Fashion is a beautiful form of art that includes everyone. Even the ones who claim to not like it are still a big part of it because of the clothes they wear.

It wouldn’t be far fetched to say that African fashion is gaining momentum. Designers within the continent are working tirelessly to produce exceptional garments that can compete on the international level.

African designers are steadily winning important design awards, which gives them access to an audience that may not have known about them and their expertise.

We often see international stars like Rihanna, Kylie Jenner, Naomi Campbell, Ncuti Gatwa, Lizzo and many others support African designers by wearing their garments.

But are African designer garments easily accessible to potential customers? It’s a question that is quite difficult to answer. The industry is actively trying to make sure that garments are not just seen one time at fashion week and then it’s over until the next season. Hence Thula Sindi’s Africa Rise and Africa Fashion International’s House of Nala, have become great places to source designs by Africans.

Even though there is still a gap that needs to be bridged but all is not lost. While most Africans still have the view that local designs are not easily accessible compared to international brands, it is becoming easier for ordinary people to have access to African luxury brands. It becomes that much easier when the designers collaborate with brands that are familiar to everyday people. For example, David Tlale collaborated with Avon to launch annual collections for ordinary women.

Mantsho had a limited collection with H&M so people could have easy access to her brand. Gavin Rajah partnered with Pick n Pay Clothing to sell some of his collections and also get other young designers' collections at the retailer. Such makes ordinary citizens feel important because at least they are considered by the designers instead of reserving all their collections for those with a fat pay check.

Turning the spotlight on other African countries

In the before Covid-19 times, we would have different fashion shows where designers from across the continent would showcase their collections under one roof.

The likes of Rich Mnisi, Maxhosa Africa, Orange Culture, Christie Brown, Black Coffee, and Adama Paris – to name but a few, would all showcase at Lagos Fashion Week.

Just before the pandemic, things started getting slow. There wasn’t that much unity like before. And it got worse during the pandemic; most shows were virtual and done on a minimal budget. Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana and Mozambique were some of the African countries famous for hosting annual fashion shows that included many African designers.

It is beautiful to see countries like Botswana included in the fashion space.

Last month, African Fashion International in collaboration with Forbes Under 30 staged a fashion show on the banks of the Chobe River, Kasane.

About six designers showcased their collections, which were then displayed for sale at the House of Nala pop-up store.

iZaura, a Botswana brand owned by Mothusi Lesolle, showed a regal resort collection.

Alongside was Dihdah, founded by husband-and-wife duo Candida and Weru Tseko.

Their collection focused on the story of Botswana’s main export – diamonds. From dust to diamond, their collection was metamorphism of colours and fabrics, from earthy hues to bright sunset highlights.

Kenyan brand Ohana Swimwear by Neema Kinoti took the audience on a safari with the collection that offered a journey of self-discovery through bold animal and African prints.

Owned by Moshopjadi Tsiki, MyOpenKlozet’s collection was a mixture of vintage romantic designs with a dash of Ndebele inspired prints.

As a cherry on the top, Kworks by Keneoue Mhletswa showcased a special collection under the AFI Fastrack development programme.

Mzukisi Mbane of ImprintZA closed the show with a collection inspired by a deep connection to his grandmother.

AFI founder Dr Precious Moloi-Motsepe is adamant that the new fashion format will grow African fashion and tourism.

“The youthful audience of the Forbes Under 30 Summit was ideal for testing new approaches to fashion and the runway. When you strip the runway bare, there is a lot of creativity that we can do in that space. Fashion can no longer follow the standard formats of the past. AFI is driving change and we look forward to building on the sustainability aspect of African fashion by growing collaborations between fashion, retail, and tourism.”

The Future

Many in the industry believe the next step is collaborations.

We expect to see more African designers collaborating, just like international brands do. We’ve seen Fendi x Versace, Gucci x Balenciaga, Coach x Champion and many more.

In Africa, it seems like everyone is just doing their own thing. Most collaborations that we see are on the runway when a certain designer uses someone’s accessories in their collection.

It would be nice to see designers like Thebe Magugu and Kenneth Ize, Maxhosa and Adama Paris, Orange Culture and Rich Mnisi collaborate. It is something that will shake up the industry and take African fashion to the next level.