New Talent in Focus at South African Fashion Week

The three-day Autumn/Winter edition of South African Fashion Week (SAFW) concluded on Oct. 30 in Johannesburg’s Mall of Africa. To comply with Covid-19 restrictions, SAFW showcased 29 designers on the runway to a small VIP audience.

According to SAFW director, Lucilla Booyzen, the shows will also be broadcast on YouTube from Nov. 4 to 6 to allow more people an opportunity to see the collections. Booyzen described the broadcasting element as an integral component of the marketing strategy both at home and abroad.

“The success of the digital broadcasts during Covid inspired us to follow the AW22 collections with a combined live [and] digital production so as to amplify the international impact and reach,” she said.

SAFW’s 2021 New Talent Search winner Artho Eksteen and finalists Sipho Mbuto and Michael Ludwig were among the showcased designers. Mbuto is also part of Fashion Bridges – I Ponti Della Moda, a South African and Italian designer-led initiative between SAFW, the Italian embassy, Polimoda fashion school in Florence, and Milan Fashion Week. As a result, Mbuto and a number of other designers showed their collections in both Milan and Johannesburg.

Designers showing at SAFW will also return to the Mall of Africa from Dec. 3 to 5, for a three-day pop-up store in the middle of one of the mall’s busiest seasons, Booyzen added.

Learn more:

A New ‘Fashion Bridge’ Between Italy and South Africa

A new “Fashion Bridges – I Ponti della Moda” initiative aims to foster co-operation between the Italian and South African fashion industries. It will see three young designers from South Africa (Jacques Bam, Fikile Zamagcino sokhulu and Sipho Mbuto) paired with three young Italian designers from Polimoda (Julian Cerro, llaria Bellomo and Domenico Orefice).