers, it can be impossible for them to tell whether they’re looking at a real or fake model. There are no clear rules for disclosure, although companies are beginning to think about it. TikTok is reportedly working on a tool that will give creators a way to say whether they’ve used generative AI.



“When you’re presenting an image that could easily be mistaken for an actual person, I think you should disclose that it’s a computer-generated image,” said David Danks, a professor at the University of California, San Diego whose research explores the ethical issues around artificial intelligence.



Porter is wrestling with this question, among others. “How would you even know? Do we have to say? Are we supposed to say? There are a lot of questions,” she said. Her friends seem afraid of AI and have told her they think it will put models out of work. “It’s a constant dinner table conversation for us.”



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurendebter/"></a>By Lauren Debter, Forbes Staff

Pacific Islander woman wearing artificial technology mask

Clothing Entrepreneurs Can’t Wait To Fire Themselves As Models And Hire The AI Kind Instead

Anjali Borkhataria is trying to change the narrative of fashion in Tanzania with a local brand aimed at everyone.



BY INAARA GANGJI



IT WAS ONE OF THOSE RARE OCCASIONS when bold neon colors, oversized white outdoor workwear and bright uncoordinated prints made their way on to the ramps of the annual Swahili Fashion Week in Tanzania. Local fashion designer, Anjali Borkhataria’s brand, EK AN TIK, its name inspired by Hindu scriptures, was a breath of fresh air in an industry that has been assumed to be set in its ways. 



“I believe African fashion is not limited to the printed patterns or kitenge, but we have so much to work with… there can definitely be more diverse design, but still have that African signature,” says Borkhataria to FORBES AFRICA. Borkhataria won Innovative Designer of the Year at this year’s fashion week and her brand has been worn by celebrities across the region and the African continent including Kenyan musician Tanasha Donna, Tanzanian celebrity Romy Jons and singer Mbosso, and has also appeared in a music video by popular Tanzanian singer Diamond Platnumz, featuring Congolese singer Koffi Olomide. 



But Borkhataria believes her brand is not made only for celebrities. Her first collection is workwear inspired by regular businessmen, electricians, and construction industry workers. It’s also unisex, oversized, and flowing. And while she does not prefer comparing herself to other designers in the region because creativity is not a competition for her, she believes her designs inspired by local street culture set her apart. 



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/MIKE-DEO-2-1-819x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-50422" width="338" height="422" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/MIKE-DEO-2-1-819x1024.jpg 819w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/MIKE-DEO-2-1-240x300.jpg 240w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/MIKE-DEO-2-1-768x960.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/MIKE-DEO-2-1-1229x1536.jpg 1229w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/MIKE-DEO-2-1-1638x2048.jpg 1638w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/MIKE-DEO-2-1.jpg 2000w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 338px) 100vw, 338px" /></figure></div>



“Because, life happens on the streets, the streets influence me more than anything. So, I try to imply that into my design,” says the 23-year-old who has been a designer for the last three years. However, despite having studied at the Cape Town College of Fashion Design in South Africa, when it comes to the creative process, she does not believe in doing things in one way or the other. 



Her second collection showcased at the latest edition of the Swahili Fashion Week was inspired by games. Titled ‘GameScape’, the inspiration for it came from her father, who sells cars, batteries, and tires. It was also inspired by the Covid-19 pandemic as everybody sat at home and played games. “I don’t know what my creative process looks like because sometimes it’s a movie, sometimes it’s a piece of art, sometimes it’s nothing,” she exudes.



The tight timeframes involved in creating collections hinder the creative process too, with usually only five weeks between conception and production. She is not a fan of sketching either, as she goes with flow, not following a typical or organized process. This saves her time and sets realistic expectations, in her opinion.



Borkhataria also does all her production in-house and on her own. And she hopes that the independent career path she has taken by returning home to Tanzania from South Africa, inspires other young people in her country, no matter their background, to also be able to pursue fashion if they are so keen. 



She also credits her success to her supportive parents. All of this may make it seem like fashion is fun, and it is for her, but the industry is not free of challenges, she opines. She thinks brands create so many collections every year, but there aren’t enough people who can afford to wear them. “So, I wish fashion would go back a little bit. Today, everybody thinks that they know what fashion is, but they don’t know the main essence. For instance, I like music, but it’s not like I’m going to actually make it. So, I don’t like it when people buy a dress from H&amp;M for cheap and they think, ‘I know what fashion is’… I definitely want to change that,” she adds.



This is the reason why she wants high-quality local brands to reach the most people and hopes to have a local store of her own, as she currently works and sells from home. With all these aspirations, and while being a young, South Asian-origin female designer, doing everything on her own is not easy, she is humbled and inspired by being able to create fashion at home in Tanzania. 



“It is challenging but like in one way, it has made me very open minded. Because we are surrounded with mixed backgrounds… I think that has made me very open to different types of people. It just signifies there is hope,” she says, with faith in her craft and optimism for the world.

pic supplied

Inspiration From Where Life Happens

Japanese designer Kenzo Takada has died at age 81 after battling Covid-19-related complications. The designer passed away on Sunday evening at the American Hospital, near Paris, France.



Tributes have poured in for the designer, who made his debut in 1970 and over the years grew Kenzo into a globally recognized brand and fashion house.



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/bernard-arnault/#:~:text=One%20of%20the%20world's%20ultimate,biggest%20luxury%20brand%20acquisition%20ever.">Bernard Arnault</a>, LVMH chairman, said in a statement that he was “very sad to learn about his passing,” expressing sympathy for Takada’s family and friends, adding, “Kenzo Takada has, from the 1970s, infused into fashion a tone of poetic lightness and sweet freedom, which inspired many designers after him. In this fresh and spontaneous spirit, he also durably renewed the world of perfume.”



LVMH acquired Kenzo in an $80 million deal in August 1993, the year of its acquisition. Kenzo’s sales hit $144 million, according to United Press International. Takada left the group in 1999.



Jonathan Bouchet Manheim, CEO of K-3, Takada’s new lifestyle brand launched in 2020, said, “Kenzo Takada was incredibly creative; with a stroke of genius, he imagined a new artistic and colorful story combining East and West—his native Japan and his life in Paris,” he said in an emailed statement to Forbes.



Adding, “I had the chance to work alongside him for many years, always in awe, admiring his curiosity and his open-mindedness. He seemed quiet and shy at first, but he was full of humor.



“He was generous and always knew how to look after the people close to his heart. He had a zest for life . . . Kenzo Takada was the epitome of the art of living.”



<h4 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading">The Rise of Kenzo</h4>



Born in Himeji, Japan, in 1939, Takada studied literature before dropping out and becoming one of the first male students at Bunka Fashion College, Tokyo, according to a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/04/style/kenzo-takada-dead.html?smtyp=cur&amp;smid=tw-nytimes" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">New York Times</a>&nbsp;profile. He told the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ft.com/content/a5eea252-140e-11e9-a168-d45595ad076d" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Financial Times</a>&nbsp;in 2019, “I was once told that it was impossible for a Japanese man to work in the fashion industry in Paris . . . Men weren’t allowed into design schools. Being creative was not accepted in Japanese society in the 1950s. And more than anything, my parents opposed the idea of me working in fashion.”



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="alignleft size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-1209066807-1024x682.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-48251" width="303" height="202" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-1209066807-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-1209066807-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-1209066807-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-1209066807-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-1209066807-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-1209066807-600x399.jpg 600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 303px) 100vw, 303px" /><figcaption> (Photo by Anthony Ghnassia/Getty Images For Roger Vivier)</figcaption></figure></div>



His first fashion house was impishly named “Jungle Jap” and was formed after his flat was leveled to make way for the Tokyo Olympics in 1964, the compensation from which allowed him to travel to Paris. After first selling sketches to other designers, he launched his first Paris boutique, later rebranding the fashion label as Kenzo in New York in 1976.



Takada described his own early style as floral patterns, kimonos and textiles, and drawing on the “strong presence of nature in Japanese art,” he told the&nbsp;FT.



As the house grew and grew, Kenzo launched a men’s collection in 1983, followed by a fragrance line in 1988. Kenzo sold the business to LVMH in 1993 following shifts in the industry, and the death of his partner, Xavier de Castella, in 1990, “I decided to sell the company for various reasons . . . It was becoming more commercial. Fashion was changing, the pace was changing,” he told the&nbsp;FT, staying on as designer but stepping away amicably in 1999.



<h4 class="has-text-align-center wp-block-heading">Tributes</h4>



<div class="wp-block-image is-style-default"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-908467420-scaled-e1602146194776-1024x936.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-48252" width="412" height="376" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-908467420-scaled-e1602146194776-1024x936.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-908467420-scaled-e1602146194776-300x274.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-908467420-scaled-e1602146194776-768x702.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-908467420-scaled-e1602146194776-1536x1405.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-908467420-scaled-e1602146194776-600x549.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/GettyImages-908467420-scaled-e1602146194776.jpg 1707w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 412px) 100vw, 412px" /><figcaption>Kenzo Takada and Naomi Campbell attend the &#8220;Azzedine Alaia : Je Suis Couturier&#8221; Exhibition as part of Paris Fashion Week. (Photo by Bertrand Rindoff Petroff/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div>



Supermodel Naomi Campbell said on Instagram, “So sad to hear of your loss today . . . will always remember your smile and humble demeanor . . . and positivity you shined on us all.” 



Billionaire <a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/francois-pinault/#190b8d374d20">François-Henri Pinault</a>, described Takada as “one of the creative spirits who contributed to making Paris the capital of fashion. His fashion resembled him: at the crossroads of cultures, creative, joyful and generous,” <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://wwd.com/fashion-news/designer-luxury/kenzo-takada-dies-at-81-of-covid-related-complications-1234621609/" target="_blank">WWD</a> reported yesterday.



<figure class="wp-block-embed-twitter aligncenter wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/1313594106942160896?s=20
</div></figure>



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https://twitter.com/pam_boy/status/1312789669231366149?s=20
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Felipe Oliveira Baptista, artistic director at Kenzo, said, “It is with great sadness that I have learned the passing away of Mr. Kenzo Takada. His amazing energy, kindness and talent were contagious. His kindred spirit will live forever. Rest in peace, Master.”&nbsp;



Takada’s death falls as Paris prepares for Fashion Week 2020 amid a tightening of lockdown measures as the number of Covid cases soars again in France.



-By David Dawkins, Forbes Staff

FRANCE-JAPAN-FASHION-KENZO-PORTRAIT-BLACK AND WHITE

Kenzo Takada Dies After Covid-19 Battle–Bernard Arnault Mourns Designer’s ‘Fresh And Spontaneous Spirit’

In this exclusive interview with FORBES AFRICA, successful Dubai-based Emirati businesswoman, author and artist, Sheikha Hend Faisal Al Qassimi, shares some interesting insights on fashion, the future, and feminism in a shared world.



Sheikha Hend Faisal Al Qassimi wears many hats, as an artist, architect, author, entrepreneur and philanthropist based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). She currently serves as the CEO of Paris London New York Events &amp; Publishing (PLNY), that includes a magazine and a fashion house.



She runs Velvet Magazine, a luxury lifestyle publication in the Gulf founded in 2010 that showcases the diversity of the region home to several nationalities from around the world. 



In this recent FORBES AFRICA interview, Hend, as she would want us to call her, speaks about the future of publishing, investing in intelligent content, and learning to be a part of the disruption around you.



As an entrepreneur too and the designer behind House of Hend, a luxury ready-to-wear line that showcases exquisite abayas, evening gowns and contemporary wear, her designs have been showcased in fashion shows across the world.



The Middle East is known for retail, but not typically, as a fashion hub in the same league as Paris, New York or Milan. Yet, she has changed the narrative of fashion in the region. “I have approached the world of fashion with what the customer wants,” says Hend. In this interview, she also extols African fashion talent and dwells on her own sartorial plans for the African continent.



In September, in Downtown Dubai, she is scheduled to open The Flower Café. Also an artist using creative expression meaningfully, she says it’s important to be &#8220;a role model of realism&#8221;.



She is also the author of The Black Book of Arabia, described as a collection of true stories from the Arab community offering a real glimpse into the lives of men and women across the Gulf Cooperation Council region.



In this interview, she also expounds on her home, Sharjah, one of the seven emirates in the UAE and the region’s educational hub. “A number of successful entrepreneurs have started in this culturally-rich emirate that’s home to 30 museums,” she concludes.&nbsp;

Sheikha Hend

From The Arab World To Africa

From glamorous Paris to gritty Johannesburg, Zazi Nyandeni arrived with $2,700 and updated sartorial skills to showcase haute couture on South Africa’s racks and runways.



With just $2,700 in her bank, transferred from her savings
account in France, Zazi Nyandeni returned home to the South African fashion
industry with her freshly-minted talent. But if Paris was school, Johannesburg
proved to be university. Qualifying was never easy. 



About 53kms from Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International
Airport is Constantia Kloof, a scenic, upmarket suburb in the West Rand, where
we meet Nyandeni, the up-and-coming 25-year-old fashion entrepreneur whose
brand, Zazi Luxury, has showcased in Paris, the fashion capital of the world. 



“I wasn’t really introduced to fashion, but more so to art,” recalls Nyandeni of her early days. “Ever since primary school, I was exposed to paintings, drawings and music by my father when he would come back with artworks from his travels.”



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="683" height="1024" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3374-683x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-43167" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3374-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3374-300x450.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3374-600x900.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3374-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3374-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3374-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3374.jpg 1280w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px" /></figure>



She thought she was going to become a doctor growing up
because of her choice of subjects in high school but still pursued design to
stay close to art. Thankfully, her parents picked up that she was artistically-inclined
and gave her their unstinted support. 



In 2013, after high school, Nyandeni took the plane out of
South Africa and went on to study fashion at ESMOD, an international fashion
design and business school in Paris. She wanted to express herself without
saying a word, and found her way. She spent close to six years there, studying
full-time for the first three years and partially for the last two, whilst
freelancing and interning for various companies in the glitzy city.



“I love to draw and not really to sew. For my first freelance job, I went for a company that would help me work on my weaknesses; I went to Loon Paris boutique and worked on my sewing techniques. They were very strict and meticulous when it came to sewing and I learned a lot about technique,” she says.



The intense training meant that even the inside of a garment
had to be as exquisite as the outside and if the hand stitch was incorrect, she
had to undo and redo it all over again.



READ MORE: <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/life/2019/10/31/conscious-fashion-so-much-more-you-can-do-with-discarded-clothes/">Conscious Fashion: ‘So Much More You Can Do With Discarded Clothes’</a>



“When I asked ‘aren’t we wasting material’, they would say
‘I’m wasting their time’,” she laughs.



The eager fashionista was juggling two jobs; the other was
at a PR agency named DLX Paris, which was sourcing brands for international
celebrities like American singer-songwriter Kelly Rowland.



She soon came to a realization that in fashion, there is
nothing new, which is when she moved to fabric store Boutique Malhia Kent, a
French manufacturer of haute couture. 



Nyandeni has a soft spot for weaving. She clearly adores fabrics, and this is apparent in the weaving machine she has at her Constantia Kloof studio, placed in a corner of one of the work rooms.



She says her weaving differentiates her from the other
designers, as she compares herself to South Africa’s Laduma Ngxokolo of MaXhosa
Africa and Greek fashion designer Mary Katrantzou. 



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3391-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-43170" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3391-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3391-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3391-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3391-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3391-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3391.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



“You can make a silhouette similar to somebody else but the real interesting part is the fabric, so Malhia Kent deals with fabric customization, and this is where I learned that in the world of fabric, you are two years ahead of the industry; like Chanel orders their fabric from Malhia Kent,” she says.



That was the space she wanted to be in.



So in between jobs, Nyandeni co-founded Garbage, a business that looked into environment-friendly garments.



“We wanted to speak on the notations of how do we pick up
the fashion industry and say that there are other ways to look glamorous and
chic and it doesn’t have to be wasteful and terrible to the environment.”



The business ran for a year and sold a few garments, but sadly, collapsed. That inspired the birth of an idea, one that would solely work for her, a business that would include all that she had learned from fashion school and the stylish streets of Paris. She had also personally worked with Katrantzou, building a portfolio and a first collection. She was ready and had under $2,700 in savings.



READ MORE: <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/entrepreneurs/2019/10/02/owning-the-african-narrative/">Owning The African Narrative </a>



Nyandeni returned home to South Africa and registered her
company in 2018.



“In my heart, I thought I was going to be able to buy sewing
machines and a small car to travel back and forth for business, be able to get
staple fabrics that people would love,” she says.



It was not the case, but she started the business despite a
shortage of funds.



“I called it Zazi Luxury because it speaks to more of the
inside and outside of a garment and the technique used which is the core of the
business. The inside is about matching the outside; I should literally be able
to wear it inside out, and if not, it’s not [a Zazi Luxury product].”



Her first client was South African comedienne Tumi Morake
referred by a mutual friend, and later actress Zenande Mfenyana, but currently,
her clients are also doctors, lawyers and drawn from the corporate world.



“In the beginning, the business was focused on couture and it developed a bit more into business such as television, dressing anchors, and we also have ready-to-wear garments. We are broadening the business to other boutiques too.”



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="683" height="1024" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3153-683x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-43169" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3153-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3153-300x450.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3153-600x900.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3153-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3153-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3153-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_3153.jpg 1280w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px" /></figure>



Zazi Luxury recently showcased at South Africa Fashion Week.
This year, she will be working on a fourth collection that will be both couture
and basic women’s workwear garments but featuring the Zazi aesthetic. 



Zazi Luxury currently employs seven young enthusiastic
fashionistas; one of who is Lebohang Ketlele, who has worked with Nyandeni for
two years.



“I am a dressmaker and stylist. I don’t think I would know
the things I know now if I wasn’t working here, we have dressed celebrities and
that is a great experience,” attests Ketlele.



Inspired in Paris, but made in Africa, Zazi seems to have
made the cut.

IMG_3216

The French Silhouette In Africa: How This Designer Started Her Own Business Despite A Shortage Of Funds

The power of fashion as a tool for social change is being realized in a tiny town in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where suffering is being swapped with style and self-worth.



Deep in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), lies the town of Bukavu, home to a community of women survivors of violence.



Since it first opened its doors, this transformational leadership community called the City of Joy, has graduated 1,380 women leaders. Here, women are healed from their past trauma through therapy and life skills programming and provided with essential ingredients to move forward in life, supported by love and community.



The program welcomes 90 survivors of gender violence aged between 18 and 30 at a time.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://www.forbeswomanafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/City-of-Joy-Bukavu-DRC-CREDIT-MARC-SILVER-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-41534"/></figure>



Recently, specialist Dutch fabric maker, Vlisco, was asked to create a fashion collection to honor the women of the City of Joy and the surgeon who works with them, 2018’s Nobel Peace Prize winner Dr Denis Mukwege.



Five international designers worked with 15 City of Joy graduates to create a collection of empowering and personalized garments using new fabrics.



The fabrics consist of five traditionally printed super-wax patterns incorporating 100 different, vivid colors.



The collection was showcased at a gala event in front of a global audience in Kinshasa in November last year to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, and all proceeds from the sale of the collection donated to the City of Joy.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://www.forbeswomanafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/City-of-Joy-graduate-models-an-outfit-created-by-Tolu-Coker-using-the-City-of-Joy-collection-fabric_3-Photo-credit-–-Vlisco-1024x684.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-41535"/></figure>



David Suddens, CEO of Vlisco, told FORBES WOMAN AFRICA that the five international designers, all African women, were keen to join the company’s efforts to help the women of the eastern Congo.



“They were immediately engaged even though they were not
initially aware of the City of Joy and the scale of the rape and brutality.
Once they had met the women, they formed a bond of love and respect.”



Suddens continues: “It was a real pleasure to work with the five designers; they not only created and made the garments in a very short period of time, they flew great distances to be with the women (one interrupted her family vacation in the United States to be in the DRC) and they made a huge impact on the women they designed for. The bond was palpable.”



The designers wrote to Suddens and Gabriela Sanchez, a Mexican Dutch designer and head of creative projects at Vlisco: “Thank you so much for changing not only our lives this year with this experience but also thank you for connecting us with these amazing women, with compelling stories and divine souls. You’re both a blessing to us.” The founder of City of Joy, Christine Schuler, told Suddens and Sanchez that many people visit the community, but “nobody has understood us like you have”.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">“The beauty of the Congolese landscape is depicted; its river, its forests, its nature. From the dark roots of the forest, slowly flowers start to grow, butterflies appear, birds are in the sky and the sun is glimpsed behind the clouds.</blockquote>



Asked about the impact of the designs and this collaboration
on the community, Suddens says: “The designs are related to the lives and
suffering and hope and courage of the women in the City of Joy. You needed to
see their faces light up when they first saw the designs. They were overjoyed.”



The main stories expressed in the fabric designs are
fundamentally about the journey from pain to power. 



“The designs, at the bottom, are somber, twisted, even
menacing. But, as the eye moves upwards, there is gradually more light and the
images symbolize hope and respect and love,” Suddens explains. 



“The beauty of the Congolese landscape is depicted; its
river, its forests, its nature. From the dark roots of the forest, slowly
flowers start to grow, butterflies appear, birds are in the sky and the sun is
glimpsed behind the clouds.



“In one design sits a lion, dignified and rather sad, symbolizing Dr Mukwege. In another, sisterhood is portrayed, with intertwined threads joining ‘hands’ as they grow lighter but stronger. And two designs depict the beauty of the vagina, full of flowers against the dark background of the universe.”



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://www.forbeswomanafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Vlisco-designer-Gabriela-Sanchez-y-Sanchez-de-la-Barquera-stands-with-designers-Oritsegbubemi-Ogisi-Abiola-Adeniran-Olusola-Tolu-Coker-Aisha-Ayensu-Rebecca-Zoro-Photo-credit-–-Vlisco-1024x684.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-41538"/></figure>



FORBES WOMAN AFRICA also spoke to international designer
Aisha Ayensu, the founder and creative director of fashion brand Christie Brown
known as a player in the rise of contemporary African fashion since its
inception 11 years ago. 



“This project gave me first-hand insight into how fashion
can be used as a tool for social change but most importantly, meeting these
remarkable women, sharing in their joy and appreciating where they’ve come from
and their journey from pain to power has completely altered the way I view my
work and my purpose,” says Ayensu.



She recalls her experience in Kinshasa as magical. “It was
important that the gala event highlighted their power and recovery more than
the atrocities the women faced, but all the same, raising awareness of what may
still be going on and how we can help stop violence against women.”



“I had an experience with one of the ladies in Bukavu, when
she did her first fitting&#8230; The sheer joy and excitement on her face when she
saw her outfit and exclaimed in local language ‘for me?’ In disbelief. When she
put it on and saw a picture of herself, she started to cry tears of joy and
also started saying ‘is this me, today look at me, I am also somebody’. That
reaction was priceless. When fashion and design is deliberate and well thought
out, it has the power to elevate a woman in ways you can’t imagine.”



Added Suddens: “Never could they have imagined wearing their
own designs made into garments by African designers. To understand, you need to
see their faces. You need to see them literally dancing with joy.”&nbsp; 



-Jill De Villiers

City of Joy graduates walk the catwalk in Kinshasa to launch the City of Joy Collection (1)

Clothes Encounters In The Congo: How Fashion Can Be Used As A Tool For Social Change

Brand Voice by Gert-Johan Coetzee 



A &nbsp;fashion designer who believes you can never dream too big, Gert-Johan Coetzee is revered as one of South Africa’s most celebrated designers; synonymous with his signature style, sophistication and panache. Gert-Johan doesn’t simply design dresses, he designs relationships and delivers dreams for his dynamic and esteemed clientele of women in Business, Entertainment, Politics and Royal African Families. 



Fashion courses through Gert-Johan’s veins, and has been his
passion since he was eight years old, designing dresses for his pencils, out of
tissue paper. Over two decades later, his dedication to dressing women how
they’d like to be addressed, has seen Gert-Johan rise to the top of his game in
South Africa; dressing newsworthy women like Former Public Protector Thuli
Madonsela, Miss Universe 2018 Demi-Leigh Nel- Peters, Miss World 2014 Rolene
Strauss, and Media Personalities Minnie Dlamini, Lerato Kganyago and Bonang
Matheba, to name a few. His talent has an international scope of significant
superstars including the likes of Oprah Winfrey, Kourtney Kardashian, Kristin
Cavallari, Lauryn Hill, Kelly Rowland, Fantasia and Tiwa Savage. 



A decade of designing is a formidable feat, as the Fashion
Industry is fast-paced, and as an Entrepreneur in an ever-evolving environment;
in order to achieve the commercial and creative success that Gert-Johan has
enjoyed in his ten year tenure, requires passion, perseverance, determination
and a delicate balance between business and creativity.&nbsp; 



His successful collaborations with global brands such as
McDonald’s and Ferrari speak of his commercial understanding of business, which
is a rarity in the creative world of Fashion. Without self-discipline, success
is impossible, and in the enterprise of Fashion, success is not exclusively
measured on making profits, but in the creation of brand value; which
Gert-Johan has mastered with his eponymous empire. In addition to his Couture
and Bespoke Bridal Collections, Gert-Johan has created GERT, his Casual Wear
Collection as well as an exclusive Ready-To-Wear Range available at selected
luxury boutiques. His Menswear range adds to his impressive portfolio.



Gert-Johan has become an influential individual in his own
right, and debuted his career in television as a mentor on Project Runway South
Africa. With a passion for mentorship and sharing opportunities and knowledge,
Gert-Johan has established a bursary programme that sponsors two new students
annually, with three-year bursaries in Fashion Studies at his alma mater, The
Northwest School of Design.&nbsp; 



Gert-Johan is also a Social Activist who uses the power of
his platform to highlight social issues. From breaking down prejudices to
breast cancer awareness, from championing education to addressing violence
against women; as well as raising awareness about endangered wildlife and
eco-consciousness in fashion, Gert-Johan’s bi-annual collections, shown at SA
Fashion Week, have sparked conversations with their social focus.



Gert-Johan has won numerous awards, including South Africa’s
Most Promising Young Designer in 2006, at the age of 19, and South African
Designer of the Year in 2010. He’s also shown at International Fashion Weeks in
Canada, Angola and Nigeria and has a growing following across the African
continent. 



In his illustrious career, Gert-Johan has created some of South Africa’s most memorable masterpieces, and together with opening SA Fashion Week SS20 in April this year; the upcoming Gert-Johan Coetzee Retrospective, taking place in Sandton City&#8217;s Diamond Walk, in collaboration with Martini Dolce 0.0. from the 19th of March until the 26th of April 2020, will showcase some of his most iconic creations as well as the women who wore them. 



In addition to the Retrospective, in celebration of a decade
of Gert-Johan Coetzee, comes a passion project expertly crafted in the heart of
Grasse, the perfume capital of the world on the French Riviera, in the same
perfumerie where some of the greatest fragrances such as Jean Paul Gaultier,
Maison Francis Kurkdjian, Dior and Balmain are manufactured. A signature scent
that is anchored in authenticity, inspired by Africa and reflecting her
essence; but artfully constructed by the finest French noses, comes Gert-Johan
Coetzee’s first foray into fragrance. 



Double Platinum Eau de Parfum by Gert-Johan Coetzee
comprises a cocktail of memory and emotion; and is reminiscent of Rustenburg’s
signature platinum mines, where Gert-Johan grew up. Designed for the diverse
South African men and women who wear Gert-Johan Coetzee’s Collections, the
delicate combination of the softness of rose, which represents feminine
fragility, paired with the smoke of masculinity, comes a sophisticated scent
offering aromatic abundance in every spritz. 



“A signature symphony of success,” every detail of Double
Platinum is deliberate, and Sarah Langa, the face of Double Platinum Eau de
Parfum, embodies the epitome of a Gert-Johan Coetzee woman – confident, kind,
powerful and graceful with a sophisticated soupçon of sex appeal.



This is the beautiful beginning of a brand new direction for
Gert-Johan and his Business Partner, Brand Manager and husband Vicky Visagie,
as they branch into diverse dimensions for the Gert-Johan Coetzee brand.



Double Platinum Eau de Parfum was launched on the 27th
February at Skins Cosmetics in Sandton City, Johannesburg, and will be
exclusively sold at this outlet.

IMG_0481

A Decade of Gert-Johan Coetzee

Johannesburg, 6 December 2019. BOSS celebrated its holiday capsule with an exclusive event on the 4th
of December in Johannesburg. 



Two internationally recognized German brands BOSS and Meissen came together for the first time. Inspired by Meissen’s celebrated Big Five figurines, a groundbreaking new collaboration united the two brands’ shared passions for quality, design and creativity.



The Big Five
collection, designed by sculptor Maximilian Hagstotz, features the African
lion, leopard, elephant, rhino and buffalo, each decorated with a monochrome
pattern placed to emphasize the animal’s characteristic traits. 



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="688" height="1024" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/13_BOSS_Women_PreSpring20_PR_CMYK-688x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-42506" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/13_BOSS_Women_PreSpring20_PR_CMYK-688x1024.jpg 688w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/13_BOSS_Women_PreSpring20_PR_CMYK-300x447.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/13_BOSS_Women_PreSpring20_PR_CMYK-600x893.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/13_BOSS_Women_PreSpring20_PR_CMYK-202x300.jpg 202w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/13_BOSS_Women_PreSpring20_PR_CMYK-768x1143.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/13_BOSS_Women_PreSpring20_PR_CMYK-1032x1536.jpg 1032w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/13_BOSS_Women_PreSpring20_PR_CMYK.jpg 1290w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 688px) 100vw, 688px" /></figure>



These majestic creatures, depicted in an angular style inspired by traditional African wooden sculptures, are the starting point for a unique capsule collection of BOSS Menswear and Womenswear.  The fashion capsule collection includes both casual and formal pieces for men and women, all in a monochrome palette of black and white.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="688" height="1024" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/015_BOSS_M_Cruise20-688x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-42508" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/015_BOSS_M_Cruise20-688x1024.jpg 688w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/015_BOSS_M_Cruise20-300x447.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/015_BOSS_M_Cruise20-600x893.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/015_BOSS_M_Cruise20-202x300.jpg 202w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/015_BOSS_M_Cruise20-768x1143.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/015_BOSS_M_Cruise20-1032x1536.jpg 1032w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/015_BOSS_M_Cruise20.jpg 1290w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 688px) 100vw, 688px" /></figure>



To honor this special capsule and collaboration,
BOSS and a local franchise partner SURTEE Group hosted an exclusive dinner just
in time for the holiday season, with a special guest in attendance – the
founder of Elephants for Africa organization Dr Kate Evans. 



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="688" height="1024" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/01_BOSS_Women_PreSpring20_PR_CMYK-688x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-42507" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/01_BOSS_Women_PreSpring20_PR_CMYK-688x1024.jpg 688w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/01_BOSS_Women_PreSpring20_PR_CMYK-300x447.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/01_BOSS_Women_PreSpring20_PR_CMYK-600x893.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/01_BOSS_Women_PreSpring20_PR_CMYK-202x300.jpg 202w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/01_BOSS_Women_PreSpring20_PR_CMYK-768x1143.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/01_BOSS_Women_PreSpring20_PR_CMYK-1032x1536.jpg 1032w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/01_BOSS_Women_PreSpring20_PR_CMYK.jpg 1290w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 688px) 100vw, 688px" /></figure>



Guests, dressed in black and white, were greeted by a life-sized white Meissen elephant statue with elegant black and white canapés and black martinis awaiting them. The sophisticated evening had everything from the food, to the décor, drinks and dress code following the monochromatic theme. The charismatic Mark Bayley and former Miss South Africa Jo-Ann Strauss kept VIP guests entertained as co-hosts. 



The evening culminated with a private performance by South Africa’s much loved Mi Casa.

006_BOSS_M_Cruise20

BOSS X Meissen Capsule Collection Inspired by The Big Five

Charles Oronsaye started out with a career in law and music before the fashion business, and is now painstakingly growing his brand to craft couture for all Africans.  



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



Charles Oronsaye chose fashion as a career not because he was passionate about it, but simply because he didn’t want to become a lawyer. A rebel since his early years, he tried his hand at various professions, including music. 



“I wanted to prove to my parents that I was not a good for nothing,” says Oronsaye. 



And that is exactly what he did. His original dream was to study in Malaysia but due to his parents’ break-up, an outcome of financial misfortune, Oronsaye had to find other ways to make ends meet.



“My dad wanted me to go into the sciences but I never liked it because I was more interested in the arts. My dad said if I was going to the arts, I should go to the apex, which is why I studied law at the University of Benin. I wanted to explore three things: music, law and computer science.” 



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">&#8220;I saved a little and with my uncle&#8217;s money, I decided I was going to start a fashion business, but I didn&#8217;t know how.</blockquote>



Music turned out to be his first love. Oronsaye created his
alter ego, Tony Cream, and began taking part in music competitions and even got
shortlisted as a finalist to be an MTV video jockey. The popularity he gained
from his creative endeavors landed him a gig on the local radio station where
he began to leverage his position as an intern to make ends meet while still
pursuing a law degree at university. 



“I got exploited on the radio. I was not getting paid because there was a culture that you don’t get paid as an intern and I worked there for two years without being paid,” says Oronsaye. 



But what he lost in earnings, he gained in a strong fan
following. With an audience of about 5,000 followers on Blackberry Messenger at
the time, Oronsaye decided to monetize his platform. His opportunity came when
his uncle gave him N100,000 ($276) to complete his final year at university.



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/entrepreneurs/2019/10/02/owning-the-african-narrative/">Owning The African Narrative</a>



“Growing up, I still had a sense of fashion. I could tweak everything I saw to my style and people would love it. I understood early that almost all ideas are not original. I saved a little and with my uncle’s money, I decided I was going to start a fashion business, but I didn’t know how.”



The plan was simple. Oronsaye noticed there was a need for
personalization in the fashion industry. He knew that fueled by social media
and the Generation Z effect, luxury was rapidly becoming not about what you
have, but who you are, and all that helps you project that image. 



Buyers in 2010 no longer wanted monogrammed collections of
expensive things, but instead, unique pieces that offered them exclusivity.
Thus, Tony Cream Fashion was born. Oronsaye’s idea was thus: “So, I will go to
the market and ask ‘who is the best person here’, and I say ‘this is my idea,
can you do this for me’ and they say ‘ok’. I would ask ‘how much will they
charge and I will double the price on the one condition, that ‘you will train
me also’.” 



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="637" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG_7938-1-1024x637.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-42435" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG_7938-1-1024x637.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG_7938-1-300x187.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG_7938-1-600x373.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG_7938-1-768x478.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG_7938-1-1536x955.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG_7938-1.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



With over 5,000 contacts, Oronsaye had no need for a physical store. He would simply take the photos of his new creations and post them online, and the orders would come thick and fast.



“I started making money and kept developing from the online
base to real-time base. People began to know me but people needed to have a
brick-and-mortar place where they could find me. I couldn’t do it in Benin so I
needed to go to a place where I could flourish, so I moved to Lagos,” says
Oronsaye.



Lagos is currently one of the most exciting fashion
destinations in Africa, with the likes of Michelle Obama, Solange, Beyoncé and
Lupita Nyong’o all supporting Nigerian designers. 



To thrive in this competitive environment, Oronsaye had to
create a bigger vision. And Africana Couture was born.



“So, I took my iPad and my [photo] collection that I shot myself, and I would go to luxury hotels like Sheraton and Oriental, and I would approach everybody I met that I felt was my ideal client. When I approached them, I would say ‘hey, this is what I make’. Of every ten people, five would give me their cards and three would order and maybe two or one out of empathy, would make an advance payment to just support me.”



READ MORE | <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/life/2019/10/31/conscious-fashion-so-much-more-you-can-do-with-discarded-clothes/">Conscious Fashion: ‘So Much More You Can Do With Discarded Clothes’</a>



His formula worked and soon, people began to talk about Oronsaye’s products. The business, which began on Blackberry Messenger, is today on course to become an established Nigerian fashion brand with the opening of its flagship retail store in Abuja.



“We are launching our Africana X which will be the Africana experience store. Because couture is quite expensive, I built a brand of kaftan that’s more affordable but without the same level of detailing&#8230; The goal is to build stores across Africa and change the narrative, which is clothes for Africans by Africans,” says Oronsaye. 



Pieces are from $400 for a bespoke kaftan and Oronsaye has
added new creations including an innerwear line as well as his own fabrics. But
the journey has not been easy. 



Like many industries in Nigeria, Oronsaye is plagued by the
power crisis as well as a lack of technical knowhow in the sector and negative
consumer behavior.



“The average African will give value to Gucci and Zara
because they come from overseas but then when it comes to you, because they can
see your label, they begin to devalue you.” 



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="803" height="1024" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG_7913-1-803x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-42436" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG_7913-1-803x1024.jpg 803w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG_7913-1-300x382.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG_7913-1-600x765.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG_7913-1-235x300.jpg 235w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG_7913-1-768x979.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG_7913-1-1205x1536.jpg 1205w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG_7913-1.jpg 1506w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 803px) 100vw, 803px" /></figure>



In spite of all these challenges, Oronsaye is more
determined to provide quality products with a global vision.



“Africana means Africa is beyond the jungle of lions and
mountains. “Africa is a spirit. I chose Africana because I have a vision to
clothe Africa in the long run.”&nbsp;

Photo Credit George Okoro1

Haute And Happening

Fashion is about creating beauty, but its ugly side is the carbon emissions. Designers are now looking to play it safe, even if it means going to dangerous lengths for the sake of greener fashion.



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



In South Africa, the fashion industry is now starting to do
its bit to negate the effects of climate change, with some designers going
green, in interesting, creative and even lucrative ways. 



Ayanda Nhlapo, a stylist and entrepreneur, is one of them. 



She hosted and co-produced her own TV fashion show, Ayanda’s
Fashion House, where she explored the work of some of South Africa’s most
prolific designers and creatives in the fashion industry. The fashion aesthete
says the influence of the industry is far-reaching, and therefore, must be more
responsible about the environment and preservation of resources. 



READ MORE: <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/economy/2018/12/19/no-christmas-cheer-for-fashion-firms-in-never-ending-sales/">No Christmas cheer for fashion firms in never-ending sales</a>



“I’ve always had a knack for creating, whether I’m creating
from scratch or recreating something that already exists,” says Nhlapo. So,
upcycling, or repurposing, is what she is into. 



“However, recreating or upcycling has always given me much
more excitement and a deeper sense of purpose. 



“Upcycling can be challenging but rewarding in the sense that it’s not just about the creativity but it’s more so about contributing to solving the effects of fast fashion on the environment and the economy. It is very important that we preserve our culture, identity and resources,” she says. 



READ MORE: <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/woman/2018/12/28/in-pictures-the-business-of-african-fashion-nigeria-takes-a-slice-of-the-pie/">IN PICTURES| The Business Of African Fashion: Nigeria Takes A Slice Of The Pie</a>



Fascinated about culture as well as traditional wear, some of her design ideas are fairly unconventional, such as Zulu sandals made of tyres. Besides clothes, she also designs accessories, such as earrings and key-holders. One of her designs is earrings shaped like water droplets to highlight the importance of saving water, whilst also bringing forth the beauty and importance of recycling and upcycling.



Her market is largely young women, but the brand is also for
those who love and consume fashion consciously. Nhlapo uses fashion as a tool
to influence people and encourage them to think carefully about how they use it.




“Fortunately, through traditional media and social media, I
am able to reach thousands and thousands of people, not just in South Africa
but across the world. If we consume fashion correctly and consciously, we have
the power to reverse certain cycles and change the direction of our future,”
says Nhlapo.



&nbsp;She goes on to say
that the fashion industry is among the highest polluters&nbsp; in the world, however, thankfully, it is
gradually moving towards a more responsible way of operating. 



“In fact, green fashion is the next big thing. Designers and consumers are finally becoming more and more aware of the damages and negative, rippling effects of fashion and are now beginning to take such issues seriously. We are starting to see more sustainable fabrics on the runway and more eco-friendly brands launching into the market, while well-established brands are also moving in the direction of going green. Before we know it, green fashion will be the only thing we know.”



READ MORE: <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/7-questions-with/2018/08/03/fashion-fame-and-finances-with-sa-designer-david-tlale/">Fashion, Fame and Finances With SA Designer, David Tlale</a>



South African designer JJ Schoeman elaborates on ‘fast
fashion’ and ‘green fashion’.



“I think we need to still go on a robust campaign on the
implications of fast fashion, where we create more awareness around its
consumption, as I feel that most consumers are still a little blasé about their
purchase.



“There was a call for green fashion, because of the wasteful
nature of production lines within our industry. This call was made to encourage
designers like myself to use environmentally-friendly fabrics and methods in
the production line.”



One of the ways he implements this in his production line is
to cut material in a way there is less wastage. 



“Over and above this, I also found ways in which to ‘get rid’ of the waste we accumulated over a season – these included donating to the trade, for reuse. I also try my absolute best to use fabrics that are more environment-friendly, but of course, I always need to take into consideration what the client wants.”



Schoeman opines the green fashion trend is growing.



“Absolutely, if we just take into consideration the amount
of international names that have agreed to not using real fur in their
collections. Recently, I read about the #G7Biarritz movement, which saw the
Prada Group, Ralph Lauren and 30 other fashion industry brands sign the pact.
The Fashion Pact is going to change the game in sustainable fashion all over
the world.”



Yet another trend is ‘thrifting fashion’ that has become the cornerstone of shopping trends popular among the youth. 



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/thrift-326-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-42170" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/thrift-326-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/thrift-326-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/thrift-326-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/thrift-326-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/thrift-326.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



Vathiswa Yiba is an employee at a vintage thrift store in
the lively Braamfontein area of Johannesburg. She has immersed herself in the
culture of thrifting. 



The store is one of several thrift stores in the city, and
among the popular ones at the thrift market not far from Africa’s largest
railway station, the Johannesburg Park Station. 



“Thrifting is buying clothes that people think are not good enough anymore and those that they have discarded,” says 22-year-old Yiba.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow"> “It’s interesting with thrifting because the most dangerous places are where you find the nicer things&#8221;<cite>&#8211; Vathiswa Yiba</cite></blockquote>







The lower prices also offer financial reprieve and more options for the buyer. 



Yiba has been thrifting since her high school days when she
started with her own clothes.&nbsp; 



“I don’t step into retail stores unless I am buying shoes,” she says.



“My first thrift was buying from people who sold from their
bags, then from their car boots, then I leveled up and started going to the
biggest market in the&nbsp; Johannesburg
Central Business District; MTN Taxi Rank, known for its pavement crimes,
despite the danger in that part of town, they have the best clothes.” 



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/recycled-fashion-145-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-42173" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/recycled-fashion-145-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/recycled-fashion-145-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/recycled-fashion-145-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/recycled-fashion-145-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/recycled-fashion-145.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



The street-savvy Yiba offers advice to those who are novices
in the industry.&nbsp; 



“It’s interesting with thrifting because the most dangerous
places are where you find the nicer things, and here is a tip when you are
going thrifting – make sure you have loose change and put it in safe pockets,
away from pick-pocketers. That way you will be able to shop safely. However,
you can find good-looking items but it’s not in your size; which is where the
community comes in. 



“We have tailors to alter the garments for you and it will
be exclusive because it’s thrifted, no one has the same clothes. There is so
much more you can do with discarded clothes. With the littlest things, you can
make an amazing thing and you’ll be the only one who has it.”



Of course, there is a tinge of stigma associated with
thrifting. Yiba says people think the clothes could also have belonged to those
who have passed away, but she’s of the view that thrifting creates other
opportunities. 



“The [thrift clothing] may look messy and seem dusty, but once cleaned or altered, they will look retail. So it’s not just the connotations, it can be something perfect and the next person wouldn’t even know.” 



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/recycled-fashion-132-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-42175" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/recycled-fashion-132-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/recycled-fashion-132-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/recycled-fashion-132-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/recycled-fashion-132-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/recycled-fashion-132.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



These are sentiments also echoed by Leago Nhlapo, a content
creator for fashion brands like Adidas, Sportscene and Skechers, who began his
journey as thrifter. 



“It started with thrifting because it makes you unique;
there is no similar garment, every single garment is different from the next.
So, I jumped from really cheap clothes [recycled clothes] to really expensive
clothes,” he says.



However, Leago encourages green fashion because he says the
fast fashion industry is the second-highest contributor to carbon
emissions.&nbsp; 



“The more people buy clothes, the more we contribute to
global warming and we all know the global crisis, so if we recycle clothes,
there will not be a need to make clothes, there are enough clothes for everyone
existing. I am proof that second-hand clothes are cool and look better than
people paying tons of cash.” 



Seventy kilometers south of Johannesburg’s Central Business
District is Nokwakha Qobo, who was born in the squatter camps of Phuma
Zibethane in Sharpeville. And in the garbage dumps of these camps, the fashion
designer in her emerged.



Qobo currently has a clothing line with an international reach. She fashions garments out of wastepaper she collects from rubbish dumps. 



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow"> &#8220;I’m a self-taught designer from a dump in Vanderbijlpark, that’s where I learned everything <cite> &#8211; Nokwakha Qobo </cite></blockquote>







As a young girl, Qobo had to walk to school, and through the course of her journey home, she would pass a garbage site where old fashion magazines and newspapers were discarded. 



It is often said that ‘one man’s trash is another man’s
treasure’. This adage was not lost on her because she took inspiration from the
articles in those magazines and now creates pieces that are sought after.



“That’s where I learned about fashion trends, that’s where I
learned about different colors for different seasons, that’s where I learned
about the body structure of a woman, actually, I’m a self-taught designer from
a dump in Vanderbijlpark, that’s where I learned everything,” she says.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="681" height="1024" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Nokwakha-093-681x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-42174" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Nokwakha-093-681x1024.jpg 681w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Nokwakha-093-300x451.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Nokwakha-093-600x902.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Nokwakha-093-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Nokwakha-093-768x1155.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Nokwakha-093.jpg 1277w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 681px) 100vw, 681px" /></figure>



Inadvertently, she too is contributing towards a shift in
culture based on conscious consumption. 



Perhaps, with the benefit of time, green fashion will be the norm as many believe we already have all we need.



&#8211; Motlabana Monnakgotla

Nokwakha 022

Conscious Fashion: ‘So Much More You Can Do With Discarded Clothes’

On a scorching hot day, we travel to the Zola area of Soweto, a township south of Johannesburg in South Africa.
Despite the soaring mercury, the trip is worth it.
Zola was known to be home to some of South Africa’s greatest musicians including Brenda Fassie, Mandoza and M’du, as well as soccer players John ‘Shoes’ Lesiba Moshoeu of Orlando Pirates and Mongezi Joel ‘Ace’ Mnini of Moroka Swallows.
Now, it’s also home to a promising fashion designer.
The small town, with a rough population of 44,000, is where self-taught South African designer Zamaswazi Nkosi crafts his creations for the city’s catwalks.
Nkosi greets us by the corrugated gates of the entrance to his compound dressed in a blue golf shirt featuring an African print pattern – the same shirt he showcased at the South African Fashion Week (SAFW) Spring/Summer 2017. His pants complement the look, along with blue loafers and a white fedora.
Ushering us in, he politely offers to carry some of our equipment. The genial, soft-spoken Nkosi then shows us around.
His workspace, which was once a garage, is attached to his bedroom. Clothes hang on a rack next to the door. Two sewing machines sit at the corner of the room with fabric, needles and thread neatly stacked beside them. Next to them is a table where he irons his garments. You can tell he is a one-man army.
The wall on the opposite side of the room is filled with a collage of photographs, newspaper clippings and awards. A headline from The Citizen reads: “A daring designer”.
“My love for fashion started the day I had no clothes to wear,” Nkosi opens.
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Growing up with a single mother and as one of six siblings, he was forced to improve his circumstances at home. He developed the art of restoration.
“It started with reviving the old to new. Sometimes I would take my sisters’ clothes and redo them so that I could have something to wear,” he says.
Little did he know at the time his innovations would one day be part of the fabric of high fashion in South Africa.
Nkosi began by sewing clothes using his mother’s old sewing machine. From there, he would piece together fabric lying around the house.
“I took my mother’s tablecloth, I stole it actually,” he admits.
Nkosi then crafted the tablecloth with a shirt of his to create an entirely new piece. He enjoyed reinventing things and it’s evident in the clothes he designs and puts together today.
However, Nkosi wasn’t always into fashion. On the wall with the photos, are also the trophies and medals he has won, not for fashion, but for football.
They all date back to the time Nkosi was into soccer. As a teenager, he was a midfielder.
“I was called ‘Teko’ from Teko Modise,” he says.
He imagined becoming a world-class football player in his 20s limbering up preparing for soccer war in the stadiums.
But that dream was shattered when an injury changed the course of his life forever.
This happened when he was 16, playing football in Soweto.
“I got tackled from behind. That was when my knee twisted,” he says.
He didn’t see a doctor, and continued to play. Only now does he regret not going for treatment.
“I thought that maybe if I felt better I could play. Only to find out that I was damaging it and it became worse. Then there was a point where I realized it was no longer working.”
Nkosi was devastated that he may never get the chance to play football again.
He was grieving the loss of his first love not knowing he would find something he would enjoy doing, again.
His sister consoled him and encouraged him to start something new. That’s when he did some serious soul-searching. After weighing his pros and cons, he started thinking of himself as a fashion designer.
“Being a fashion designer, it’s somewhat like a calling. Because I didn’t just wake up and decide to be one or be inspired by someone,” he says.
Fashion taking over his life came as some sort of divine intervention. He says he has never looked back since.
<div id="attachment_36175" style="width: 209px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-36175" class="size-medium wp-image-36175" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/291_KM-199x300.jpg" alt="" width="199" height="300" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/291_KM-199x300.jpg 199w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/291_KM-300x451.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/291_KM-600x903.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/291_KM-768x1156.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/291_KM-681x1024.jpg 681w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/291_KM.jpg 1361w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 199px) 100vw, 199px" />Zamaswazi Nkosi. Photograph by Karen Mwendera.</div>
He accepted this calling and hosted fashion shows within his community, in Zola. It seemed the needle – in more ways than one – was turning in his favor.
His first show had only 10 people attending, but that did not discourage him.
Nkosi then attended a SAFW event with the hope he could one day showcase his work on the platform. He watched closely the designs of one of his favorite South African designers, David Tlale, on the runway.
“I told myself ‘no man, I can do this’.”
There was just one hurdle. He had no academic qualifications for the job.
“On big platforms like SAFW they normally require fashion qualifications like a diploma or anything that relates to fashion. So, as Zamaswazi, I had nothing on paper. I only had skill,” he says.
After countless rejections, he one day garnered the courage to speak to the founder of SAFW, Lucilla Booyzen. A nervous but determined 24-year-old Nkosi walked up to her after one of the shows.
Booyzen told Nkosi to do what he had already done before. “Just apply,” she said.
But Nkosi was not having it. The young boy from the township was determined.
“I was like, ‘no if you need paper [qualifications] and I’m dressing my own clothes and it’s proper, why can’t you let me showcase’?”
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She then told him to come to her office and talk about opportunities. And the rest was history.
He had to prepare a proposal and showcase his work to a number of top fashionistas. It included creating a fashion portfolio, storyboard and designs of his pieces.
“It took me two weeks to even know what ‘portfolio’ is. That’s how I learned,” says Nkosi.
He was then shortlisted for the ‘scouting menswear collection’ in association with GQ magazine in 2015.
The platform brought his designs to life and Nkosi got his first break at SAFW.
Nkosi has showcased his designs at SAFW events, designing clothes for men that are modern with an African twist. His signature is the hemmed-in African print on to modern clothing. Much like the shirt he is wearing at this interview.
Nkosi relates this to his heritage and humble beginnings that forced him to merge different kinds of material into one. Unlike some of the other designers at sought-after fashion showcases such as SAFW, Nkosi says he designs and sews his clothes himself.
In his hometown Soweto, his friends and neighbors still can’t believe the boy who once played soccer swapped the ball for a sewing machine.
After the interview, he courteously helps us again to carry out our equipment.
Parked outside his house is his red vintage Beetle car with the word ‘Zamaswazi’ engraved on it. He bought the car last year.
Even though the engine doesn’t run he says he plans to work on it so he can do the six-hour drive to attend the annual Durban July.
The trendy man in the white fedora riding a red vintage car through the scenic green landscapes of South Africa to attend a premium horseracing event – it’s a pretty picture indeed.
<div id="attachment_36176" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-36176" class="wp-image-36176 size-large" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/357_KM-1024x681.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="681" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/357_KM-1024x681.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/357_KM-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/357_KM-600x399.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/357_KM-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/357_KM.jpg 1902w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Zamaswazi Nkosi designs and sews his clothes himself. Photograph by Karen Mwendera.</div>

Tag: Fashion Designer

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