When Maria Hiwilepo was seven years old, she would walk barefoot six kilometers to school. In those hot days, meandering between bush, trees and mud, she would look up to the sky and see a different world. Airplanes, with their engines roaring high above her, were a rare sight in the bush village of Ohainengena, in northern Nambia, far from technology and the modern world. For Hiwilepo, the sky and the world beyond her small village held inspiration.
“It was a childhood dream. I always wanted to fly. I grew up with a curiosity. How did they work? How did they stay up there? Why up there? Where I grew up, it was very prestigious to be a teacher or a pastor or a nurse. I would see helicopters, I would see things flying and hear their sounds,” says Hiwilepo.
This is the remarkable story that took Hiwilepo out of the Namibian countryside and into the world of fashion and flight. She turned her dream into reality and became an international commercial pilot, flying the planes she saw as a child. That’s not all.
“It was a different world, of what I know the world to be now&#8230; It would be perfect to live in a world where I could fly my own aircraft, land it, go to a shoot, and then fly home again,” she says.
Hiwilepo’s village was so small she could tell who had gone to school by their footprints in the sand.
“It was always just hot. I remember the heat because I remember always been so thirsty walking home from school,” she says.
“I really loved school. I remember refusing to get out of bed to help clean the house, but if my dad woke me to go to school it didn’t matter. Up ‘til today I love to learn.”
When Hiwilepo finished school, she was 15 years old. She had a scholarship waiting, and was on the cusp of reaching her dream. Then they told her she had to be 18 years old to become a pilot. Hiwilepo went off to the University of Namibia to study computer science and economics instead.
It was here that modeling, which she had been doing since she was 10 years old, paid off, when she won the Miss University of Namibia pageant, which gave her a year’s free tuition. Walking down the runway turned into her second dream. From there, she stepped into the international limelight as a finalist in the 2008 Face of Africa.
“African families think modeling is more of a hobby than a career. It’s important to go to school and get the paper that says you can work as this and in the meantime you can model. My parents believed this was a hobby.”
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Around Cape Town, Hiwilepo uses her model name Amira Eli. She is now the up-and-coming fashion model who has walked the catwalks for designers like David Tlale.
“[Tlale’s shows are] always an entrance. The choreography is always so wow. He has that energy.  I remember a show I did with him and the pair of shoes I was to wear went missing. [Tlale] grabbed a pair of size three, and I’m a five, and shoved them on. I was in pain the whole away down to the run way. When I was on the runway, I couldn’t feel the pain, I forgot all about it.”
It’s an even tougher life flying planes from Windhoek to Frankfurt, but Hiwilepo does it in style, with a pair of the trendiest aviators on hand. She is also one of the rare few female pilots that can fly an Airbus A330 and a helicopter.
“I’ve done flights, where the entire cabin crew is girls. I’ve also done flights and I’m the only girl. Back then it was worse, but it is a male-dominated industry. The stereotype is: people prefer older pilots over younger pilots; men over females; and white skin over black. It’s there, it will always be there. But if you choose to let the stereotype consume you, then you are a victim. I wasn’t raised like that.”
And how does Hiwilepo juggle her two very different lives?
In between shifts, Hiwilepo flies down to the boardwalks of Cape Town to pursue her budding model career. It is the reason why FORBES WOMAN AFRICA is able to meet up with her off the runway and in a coffee shop at Greenpoint, in Cape Town. She dressed up for the occasion – her helicopter jumper suit was in a handbag next to her, just in case, she says.
“In my mind I have already landed before I have even taken off. I’m at my best when I am prepared. Am I well rested? Am I fit physically? That’s me preparing for my flight. With modeling, the preparation is different. I have to look my best, I have to take care of my life and I have to look my best.”
Of all the places, Hiwilepo rates Cape Town as the most beautiful. She may not get as much time here as she likes; by the next day, Hiwilepo was piloting an Airbus to Frankfurt; living her dreams over the skies and on the catwalks of Africa.

Amira-Eli_JC-2-of-4

Landing An Airbus A330  And The Best  Modeling  Assignments  In Africa

His bow ties may be small but his dreams are big. Neither could have been born if it was not for the sight of his mother slaving over a hot stove.
On a balmy afternoon, we meet 21-year-old Emmanuel Mohlala, a bow tie designer, at his studio in downtown Johannesburg.
Mohlala is surrounded by a collection of his velvet and leather bow ties.
Entrepreneurship was always in his blood. He made his first buck selling fatcakes in high school to help his mother’s spaza shop. Selling fatcake after fatcake, he realized his love for the world of business.
Then he suffered the heartbreak of seeing his mother baking at 1AM.
“At the time, I felt so useless. But I always knew that I’d make her proud,” says Mohlala.
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In those lean times, his dreams kept him going.
He was born in the dry and dusty Ga- Mampuru village of South Africa’s Limpopo province and grew up in Vosloorus, east of Johannesburg. He is the fifth of six children.
After matriculating in 2013, Mohlala took a year off for soul searching.
“I needed to learn the ropes of business,” he says.
In May 2015, he teamed up with his eldest brother to start the Clanman brand.
“I started the business with an old tie I got from home; I had to use it to make a bow tie which I sold to get enough money to buy one meter of fabric,” says Mohlala.
“For me, they are exclusive. It’s something that should be worn on special occasions.”
Mohlala needed money to start his business. Unfortunately, no one was willing to invest.
“I was turned down at various shops around Joburg CBD for months.”
“My turnaround happened when I got a Theatre boutique at Eastgate Mall, that’s when I started to see a way forward in my business,” says Mohlala.
Though the business hasn’t made a lot of cash, Mohlala thinks it will grow into a profitable one.
Currently busy with a collection of bow ties, under his business, he has dressed South Africa’s Minister of Home Affairs, Malusi Gigaba, and celebrity Maps Maponyane.
Mohlala’s advise to his peers?
“Do thorough research. Know the pros and cons of the business you’re going into, so that you can tackle challenges when they surface.”
“When I started, I thought everyone would be supportive of my business.  Soon I learned, to succeed you have to sacrifice a lot, and that friendship and business don’t go hand in hand,” he says.
He hopes to have at least a collection of watches and sunglasses under his belt by 2020.
And he would like to design a bow tie for Nigerian entrepreneur and Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote. If he continues to dream big, he will.

The Entrepreneur With Success Tied Up

Tshepo Mohlala remembers being forced to wear a green blazer at church because his grandmother said so. He says she had style; she was also the pastor and still is. Clothes were always a big part of his life, now they’re his fortune.
Mohlala grew up in a small house in Tsakane, 50 kilometers east of Johannesburg, living with mostly women at their grandparent’s house. This was because of his parent’s sudden divorce and many hard years. It was here that his love for fashion unfolded.
He moved from home to home because his mother kept changing jobs as a domestic worker. At the one house they lived in a backroom behind the home.
“We stayed there for two years and it was terrible, we weren’t allowed to do certain things,” Mohlala says.
“We had to move back to Tsakane, our granny’s house. The great thing is that we moved back with family.”
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Mohlala and his family didn’t have it easy. When they couldn’t afford clothes, church members would bring them some.
“It felt good and often I was often first to choose,” laughs Mohlala.
Soon after, Mohlala went to Brakpan High School where he completed his matric, things were easier than before. His mother got a better job in Centurion, around 20 kilometers south of Pretoria.
“I was forced to join the church choir!”
“Choir was exciting. I looked forward to it because my friends and I would talk about our dreams. We were all from the same background; small houses, grannies, church and having no fathers,” says Mohlala.
Clothes were never far away. At choir, Mohlala met the creator of Skinny Sbu Socks, Sibusiso Ngwenya, and social media strategist, Mpumelelo Jules Kumalo.
They were all passionate about fashion. They sold second hand suits at church to make extra money. They bought them for R250 (around $16) and sold for a lot more.
Their dream was to arrive in Johannesburg, 28 kilometers away, and become entrepreneurs, meet celebrities, and make a lot of money, he says.
In 2010, Mohlala went to Johannesburg to study cinematography, but clothes and fashion were always on his mind.
“I remember walking with my girlfriend from choir to buy food and we were wearing skinny jeans. The guys gambling on the street corner laughed at me saying I’m gay. I was fashion forward,” he says.
Inspiration came from strange places. Thugs would come to Mohlala’s grandmother to confess their sins; young Mohlala was impressed by the criminals’ dress sense. His grandmother, the pastor, approved their elegance, if not their deeds, and advised Mohlala to look as stylish.
“Not only criminals came, even the good guys. My gran just wanted me to be a gent and look good,” he says.
But Johannesburg was not paved with gold as they had thought. It was grimy and hard work.
Mohlala mingled at fashion events. He met a lady at South Africa Fashion Week and told her he wanted to be a stylist. He was told to study fashion. And he did in 2011.
Mohlala had to drop out a year later because he couldn’t afford tuition fees. He told himself he was not going back to the streets of Tsakane. He moved to a one-bedroom flat in Brixton, Johannesburg, with his friend from church, Ngwenya. He made money through promotions, also getting rejected by retail stores. He recalls this as his worst and hungriest year.
Then came another fashion week where he met Felipe Mazibuko, the South African stylist and fashion guru. Mazibuko liked his style and they exchanged numbers.
They met over lunch the next week and Mohlala was introduced to fashion veteran Olebogeng Ledimo, the founder of House of Ole, who had an event coming up.
“We drove around that day with Ole’s Jeep in Braamfontein and I couldn’t believe I was meeting so many people I see on television,” he says, still in disbelief.
He worked with Ledimo and Mazibuko on a campaign for three weeks, he also made friends and potential business partners. Mohlala never looked back.
Months later, AfrikanSwiss was created with two former co-workers from the 2012 South Africa Fashion Week. Their idea was to create the first premium genuine-denim in South Africa. The trio gave the jean industry in Johannesburg a facelift. Their focus was menswear.
The brand was growing immensely and they were showcasing at international events in 2013, dressing international R&amp;B group 112 and producer P. Diddy on their tour. They were also involved in photoshoots with the Dutch shoe brand, Palladium.
“We were going to be part of all that vibe,” he says.
In 2014, AfrikanSwiss opened a shop in the heart of Johannesburg and continued budding. As things were blossoming, it turned sour, says Mohlala.
“Emotions and business clashed, the vision of the business clashed too. We were not on the same page anymore.”
Mohlala stepped down and decided to go solo. He continued making jeans and promised not to compete with AfrikanSwiss.
Mohlala took this time to do market research and study the denim industry by searching for loopholes to take advantage of. He found an opportunity, took the little money he had saved and used it to produce his first range of jeans. He named his jeans, Tshepo The Jean Maker.
The jeans are cut to fit the target market’s lifestyle, which can be worn formally or casually. The design details are seen inside and out.
“Our fabric is sourced locally. My jeans are raw unwashed and are made to take the shape of the wearer,” he says.
Most of Mohlala’s sales are made through social media and he has sold as far as Atlanta in the United States.
The jean maker is fast growing and slowly transforming the denim industry. He was a choirboy inspired by thug attire; he’s now a young man exporting jeans to the world.

The Choirboy Inspired  By Criminals

What makes a made-in-Africa handbag desired by women around the world?
It’s the ingenuity of the designer, who works craft into commerce, and elevates an age-old street art to the realms of global fashion. Akosua Afriyie-Kumi, founder of AAKS (pronounced ‘axe’) luxury handbags in Ghana, has done just that, slowly reviving a Ghanaian craft and taking the colors of Africa to the world.
The timing couldn’t be more perfect, as African fashion, design and art are now center stage internationally.
An AAKS handbag is vibrant; its creator infuses it with hues reminiscent of the rich red earth, the sweet yellow ripeness of mangoes, or the deep greens and blues of an African coast.
Being a creative had long been a part of Afriyie-Kumi’s life in Ghana, where she was born and grew up until the age of 19.
Fashion was a logical choice for her, but it proved difficult to study it in Ghana as the country offered no formal means of education in the arts at the time.
Afriyie-Kumi chose to study in the United Kingdom (UK), where she completed her studies at Oxford Brookes University and Kingston University, graduating in 2009. By the time she was ready to return to Ghana in 2013, she had interned for luxury womenswear label Peter Pilotto and British designer Matthew Williamson.
By then, she had already been toying with the idea of creating woven bags.
“I knew that there was basket-making in Ghana. Before, I was thinking I’ll stay in the UK and do it from there, then realized it’s best if I [go back],” says Afriyie-Kumi.
“It was me really coming to Ghana and seeing baskets around, and I felt [that] nobody has reinvented this product. It was just a basket being sold by the roadside, and nobody had moved it on.
“I felt I would be the best person to do that with my fashion background, to be able to push it to another level, and make it more [about] luxury.”
Returning to Ghana to start a business wasn’t easy though: she had to travel to the north of Ghana, almost 12 hours way from her home in the south, with no guarantee the weavers would be able to bring her vision to life.
Ghana, like many other African countries, may not be vast in size but makes up for it with its multiple languages.
Twi is more widely spoken in the south of Ghana, and Frafra is its equivalent in the north, which meant conversing with the weavers was a challenge for Afriyie-Kumi. And they were also used to weaving with straw, as opposed to raffia, the core material of her handbags.
Despite the initial hurdles, Afriyie-Kumi launched her brand in 2014; the handbags are handcrafted by women from 100% local material sourced in Ghana.They are stocked in stores in the UK, United States, South Africa and Kenya. The retail price for a small AAKS bag starts at £67 ($98), and from £210 ($306) for a larger piece. Whoever said there was no money in indigenous natural fiber?

Akosua-AAKS

Bag And Forth

As a young girl born and raised in Pakistan, Hina Kassam always knew what she wanted in life – to start her own business, be her own boss, and be successful. Very successful. And she endeavored for that very early in life.
“I always wanted to lead rather than be led,” says Kassam.
At the age of 19, she sold double-glazed glass to a window company, and thereafter sought every opportunity to satiate her entrepreneurial energy.
Kassam has been involved in forex trading since the beginning of her career, working for investment banks. Today, she has worked with diversified businesses across three continents including Europe, Asia and Africa and is well-versed with financial analysis in various industries. She is the COO of ACM Gold, a forex trading company she founded with her brother Irfan Pardesi in 2005 in Pakistan, before moving to Dubai. The company currently enjoys a R400 million ($36 million) turnover and the siblings have made South Africa their base.
“Over the past six months, our numbers have tripled and we see tremendous growth going forward, our staff is growing, and we are very confident about the whole African region,” says Kassam.
ACM Gold was awarded Africa’s Best Forex Broker 2013 by World Finance. The company is now eyeing the rest of Africa.
“Kenya is an interesting market because they love to trade on the phone, and they love the app and the technology. We are very much a technology company.” However, the company’s head office in Johannesburg isn’t moving anytime soon.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-medium wp-image-29602 alignleft" src="http://www.forbesafrica.com/app/uploads/2017/05/FWA-2014-Oct-Nov-050-051-Hina-Kassam-001-191x300.jpg" alt="" width="191" height="300" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/FWA-2014-Oct-Nov-050-051-Hina-Kassam-001-191x300.jpg 191w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/FWA-2014-Oct-Nov-050-051-Hina-Kassam-001-300x470.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/FWA-2014-Oct-Nov-050-051-Hina-Kassam-001-600x941.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/FWA-2014-Oct-Nov-050-051-Hina-Kassam-001.jpg 653w" sizes="(max-width: 191px) 100vw, 191px" />
“It’s the financial hub for the whole of Africa, people want to come here. Everybody looks to Johannesburg as their capital,” says Kassam.
She also understands the effects a great team can have on the success of a company, so she constantly strives to seek and develop new leaders.
And like most businesswomen with a love for beautiful things, Kassam’s passion for trading, mining stocks and leadership is complemented by her love for jewelry, and this too she has managed to turn to her advantage.
Her sparkling track-record has also included starting her own business selling fashion products in the United Kingdom as well as exporting these products to other parts of Europe.
The Power Dresser
The single mother of two never leaves home without make-up. Her personal style oozes confidence.
“You need to wear high heels if you want people to listen to you, if you want people to respect you. You don’t need to be loud and to shout; you need to dress well,” says Kassam.
Loyal to the Chanel and Louis Vuitton brands, Kassam describes her style as “powerful”. Her ultimate power kit at work is “a well-fitting blazer with wedges or high heels”.
And where does she indulge her sartorial senses? Her favorite shopping destination for the latest fashion finds is London, where she has lived the longest. She shuttles between Dubai and Johannesburg, but her line-up of labels in the closet of her Johannesburg home is a reflection of her achievements. For every big contract, new office or business, she adds a new Gucci, Prada or Louis Vuitton bag to her copious collection.
Kassam’s current obsession is lace but no matter the season, you will never catch her without jewelry. Her latest splurge is a R100, 000 ($9,000) Chopard watch. An apt self-gift for a person who has clearly made the most of her time.

FWA-2014-Oct-Nov-050-051-Hina-Kassam-001

Digging Her Heels In

Tina Lobondi’s life and career spans half the globe – well, almost.
Born in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), she had to leave her troubled African country to be raised in France; she has lived and worked in London, and her fashion career was inspired by India. Her talent has seen her hobnob with A-listers in New York, where she has dressed the likes of Hollywood star Thandie Newton and Grammy winning African Angelique Kidjo.
And now she’s determined to place Africa – her homeland – on the global fashion map.
Lobondi was only eight when the first civil war started in the DRC and her family was forced to leave, in 1997, to Lorraine in France. A home away from home, the country and the French life soon stoked the fashionista in her.
“Inspiration is from everything – movies, places I’ve traveled, shapes from architecture,” says Lobondi.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-30832" src="http://www.forbesafrica.com/app/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6307-300x187.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="187" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6307-300x187.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6307-600x373.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6307-768x477.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6307-1024x637.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6307.jpg 1023w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
For the African designer taking Europe by storm, her biggest inspiration though was – surprisingly – the drama, glamor and women of Bollywood, of which she is a huge fan.
“I’m a big fan of India; I watch all the Bollywood movies –  not the cheesy ones. Bollywood calms me. My final collection when I was studying was based on Rani Mukherjee [famous mainstream Indian actress] – how I picture her, a strong woman who knows what she wants and goes for it. She was my inspiration for my first project in London.”
Lobondi hasn’t been back to the DRC. The ‘Heart of Darkness’ as the region became known during colonialism after Joseph Conrad’s 1899 novel has long held stereotypes of a war-torn region on the brink of destruction. But Lobondi’s memories are a far cry from the words penned by Conrad.
For her, the DRC is a hub of excitement and infinite possibilities.
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“I grew up in the Congo until I was eight and had the best childhood. The Congo that I knew was not a poor Congo – we had roads, we had private schools…It can go back to that, we have the resources, we have the mines, we have the forest, we have everything. We just need to structure ourselves to not feel helpless and that we’re in a bubble that relies on the outside. The Congo doesn’t need anything, we have everything, we just need to learn how to use it,” she says.
Her ambition does not stop at dressing the stars – she’s serious about the business of fashion and influencing other artistes in Africa to use it as a lucrative platform. Lobondi is searching for the Coco Chanels and Giorgio Armanis of Africa and growing African fashion weeks on a Parisian scale.
“It’s about showing the rest of the world that African designers have something sustainable here, we have something strong, we have something that will help Africa have a better economy. Fashion and art is not just a joke, it can bring a lot of money to the African continent.”
But Lobondi says that making the DRC the fashion capital of the world needs to begin with teaching designers to transform their ideas into business. The business of fashion might just be the DRC’s most untapped resource.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-30836" src="http://www.forbesafrica.com/app/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6255-300x159.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="159" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6255-300x159.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6255-600x318.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6255-768x408.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6255-1024x543.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6255.jpg 1023w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /> <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-30831" src="http://www.forbesafrica.com/app/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6299-300x160.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="160" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6299-300x160.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6299-600x319.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6299-768x408.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6299-1024x545.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6299.jpg 1023w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /> <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-30837" src="http://www.forbesafrica.com/app/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6266-300x162.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="162" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6266-300x162.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6266-600x323.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6266-768x414.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6266-1024x551.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HX1F6266.jpg 1023w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
“Designers in the Congo know how to be tellers but they don’t understand the job of a designer is a process of having a collection, marketing it to shops, not just to individuals, and then doing it all over again six months later,” says Lobondi.
“We need a different structure in Africa based on our own seasons. From Cape Town to Kinshasa to Lagos, the seasons are different and the temperatures are different. You can have a lot of talented people but if they don’t have the knowledge about what’s needed, it’s just lost thoughts.”
Lobondi is a long way from turning tailors into tycoons in the DRC’s aspiring style streets, but the one thing she is determined to prove is that she is her country’s finest fashion export.

AFI AFrica Fashion Awards 2014

Big Dreams Through The Eye Of A Needle

There is little more satisfying than a simple solution to an annoying problem; especially when it makes money. Thomas Edison created the long-lasting lightbulb that everyone could afford; Henry Ford did the same with the family car; in South Africa, 23-year-old start-up entrepreneur Sibusiso Ngwenya has invented an item to close the gap between his pants and shoes.
Ngwenya is a tall man; 1.9 meters in his socks and struggled all his life to find trousers that would fit down to his shoes.
So, he came up with socks to close the gap and made them in bright colors to make the point.
“I was teased growing up and given different names. I deliberately named the brand Skinny Sbu Socks because I thought I had been teased enough and it was high time we celebrate being tall and skinny,” says Ngwenya.
A sock collector at a tender age, his defining moment was reading of two Americans building sock brands.
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A few weeks later, his mother suggested he sell them.
“I had bought 14 pairs of socks for R5 ($0.40) each and I repackaged them and sold them for R25 ($2) a pair.”
He counts former Top Billing presenter Tumisho Masha, politician Tony Yengeni, TV personality Maps Maponyane, celebrity entrepreneur and philanthropist Shaka Sisulu, and the leader of opposition political party the Democratic Alliance, Mmusi Maimane, among his celebrity clients.
“I do such designs simply because I am African. At the heart of what I’m doing, I’m trying to express myself as an artist inspired by their surroundings. Our heritage is what we have to our advantage as Africans. I use that to gain the competitive edge among my international competitors,” he says.
The company also sells to Standard Bank and Cadbury. He makes R100,000 (around $8,000) a month by advertising and selling on the internet. His company employs three people and outsources bookkeepers, legal services and manufacturing staff.
“I am concentrating on building a brand, focusing on craftsmanship, artistry and the engineering of the sock while other brands are mass producing,” he says.
Ngwenya tried and failed to launch a sock store, but is working on Skinny Sbu Socks vending machines.
Skinny Sbu Socks produces five never to be repeated designs every two months.
“As men, our fashion is limited. The only things you have to play around with are your accessories which are very limited. So men want really colorful socks.”
He takes pride in the locally produced products.
“It is expensive to manufacture locally and it takes a long time because of limited colors. In China, for example, it would cost me $0.02 to produce a pair, this side it’s a thousand times more. The factory I outsource employs 60 people so I am comfortable knowing making these socks goes on to feed more than 60 families in South Africa.”
Although Ngwenya shies from divulging details, he says no business is without worst days.
“I recently lost out on a R2.5 million ($200,000) deal because I was not focused. I tried working with PR experts only to realize that I was making a mistake.”
Growing up in a three-bedroom shack in Tsakane, a township to the east of Johannesburg, he was taught love and forgiveness.
“I didn’t know we were living in a shack, I thought we were living in a mansion until someone from school came to visit and made fun of me. When I grew up, I learned that I am enough. I am not better or less than anybody. I am enough.”
His grandmother, Salamina Molokeng, is the force behind his success.
His future plans are to create designs with his grandmother entitled “stories with my grandmother”.
“I want us to promote art. I am an African woman and I want us to showcase every African nation in the sock designs,” says Molokeng.
At the risk of mixing a metaphor that knocks the socks off anything, necessity truly is the mother, and grandmother, of invention.

Socks   The New Tie

It’s difficult to pin down Bathini Kowane, an emerging South African designer who recently showed at the Soweto Fashion Week (SFW). We finally meet in her new office above popular night club Carfax in downtown Johannesburg.
Kowane, an honors graduate in African politics from Pretoria, woke up one morning and quit her nine-to-five job. Fascinated by print and fabric, the 31-year-old decided to pursue a career in fashion when her husband bought her a sewing machine for her birthday.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-medium wp-image-30741 alignleft" src="http://www.forbesafrica.com/app/uploads/2017/05/Bathini-042-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="300" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Bathini-042-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Bathini-042-300x451.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Bathini-042-600x903.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Bathini-042-681x1024.jpg 681w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Bathini-042.jpg 680w" sizes="(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px" />
“After three, four years in this particular bank that I used to work for, I left to do this, to do clothes. I planned it, waited for my bonus, and when I got it, I went and resigned the next day!” she laughs.
It’s only over a year since Kowane launched her eponymous brand, Bathini Designs. Her first showcase at an art and fashion exhibition at the State Theatre in Pretoria in September last year got some good reviews.
“People came up and said I want that dress, I was like ‘oh my gosh I have to multiply’, I have to make different sizes,” she says.
Kowane enjoyed sewing at a young age – she pursued it as a hobby, going on to undertake sewing, drafting and fabric-making lessons on weekends, and making pencil skirts for her work wardrobe.
In June, Kowane was at SFW, with close friend Lehlogonolo Sekhukhune who modeled for her on the ramp, and who incidentally, was recovering from an acid burn accident at work.
What is Kowane’s fashion forecast?
“Little kente prints, tones that are not widely found like brownish mustard, cuts that are mermaid style, slim dresses that accentuate hips, loose-fitting but sexy for evenings out or weddings, parties, festive functions.”
Kowane is now expanding her range to children’s clothing, a line for boys called Buggzy, inspired by her own son.
With her political science degree, it perhaps won’t be long before Kowane aspires to dress up a politician for parliament.

SFW-094

The Soweto Soirée

By day, Nandipha Sekeleni, 26, is a medical intern at Edenvale General Hospital in Johannesburg, negotiating the hospital’s grim corridors in her jaded scrubs.
By evening, she slips out of her bloody hospital clothes to don a new role – that of her more famous alter ego.
Sekelani has 26,ooo followers on Instagram, not for her medical accolades – not yet – but for her fashion blog.
She started by posting pictures of herself in her self-styled outfits, expressing her moods through fashion. This won her followers, who were interested in her dual life.
Style however is not just about fashion and what one does, but about how one approaches life. Sekeleni is a true reflection of this mantra; she describes herself as nothing more than a woman who cared enough to try.
She is also a wife and mother, takes emergency calls 24/7, and works alternate weekends, which probably explains why she dedicates her Instagram page to young women who want to do it all.
Pictures of her chic outfits online are accompanied by messages of hope and inspiring texts on women’s empowerment.
“A woman can take on any job as long as it’s done well. As long as I do my best, I know I can compete with anyone in my industry. Any woman has the power to be whatever they want to be,” she says.
Sekeleni is lucky she has a support system at home, which she is grateful for.
Her inspirations? Victoria Beckham and Noni Gasa. Her advice to women wanting to unlock their true style potential? Shop, shop, shop until you have variety in your closet – and in life.
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IMG_7586

Behind Every Woman Is An Alter Ego

In 1998, Sex And The City, the American soapie on four women living and bonding in the heart of Manhattan, hit our TV screens and grabbed eyeballs across the world. It was critically acclaimed and focused on relationships, sex and femininity. One aspect endured through the series: their sartorial sense.
The women, in their mid-30s, showcased high fashion and set style trends during the show’s epic six-year run. While women across the world sat glued to their TV sets, a young girl in Accra, Ghana, too watched in awe, forming impressions that would one day help her script her own story.
That young girl, Aisha Obuobi, is today the founder and Creative Director of Christie Brown, a luxury fashion brand born of her love for juxtaposing African textiles and wax prints with high fashion.
Her audience – much like the TV soap she loved – is the young professional woman. The brand was named after her grandmother, who had been a seamstress all her life.
Growing up, Obuobi dreamt of becoming a lawyer. Her parents both had a background in journalism, so they raised Obuobi and her brother in a liberal environment where they were encouraged to be creative and pursue their passions.
It was the bustling city of Lagos, Nigeria, however, that drove her to pursue a career in fashion.
“I realized there was a pulse in the city and everybody was wearing African prints. I asked myself ‘why do we not have this trend in Ghana’?” says Obuobi.
At the time, wax prints as a fashion statement was foreign to Ghana. Having grown up around it, Obuobi realized people were not wearing it in interesting enough ways.
Her eureka moment happened when watching her favorite show Sex In The City. She imagined the actresses sporting high fashion infused with the rich textural wax prints from Africa.
Since its inception, the brand has evolved to incorporate modern styles and trends yet maintaining the trademark African design. With no prior knowledge of sewing or dressmaking, Obuobi drew on the only skill she was half good at – sketching, and set out to launch her brand.
She initially went to local dressmakers with her sketches and commissioned them to bring her ideas to life. It was challenging as there was a shortage of skills and she struggled to get quality output. After using up all her savings ($1,500), a couple of trials and hundreds of man-hours sewing and editing, she was ready for the brand’s launch.
“When I started out, I didn’t even have a sewing machine and so I had to borrow a machine and sew in the dark sometimes with a torch due to lack of electricity at my grandmum’s house,” recalls Obuobi.
Christie Brown was going to be a high-end luxury brand targeting the young upwardly-mobile woman not younger than 25, who was very mature and confident and aspirational with a sense of elegance and class.
Based on this audience, she organized a fashion show and Christie Brown was born.
The brand was an immediate hit. For the first time in Ghana, a new brand emerged that combined modern fashion with traditional prints.
The next step was streamlining the manufacturing process. Obuobi decided to enrol in fashion school to study the anatomy of a garment. Her big break came while still in fashion school. She was selected to debut her brand at the first-ever Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in South Africa. It was her first showing on an international stage.
She was adjudged ‘emerging designer of the year’, and  has since showcased her brand on numerous platforms including the famous European fashion weeks. International stars like Alicia Keys have endorsed her brand. The brand was selected the official designer for singing sensation Beyoncé on her Mrs Carter tour in the United States and across the world.
Obuobi has been featured on CNN and BBC for her achievements in the fashion industry. With the level of success Christie Brown is already experiencing and her international acclaim, it would be easy to assume Christie Brown would relocate to international markets. However, Obuobi is in no hurry to move her brand abroad.
“I am so determined to build this brand for the continent, I want to be part of the brand that shapes the fashion scene on the continent,” she says emphatically.
The brand is now is now in its sixth year. Obuobi recently launched her ready-to-wear range in a new African-inspired store in the heart of Oxford Street, an exclusive shopping district in Accra. Christie Brown is now looking to expand its e-commerce offering. The online world awaits.

IMG_03181

Dressing The Likes Of Beyoncé

These designers showcased memorable collections at two recent fashion weeks in Johannesburg – and could well be on their way to becoming famous among South Africa’s swish set.
&nbsp;
<h3>Rich Mnisi/OATH</h3>
This 23-year-old has already won laurels as a young designer, and his collection is distinct and consistent. This season’s offering from OATH is for the female traveler, who wants to leave nothing behind and wear it all on arrival. A must-have for the stylish working woman this season is the cocoon coat.
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<h3>Celeste Arendse/Selfi</h3>
Having launched her brand only six years ago, this young designer is making waves in the fashion industry. Her apparel is inspired by architecture, and the forms and patterns in nature. Selfi is a Cape Town-based label that wants to capture the essence of the eras.
&nbsp;
<h3>Thabo Makhetha</h3>
Lesotho-born South African designer Thabo Makhetha-Kwinana launched her eponymous label in 2009. The brand has since received a number of accolades, including Nelson Mandela Bay’s Top 40 Under 40; she was also Designer of the Year at the ImpAct Awards (Arts &amp; Culture Trust). Makhetha produces unique functional capes and jackets made out of beauteous Basotho blankets, called Kobo Ea Bohali ‘Blankets of Prestige’. The label made its debut at SA Fashion Week Joburg in March.
&nbsp;
<h3>Nelson Makamo, collaborating with House of Olé</h3>
Though not a designer in the true sense, Nelson Makamo is an artiste you need to know and remember. He recently returned from Venice, where he participated at the annual Biennale. He collaborated with Olé Ledimo of House of Olé, who is known for his Savile Row-style classic-cut suits, but for SA Fashion Week, they added a glorious women’s collection.
&nbsp;
<h3>Natasha Jaume &amp; Carina Louw/Erre</h3>
Theirs is a fashion brand specializing in leather, aiming to provide the working woman quality wardrobe staples and investment pieces that can be worn both on and off duty. But at the Spring/Summer 2015 showing of SA Fashion Week, their fashion philosophy took another turn. Erre presented the Myri dress, which can be worn in different ways – we saw atleast 12 looks on the runway. Jaume says there could be more than 30 ways to wear the dress. This was inspired by the woman with a busy lifestyle who wants a simple dress she can wear in different ways for different occasions.

Selfi-pic-by-Chris-Townend

New  Kids On The Fashion Block

Khothatso Tsotetsi, founder of South African fashion brand Tsotetsi KL, kick-started his career soon after university with the singular aim of dressing up distinguished women who value tailoring, quality and style above all else. The young designer opened the Autumn/Winter show of the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Joburg (MBFWJ) in March with his collection, IN-MATE, inspired by the young, chic, distinctive and sophisticated woman. We spent a few moments with him backstage:
How has South Africa received your brand?
It has been warmly welcomed, especially by women with chic distinctive sophistication and who confidently portray stature, transparency and color. We believe that the pride women have, be it internal or external, should be well-articulated through color. We’ve had the privilege of three years (six seasons) in the industry assisting local and international clients in creating awareness that boldness in color, fabric and design is ideal, no matter what the season.
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What makes your collection stand out?
The main fabric is blue velvet: sophisticated, classy, elegant, fragile but still weighted enough to be worn in winter. Embellishments, beads and all other detailing were done by hand, carefully as to not overwhelm, not forgetting the laser cut, high-waist skirts and the elegant wide-brimmed straw hats. We chose cobalt blue in the belief that trends in color also evolve.
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Where do you see South African fashion in the coming years?
At the moment we would say it’s pacing concurrently with Africa. Currently, South African designers are treated more like kids in the international fashion industry. The respect given to designers overseas is more credible, they have influence on a global platform. International fashion comes with bigger budgets and takes opportunities from potential and established South African designers who have limited budgets. On top of that, it’s hard for young South African designers to acquire similar opportunities and experience due to limited investment possibilities.
Luckily, South Africans are starting to acknowledge South African designers to a point where a designer can invest time in finding out more about African fabric and also source resources in South Africa itself.
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What’s an essential item of clothing for women this season?
It will have to be flowy swing dresses or straw hats.
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Tsotetsi KL

Blue Velvet And Straw Hats

As the lights dimmed and the percussionists performed, Nhlanhla Nciza dramatically appeared on the ramp, in an NN Vintage outfit (her designer line), flanked by two male dancers.
Nciza, a style icon and one half of Afropop band Mafikizolo, belted out Vimba Kanjini from their latest album, Reunited, to the beat of the drums at the recent Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Joburg.
The lights came on and Nciza sashayed the ramp showing off her latest designs,  thus re-launching NN Vintage. She was followed by a bevy of celebrities and models wearing her collection aptly named, The Evolution, an eclectic mix of bold bright fabrics from Uganda, Ghana, Nigeria, Malawi, Kenya and South Africa.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-medium wp-image-30007 alignleft" src="http://www.forbesafrica.com/app/uploads/2017/05/CTP7808-206x300.jpg" alt="" width="206" height="300" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/CTP7808-206x300.jpg 206w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/CTP7808-300x437.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/CTP7808-600x874.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/CTP7808-768x1118.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/CTP7808-703x1024.jpg 703w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/CTP7808.jpg 702w" sizes="(max-width: 206px) 100vw, 206px" />
“I tried to create a look that can compete internationally, also mixing it up with sequences here and there,” says Nciza, who was featured on the cover of the August/September issue of FORBES WOMAN AFRICA.
“It’s an everyday look and I didn’t want to use the vintage look, even though the brand is known for that.”
The designer worked with four seamstresses for the line using materials bought on her travels across the continent as part of Mafikizolo’s music tours. The collection was made up of 34 garments, including a mix of ready-to-wear and high fashion frocks.
Nciza has more news.
“We’re also creating a sub-brand of NN Vintage called Urban Vintage, which will be sold at one of the stores in South Africa. It’s a more affordable range and will appeal to a younger audience.”
NN Vintage had made its debut in 2008 at Audi Fashion Week Johannesburg. The re-launch follows Nciza’s sabbatical creating bespoke outfits for clients whilst focusing on her career as a solo artiste. During this break, she learned more about the African fashion industry, before deciding her next act.

CTP7808

Nhlanhla Nciza 2.0

In the fashion fraternity, Taibo Bacar’s name is synonymous with eclectic, elegant women’s wear for all occasions. Showing at this year’s Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Africa (MBFWAfrica) in Johannesburg, South Africa, Bacar closed the annual event’s opening night in October with a standing ovation.
Titled A Luta Continua – The Struggle Continues, and to the enchanting vocals of Miriam Makeba singing A Luta Continua, 50 models showcased a collection that was a mixture of textures and fabrics including the Mozambican ‘capulana’ (sarong), fake fur, organza, mesh, brocades and georgette.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-medium wp-image-29724 alignleft" src="http://www.forbesafrica.com/app/uploads/2017/05/IMG_1706-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="300" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/IMG_1706-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/IMG_1706-300x450.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/IMG_1706-600x900.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/IMG_1706-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/IMG_1706-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/IMG_1706.jpg 682w" sizes="(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px" />
He merged haute couture and ready-to-wear incorporating designs and patterns from his first collection displayed at the fashion week in 2012. Bacar says his inspiration is the feminine woman who wants to look unique in timeless garments.
“When I started, I was thinking about the things that make me happy or things I trust in. But now before I create, I first think about business. I think about commercial things – who is going to buy this product, I’m thinking about the clients, I’m thinking about the customers,” he says.
Bacar says his brand is for women in business; he is merely trying to make life easier for them.
“I know it’s not easy to wake up with the kids for example and the husband, and you still have to take care of the home and also think about what you are going to wear. I try to make something that when a woman wears it, she will be sure to look impeccable all the time,” he says.
The collection’s title was inspired by the current situation in Mozambique and represents continuity, evolution, development and the future. The models donned Bacar’s frocks in gold, liquid black, red velvet and in cuts that speak to the affluent woman, exuding opulence.
“We try to play with our African identity. It’s to keep the feminine silhouette, we are trying to make the woman more confident and more beautiful,” he says.
His couture line is handmade; some of the pieces take about two months to complete, with two people working on them at the same time. These are the more expensive gowns priced at about $5,000.
Retailing in Nigeria, Angola, Mozambique, Paris, Portugal, and soon in Russia, Brazil and New York, the brand is gaining popularity, but remains faithful to its Mozambican and African roots. An online store is also on the cards.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-medium wp-image-29721 alignleft" src="http://www.forbesafrica.com/app/uploads/2017/05/14_MBFWASDR_2588_TaiboBacar-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="300" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/14_MBFWASDR_2588_TaiboBacar-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/14_MBFWASDR_2588_TaiboBacar-300x450.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/14_MBFWASDR_2588_TaiboBacar-600x900.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/14_MBFWASDR_2588_TaiboBacar-768x1153.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/14_MBFWASDR_2588_TaiboBacar.jpg 682w" sizes="(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px" />
“I believe a lot in my brand. I don’t think about awards, I don’t think about what I can get from this business. I think about how I can make this business better year after year,” says Bacar.
The son of a seamstress, Bacar continues to value women and the feminine, paying attention to detail with handwork and embroidery that are his stamps of luxury.
His pret-a-couture line received applause as the night’s finale saw all 50 models sit gracefully in three rows on the ramp, and Bacar walked down the runway.
The Mozambican was also the first African designer to show at Milan Fashion Week.
Bacar has a number of international awards under his belt, but says his prize is spotting people wear his clothes, especially on his travels.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-medium wp-image-29725 alignleft" src="http://www.forbesafrica.com/app/uploads/2017/05/lusaka2-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/lusaka2-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/lusaka2-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/lusaka2-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/lusaka2.jpg 1020w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" />
“For me, my award, my goal is to walk in the streets when I’m traveling, and to see someone wearing Taibo Bacar; to walk in the street and see some boutique selling Taibo Bacar and to say, yes I’ve been working hard and I’m achieving my goals.”

ZFW15

What Women Want

If Johannesburg is South Africa’s business heart, Cape Town, The Mother City, is its creative soul. The city, which is currently World Design Capital, is home to the country’s creative industries – film, animation, fashion, food and advertising. Its inhabitants are driving a creative prerogative from Africa with a global appeal.
Hanli Prinsloo and Hanneli Rupert are two Cape Townians who are making their voices heard on the world stage. In 2014, they were both named Young Global Leaders by the World Economic Forum (WEF).
FORBES WOMAN AFRICA brought Prinsloo and Rupert together for a joint photoshoot, a month before the WEF’s Meeting of the New Champions in Tianjin, China.
Rupert and Prinsloo are young, intelligent and excited about the difference that their businesses can make in sustaining an Africa of beauty and prosperity. Together, they embody the creative spirit of Cape Town and the fearlessness of the women of Africa.
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<h2>Hanli Prinsloo</h2>
<h5>The Freediving Mermaid</h5>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-medium wp-image-29676 alignleft" src="http://www.forbesafrica.com/app/uploads/2017/05/546A4549-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="300" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/546A4549-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/546A4549-300x450.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/546A4549-600x900.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/546A4549-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/546A4549.jpg 682w" sizes="(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px" />
When Hanli Prinsloo was a little girl, she dreamt about being a mermaid. Her oceans were the dams surrounding her parents’ horse farm on the outskirts of Johannesburg, South Africa. Her fishtail was her two feet – filthy from running around barefoot with her sister, Marieke.
“I was surrounded by animals, trees, fields and rivers, and we grew up to love nature. I was crazy, wild as a child – a complete tomboy. Our parents raised us to follow our dreams and we did,” says the 36-year-old Prinsloo.
These days, she lives in a small fishing village less than an hour outside of Cape Town. The ocean is at her disposal and her fishtail is a large state-of-the-art monofin. Apart from that, not much has changed. Prinsloo still dreams big.
The Blue Planet
The I Am Water Trust is an ocean conservation organization founded by Prinsloo in 2010, whose purpose is to educate and foster love for the ocean and all life forms that call it home. Few people will love something they don’t know and Prinsloo is on a drive to increase awareness about water by facilitating experiences out in the big blue. Much of the education is directed at previously-disadvantaged individuals who may not have access to the ocean’s beauty.
Prinsloo was inspired to create I Am Water after close to a decade spent in water as a competitive freediver and coach. For the uninitiated, freediving is a niche underwater diving practice which relies on the diver holding his or her breath until resurfacing. Prinsloo was first introduced to the sport when she was 20.
“When you go underwater you don’t talk, you look inwards and you just experience the ocean and the animal and plant life around you. For your mind, being underwater is a state of meditation or a state of no mind…maybe,” she says.
“When we go underwater together, we find a connection to each other. I first found that connection to myself and to others when I went underwater. It is the most quiet and peaceful experience.”
Prinsloo began competing and broke her first South Africa freediving record in 2003. A series of accolades followed and Prinsloo is now firmly placed in the freediving hall of fame. She teaches freediving and has coached various sportspeople – from surfers to rugby players – in the mental strength needed to hold your breath under water for close to six minutes.
“The more time I spent in the ocean, the more I wanted to protect it and share it with others. The first thing that unites us all is being in water,” says Prinsloo. The I Am Water Trust was founded with the help of the Ewing Trust Company.
Prinsloo’s other incarnations include documentary-maker and actress. At 19, she relocated to Gothenburg, Sweden, with little financial means, no language proficiency and zero friend or family contacts there.
“My family had traveled to Europe and I had loved the Scandinavian countries because the society is one that supports and celebrates art and creativity. Studies were free so I decided why not?”
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<h5>Filming Africa For Sweden</h5>
“Looking back, I don’t know how my 19-year-old self did it. I learnt Swedish from scratch and supported myself entirely. I couldn’t do that again!” she says. Prinsloo studied towards a performing arts degree and project management and following a short stint as an actress, opened a small agency in Stockholm which specialized in making documentaries.
Prinsloo traveled through Africa putting together short documentaries and reports for Swedish television channels.
“There is so much news of despair coming out from Africa. I didn’t want to tell those stories. I wanted to tell stories of hope. I met people who had witnessed genocide and who loved life so much, that was the Africa I wanted to show to Europe.”
Her final long form documentary project was White as Blood – a story of a woman’s journey home to South Africa. A prophetic topic as Prinsloo soon found herself home for good.
<h2>Hanneli Rupert</h2>
<h5>The Art Aficionado</h5>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-medium wp-image-29675 alignleft" src="http://www.forbesafrica.com/app/uploads/2017/05/546A4242-200x300.jpg" alt="" width="200" height="300" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/546A4242-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/546A4242-300x450.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/546A4242-600x900.jpg 600w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/546A4242-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/546A4242.jpg 682w" sizes="(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px" />
Hanneli Rupert is on a mission to showcase African opulence. Born in South Africa in 1984 but a citizen of the world, Rupert is looking beyond West-led definitions of high-end personal luxury and is creating bespoke items such as handbags and accessories while retaining the entire manufacturing value chain on the continent.
Rupert trained as a painter at the Wimbledon School of Art. Her first art exhibition, called Flesh Mandala’s, focused on the transient qualities of the human skin as depicted by anonymous human bodies.
“I looked at applying some of the more linear sides of my art work to fashion. I found I was designing things for myself – things like bags and necklaces – and people would ask me where they came from.”
Rupert was using organic elements in her designs, an application of a deep-seated fascination with the mystical and the anthropological dimension of Africa’s history. Elements such as raw hides, shells and animal bones were all curated with the purpose of evoking the clandestine romance of a pre-colonial unexplored Africa.
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<h5>Athens To Africa</h5>
“At the time I was living in Athens and I wanted to come back to South Africa. I picked up on a demand for high-end goods from the continent – not just from overseas but from African customers as well. What I didn’t like was that luxury products were being designed and manufactured in established markets using our natural resources,” says Rupert.
“I wanted to do something to add to the value chain here at home.”
Back home in Cape Town in 2008, Rupert founded a luxury handbag line Okapi named after the ancient unicorn-like beast in African folklore.
“I wanted to use game skins on the bags. Game skins are not commonly used in fashion because the hide is imperfect; sometimes you can see scars from where the animal has been in a fight. I love that though, it has character and meaning.”
Rupert then began working with craft groups in and around the Western Cape to create charm add-ons for the handbags. There are detachable chains made from semi-precious African stones and agate, which can also double up as necklaces, as well as charms made from ostrich feathers and bones. The bags themselves are classic in line and the colors – a lot of tan, a lot of muted greens and reds – timeless. Rupert is decidedly not about fads but rather about lasting statement pieces.
“What’s really important to me is authenticity. The origin of the design needs to have meaning and it needs to be backed in history. This carries through to the sourcing of raw materials and the manufacture of the product.
“There is a symbolism in accessorizing, which transcends cultures and historical periods and that is really appealing to me. All humans accessorize to communicate a status. But adornments have become disposable these days and there are few jewelry items which still have meaning. I want the accessories I design and which I wear, to have meaning,”
she says.
The theory behind Okapi is right on the pulse of the current zeitgeist celebrating a mindfully-led curatorship of one’s material possessions. The springbok horn has become an emblem of sorts for the brand.
Rupert wears a black lacquered version swinging low off a chunky gold chain. She explains that Springbok horns were considered lucky in many ancient African cultures and thought to bring prosperity to those who wore them, hence why they can often be found hanging off an Okapi handbag.
Intelligent Fashion
The design ethos carries right through to Rupert’s personal style choices. She is very much about classic and simple but there is a vein of exoticism that runs through her edited preppy wardrobe.
“I love cross-referencing different design and style elements in the way I dress. There’s an intellectual approach to fashion which really excites me.”
Okapi handbags were initially sold online and in a number of stores in London and South Africa. Two years later, in 2010, the desire to create a platform to sell more African-sourced goods prompted Rupert to open her flagship store – Merchants on Long. True to type, the building itself is steeped in history having presided over more than a century of change in Cape Town’s city center.
The store has thrived and Rupert continues to search for ways to incorporate more African designs and more local production into her growing business.

Tag: Fashion

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