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Naomi Campbell displays an outfit by South African designer Kluk CGDT during the 2018 Lagos Fashion Week. The British supermodel has spoken out in support of publisher Condé Nast’s plan to launch an African edition of Vogue magazine. Photo: APNaomi Campbell displays an outfit by South African designer Kluk CGDT during the 2018 Lagos Fashion Week. The British supermodel has spoken out in support of publisher Condé Nast’s plan to launch an African edition of Vogue magazine. Photo: AP
Fashion & Beauty
Michelle Obama and Lupita Nyong’o in Maki Oh – has African fashion’s time finally come?
From Nigeria, where Afrobeats stars champion their creations, to Cape Town, African fashion designers are going out to the world and winning fans
Kenneth Ize and Thebe Magugu, candidates for US$337,000 LVMH Prize, Lisa Folawiyo, Laduma Ngxokolo – these are some of the African designers you should watch
Topic | Fashion
Melissa Twigg
Melissa Twigg
Published: 3:00pm, 3 Apr, 2019
Updated: 7:47pm, 4 Apr, 2019
Cape Town’s fashion district comes in edible colours; the houses of Bree Street and de Waterkant are candyfloss pink, peppermint green, watermelon red and buttermilk yellow. And inside these sun-drenched buildings are boutiques filled with colourful knitwear from MaXhosa by Laduma, carpet-skimming dresses by Rich Mnisi, and bias cut coats from Mmuso Maxwell.
In Lagos, Nigeria as night falls, thousands of twenty-somethings flood the city’s mega clubs, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Afrobeats stars who now dominate the download charts, airwaves and social media feeds of the region. Adored singers such as Temi Dollface play to the crowd dressed in Lisa Folawiyo print dresses or Maki Oh silk jumpsuits.
African fashion is dynamic, forward thinking and diverse. It is so much more than just wax print motifs and beaded necklaces, and the rest of the world is now waking up to what it has been missing. As African music, art and design receive the global recognition they have so long deserved, clothing from the continent is becoming more than just a footnote in fashion storytelling.
“Africa is too big and too creative not to play a major part on the international scene. Anyone who ignores the continent is going to miss out in a major way,” says Nigerian-born Kolade Adeyemo, who, along with Akin Adebowale, has launched Afromodernism, a platform that delivers African culture and fashion to the world through content and e-commerce.
Laduma Ngxokolo with a model in his designs.
Laduma Ngxokolo with a model in his designs.
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The historic lack of African representation in international design institutions and competitions is finally coming to an end. For the first time in its five-year history, the prestigious LVMH Prize for Young Designers
has chosen two African finalists – South Africa’s Thebe Magugu, whose spring-summer 2019 collection is called African Studies, and cult Nigerian menswear designer Kenneth Ize – to compete against eight other young designers for the chance to win €300,000 (US$337,000) and a year’s worth of mentoring from the LVMH group.
Vogue Africa, which is rumoured to be launching soon, has become another sign of Africa’s growing fashion clout, and black British editors and models including Edward Enninful and Naomi Campbell have spoken passionately about the project. However, to represent a truly postcolonial Africa, the publication will need to be headquartered on the continent, and Condé Nast International is said to be vacillating between publishing out of Lagos or Johannesburg.
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A look from Maki Oh’s spring/summer 2019 collection at New York Fashion Week.
A look from Maki Oh’s spring/summer 2019 collection at New York Fashion Week.
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Maki Oh at New York Fashion Week in September 2018.
Maki Oh at New York Fashion Week in September 2018.
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Talented designers are launching brands around the continent, but South Africa and Nigeria remain the hubs, and the two industries are growing separately, but competitively. Nigeria’s GDP is higher but South Africa’s luxury sector is significantly bigger, and designers are using this new-found flow of cash to create a bold aesthetic that plays with Zulu, Xhosa, Afrikaans and Cape cultural identities.
“We have a vibrant fashion industry filled with designers committed to make a difference,” says Lucilla Booyzen, the founder and director of South Africa Fashion Week. “We also have an indigenous fashion culture populated by distinctive signature designers, at a time when rampant consumerism and mass production is increasingly questioned by the new luxury consumer.”
Nigerian designers, meanwhile, have a smaller domestic market but stronger international ties – due in part to their closer geographical proximity to the West and the prolific Nigerian diaspora in fashion capitals such as London and New York. Brands such Maki Oh have had considerable success internationally – this ultra-cool womenswear label fuses traditional African prints with avant-garde contemporary silhouettes, and has been spotted on Michelle Obama, Lupita Nyong’o, Solange Knowles and Azealia Banks.
A look from Maki Oh’s spring/summer 2019 collection at New York Fashion Week.
A look from Maki Oh’s spring/summer 2019 collection at New York Fashion Week.
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A look from Thebe Magugu’s autumn/winter 2019 collection at South Africa Fashion Week.
A look from Thebe Magugu’s autumn/winter 2019 collection at South Africa Fashion Week.
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Then-US first lady Michelle Obama wears Maki Oh at an event in South Africa in 2013. Photo: AFP
Then-US first lady Michelle Obama wears Maki Oh at an event in South Africa in 2013. Photo: AFP
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International approval is not the only path to success. A decade ago, local celebrities would show their status by wearing well-known European brands; now African-made design has as much cultural clout in Africa as anything from Paris or Milan.
“I think it is going to get to a point where African artists will think it’s uncool to wear European brands on the red carpet,” says Adebowale. “It’s already more forward-thinking to be wearing a label that has shown at Lagos Fashion Week than something by Louis Vuitton. We want to stand together and show the world what we’re making.”
African designers may stand together intellectually, but a continent of 54 countries and more than one billion people is not going to produce one single aesthetic. “I feel the designers should be associated with their country rather than the continent,” says Booyzen. “For instance, one refers to Italian designer not European designers. Africa is a huge continent and fashion in Africa is more diverse than on any other continent.”
She is not alone in railing against this unnecessary grouping – although many agree that African fashion does need to become less fragmented. Nisha Kanabar, who is from Tanzania, and New Yorker Georgia Bobley are attempting to change this with Industrie Africa. Africa lacks a single fashion week or central council and they hope that their website will digitally recreate the traditional showroom. It already features more than 80 designers from 24 African countries and ships goods around the continent and into Asia and America.
South African designer Laduma Ngxokolo.
South African designer Laduma Ngxokolo.
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A look from Laduma Ngxokolo’s autumn/winter 2019 collection at South Africa Fashion Week in October 2018.
A look from Laduma Ngxokolo’s autumn/winter 2019 collection at South Africa Fashion Week in October 2018.
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The collections they feature wouldn’t look out of place in stores such as Dover Street Market or publications such as i-D. There is Kidd Hunta, a luxury tailored menswear label from Zimbabwe, and Thebe Magugu, the LVMH Prize finalist, whose artsy, thoughtful aesthetic draws on Zulu traditions. Or Ami Doshi Shah, whose bold, oversized jewellery would look equally at home on a Parisian catwalk or at a Kenyan wedding.
Global tour by emerging designers projects China’s soft power through fashion
Laduma Ngxokolo, the talented designer behind award-winning South African knitwear brand MaXhosa by Laduma, is also featured on the site, and his fitted jumpers and colourful knitted capes recall certain Gucci collections under Alessandro Michele. His brand is entirely made and manufactured in South Africa, with only the buttons on his jumpers imported.
“My first priority is to expand within South Africa, the second within the African continent,” he says. “Then, the rest of the world, and we are in the process of growing our capacity to ensure that we are able to supply the demand. I do think our brand could do well in Asia, specifically in Korea and Japan. Also in small parts of China.”
Due to geographical proximity, shared language and a rooted diaspora, African designers have traditionally looked to Europe and America, but many of them are now turning to Asia. African art has proved particularly popular in Asia in the past decade – sparked partly by the growing economic ties between Asia and Africa – and designers are hoping fashion will follow suit.
Looks by Laduma Ngxokolo for Maxhosa by Laduma.
Looks by Laduma Ngxokolo for Maxhosa by Laduma.
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Laduma Ngxokolo at a Maxhosa By Laduma show in 2018.
Laduma Ngxokolo at a Maxhosa By Laduma show in 2018.
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Knitwear collection FVH x LM is made in the Karoo region of South Africa.
Knitwear collection FVH x LM is made in the Karoo region of South Africa.
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“I think Hong Kong would be a brilliant place to expand to, and the Japanese are already big fans of mohair and what we do,” says Frances van Hasselt, whose mohair-based knitwear collection, FVH x LM, is made in the Karoo – an arid, beautiful landscape in central South Africa. There, local women’s livelihoods depend on the burgeoning fashion industry.
“Fashion can do so much good for small communities and female empowerment, we just need to grow the industry further,” she says.
The talent and ambition are there, but what African fashion needs now is increased awareness – from buyers, editors and consumers. “We should all be pro-Africa,” says Adebowale. “We need to change the way Africa is represented – people still look at it in quite a clichéd way, and we want to rebrand and shine a light on all the good news coming from this incredible continent.”
This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Out of Africa: style emerges from shadows
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Models for the Kirby show lining up during Almaty Fashion Week in 2018 in Kazakhstan.Models for the Kirby show lining up during Almaty Fashion Week in 2018 in Kazakhstan.
Fashion & Beauty
How fashion weeks like Shanghai and Seoul can stand beside Paris, London, New York and Milan
From Shanghai to Almaty, fashion weeks that aren’t the ‘big four’ can be successful if they find a unique purpose
That could be anything from providing a platform for young designers to showing off their country’s traditions and culture
Topic | Fashion
Timothy Parent
Timothy Parent
Published: 8:30am, 27 Mar, 2019
Updated: 10:28am, 27 Mar, 2019
READ FULL ARTICLE
Big Tech
How China’s online opinion leaders – or KOLs – convert fans to sales, creating a nearly US$9 billion industry
More than 70 per cent of Chinese Gen Z consumers prefer buying products directly via social media
In 2016, China’s KOL economy was valued at about 58 billion yuan (US$8.6 billion)
Topic | Icons and Influencers
Yingzhi Yang
Yingzhi Yang
Published: 7:01am, 14 Mar, 2019
Updated: 7:01am, 14 Mar, 2019
The Kardashians may have been able to create a US entertainment phenomenon by revealing their luxurious lifestyle through a long running reality TV series, but Chinese key opinion leaders (KOLs) have been able to convert fans and generate sales on a level their western peers can only dream of.
While western influencers are mostly video bloggers on Instagram or YouTube, Chinese KOLs can be columnists, socialites, photobloggers, or short video creators – and they have multiple channels through which they can become famous, including social media platforms WeChat and Weibo, social networking service Douban and video platform Douyin – known as TikTok in the west.
Becky Li, with more than 7.5 million combined followers on WeChat and Weibo, is one of China’s top fashion bloggers in China, able to convert followers to sales through posts on her WeChat public account.
READ FULL ARTICLE
Fashion & Beauty
‘I’m not a crazy rich Asian’: Angela Lee, doctor who wears Dior, Chanel, Hermès with a lab coat
Look at Lee’s Instagram account and it’s all Hermès Birkins and Kellys, Van Cleef & Arpels jewels, and Patek Philippe watches
But she’s a doctor with stints in Britain’s health service and 40-hour Hong Kong hospital shifts recently behind her, who’s lately opened a skin care clinic
Topic | Fashion
Divia Harilela
Divia Harilela
Published: 12:45pm, 22 Mar, 2019
Updated: 8:19am, 25 Mar, 2019
READ FULL ARTICLE
Fashion & Beauty
A Chinese John Galliano? Award at Shanghai Fashion Week aims to help new labels go global
The inaugural BoF China Prize was presented to Caroline Hu, a New York-based designer who impressed with a crafts-intensive collection
Winner’s US$100,000 award, and mentoring from top companies, intended to help her label succeed globally
Topic | Fashion in Hong Kong and China
Lily Templeton
Lily Templeton
Published: 5:00am, 4 Apr, 2019
Updated: 4:12pm, 4 Apr, 2019
READ FULL ARTICLE
Fashion
‘Australian men don’t understand fashion’, says Christian Kimber, designer out to change that
The British-born winner of Australia’s 2019 National Designer Award has long had an eye for style, but only after relocating to Melbourne did he decide to launch his first collection
Topic | Fashion
Divia Harilela
Divia Harilela
Published: 9:15am, 28 Mar, 2019
Updated: 9:46am, 28 Mar, 2019
READ FULL ARTICLE
Opinion
Vincenzo La Torre
Asian fashion influencers deserve the respect of luxury industry – so isn’t it time they had some?
‘Amateur photographers’ read the tart caption on an Instagram post of Asian fashion influencers and journalists videoing and snapping a Chloé show in Paris
While its author meant no ill, it was emblematic of luxury’s disdain for the people representing its clients in what will soon be fashion’s biggest market
Vincenzo La Torre
Vincenzo La Torre
Published: 10:32am, 11 Mar, 2019
Updated: 10:32am, 11 Mar, 2019
READ FULL ARTICLE
Fashion & Beauty
Birkins wall to wall, a closet full of couture, but it’s work that makes Singapore socialite Jamie Chua happiest
A Singapore Airlines stewardess when she met her future husband, Indonesian Nurdian Cuaca, the 45-year-old is done with just spending money
Paid to endorse products to her social media followers, her investments include a beauty clinic and skincare range. Everybody should have work, she says
Topic | Fashion
Karen Tee
Karen Tee
Published: 5:17pm, 10 Mar, 2019
Updated: 8:53pm, 11 Mar, 2019
READ FULL ARTICLE
Fashion
What’s hot from Baselworld 2019: three stand-out watches belie fair’s diminished status
A retro Breitling Navitimer, a Chopard dress watch with a pop of colour, and a brash Tudor chronograph that marries steel with gold are all worth digging deep for
They are proof that, despite some brands skipping the event, world’s biggest watch fair is still has a lot to offer
Topic | Timepieces
Abid Rahman
Abid Rahman
Published: 8:30pm, 3 Apr, 2019
Updated: 6:37am, 4 Apr, 2019
READ FULL ARTICLE
Related Articles
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Why luxury pyjamas are taking off – and it’s not about money
In a time when conspicuous consumption rules, high-quality pyjamas and loungewear might seem an unnecessary luxury
But the trend is being driven by the desire for a good night’s sleep, especially among young professionals working long hours
READ FULL ARTICLE
29 Mar 2019 - 7:32AM
Paris Fashion Week
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The industry united to bid ‘adieu’ to the late German designer at his autumn/winter 2019/20 collection show
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14 Mar 2019 - 10:36AM
SCMP TODAY: INTL EDITION
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Special Reports
BigBang boy band member Seungri is embroiled in a sex-for-investment criminal investigation. Photo: AFPBigBang boy band member Seungri is embroiled in a sex-for-investment criminal investigation. Photo: AFP
Entertainment
K-pop sex and drugs scandals are damaging its squeaky-clean image
K-pop stars Jung Joon-young, Seungri and Yong Jun-hyung have all announced their retirements from show business because of recent scandals
The incidents have damaged K-pop’s image in socially conservative South Korea and with fans around the world
Topic | K-pop, Mandopop and other Asian pop
Agence France-Presse
Agence France-Presse
Published: 2:30am, 15 Mar, 2019
Updated: 3:49pm, 27 Mar, 2019
READ FULL ARTICLE
Entertainment
K-pop label YG is literally in crisis after sex and drugs scandals involving Seungri, G-Dragon and others
‘YG is literally in crisis’ was originally a line from a Netflix sitcom about the band, but it appears to have come true for the K-pop label
Seungri was charged with procuring prostitutes for businessmen and other members have had drug scandals
Topic | K-pop, Mandopop and other Asian pop
Korea Times
Korea Times
Published:
Updated: 3:47pm, 27 Mar, 2019
READ FULL ARTICLE
Big Tech
How China’s online opinion leaders – or KOLs – convert fans to sales, creating a nearly US$9 billion industry
More than 70 per cent of Chinese Gen Z consumers prefer buying products directly via social media
In 2016, China’s KOL economy was valued at about 58 billion yuan (US$8.6 billion)
Topic | Icons and Influencers
Yingzhi Yang
Yingzhi Yang
Published: 7:01am, 14 Mar, 2019
Updated: 7:01am, 14 Mar, 2019
READ FULL ARTICLE
Fashion & Beauty
‘I’m not a crazy rich Asian’: Angela Lee, doctor who wears Dior, Chanel, Hermès with a lab coat
Look at Lee’s Instagram account and it’s all Hermès Birkins and Kellys, Van Cleef & Arpels jewels, and Patek Philippe watches
But she’s a doctor with stints in Britain’s health service and 40-hour Hong Kong hospital shifts recently behind her, who’s lately opened a skin care clinic
Topic | Fashion
Divia Harilela
Divia Harilela
Published: 12:45pm, 22 Mar, 2019
Updated: 8:19am, 25 Mar, 2019
READ FULL ARTICLE
Fashion & Beauty
A Chinese John Galliano? Award at Shanghai Fashion Week aims to help new labels go global
The inaugural BoF China Prize was presented to Caroline Hu, a New York-based designer who impressed with a crafts-intensive collection
Winner’s US$100,000 award, and mentoring from top companies, intended to help her label succeed globally
Topic | Fashion in Hong Kong and China
Lily Templeton
Lily Templeton
Published: 5:00am, 4 Apr, 2019
Updated: 4:12pm, 4 Apr, 2019
READ FULL ARTICLE
Fashion
‘Australian men don’t understand fashion’, says Christian Kimber, designer out to change that
The British-born winner of Australia’s 2019 National Designer Award has long had an eye for style, but only after relocating to Melbourne did he decide to launch his first collection
Topic | Fashion
Divia Harilela
Divia Harilela
Published: 9:15am, 28 Mar, 2019
Updated: 9:46am, 28 Mar, 2019
READ FULL ARTICLE
Opinion
Vincenzo La Torre
Asian fashion influencers deserve the respect of luxury industry – so isn’t it time they had some?
‘Amateur photographers’ read the tart caption on an Instagram post of Asian fashion influencers and journalists videoing and snapping a Chloé show in Paris
While its author meant no ill, it was emblematic of luxury’s disdain for the people representing its clients in what will soon be fashion’s biggest market
Vincenzo La Torre
Vincenzo La Torre
Published: 10:32am, 11 Mar, 2019
Updated: 10:32am, 11 Mar, 2019
READ FULL ARTICLE
Fashion & Beauty
Birkins wall to wall, a closet full of couture, but it’s work that makes Singapore socialite Jamie Chua happiest
A Singapore Airlines stewardess when she met her future husband, Indonesian Nurdian Cuaca, the 45-year-old is done with just spending money
Paid to endorse products to her social media followers, her investments include a beauty clinic and skincare range. Everybody should have work, she says
Topic | Fashion
Karen Tee
Karen Tee
Published: 5:17pm, 10 Mar, 2019
Updated: 8:53pm, 11 Mar, 2019
READ FULL ARTICLE
Fashion
What’s hot from Baselworld 2019: three stand-out watches belie fair’s diminished status
A retro Breitling Navitimer, a Chopard dress watch with a pop of colour, and a brash Tudor chronograph that marries steel with gold are all worth digging deep for
They are proof that, despite some brands skipping the event, world’s biggest watch fair is still has a lot to offer
Topic | Timepieces
Abid Rahman
Abid Rahman
Published: 8:30pm, 3 Apr, 2019
Updated: 6:37am, 4 Apr, 2019
READ FULL ARTICLE
Related Articles
Fashion
Why luxury pyjamas are taking off – and it’s not about money
In a time when conspicuous consumption rules, high-quality pyjamas and loungewear might seem an unnecessary luxury
But the trend is being driven by the desire for a good night’s sleep, especially among young professionals working long hours
READ FULL ARTICLE
29 Mar 2019 - 7:32AM
Paris Fashion Week
Paris Fashion Week: video of all the best shows
The industry united to bid ‘adieu’ to the late German designer at his autumn/winter 2019/20 collection show
READ FULL ARTICLE
14 Mar 2019 - 10:36AM
SCMP TODAY: INTL EDITION
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