Fiercely Loyal Local Fashion

Maxhose: Luxury local knits

Laduma Ngxokolo, founder of local fashion brand Maxhosa, believes his brand’s main competitors are luxury fashion brands like Louis Vuitton and Gucci. “From a pricing position, we are not far off from them, and in the retail space, our stores are adjacent to theirs,” he explains.

Ngxokolo says that Maxhosa customers are not price-sensitive and can readily afford his range of knitwear for men and women. The brand’s main customer base is South African and most of the sales come from its stores in the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town, The Mall of Africa in Midrand, and from its studio in Johannesburg. Even online sales are mostly local, but the brand does have an international footprint. Besides featuring in the latest reiteration of Coming 2 America starring Eddie Murphy, they have been featured in international titles like Vogue, The Hollywood Reporter and Variety.

Ngxokolo says Maxhosa is available on some international online stores and has featured instore at Bloomingdales in New York and San Francisco. “The long-term goal is to open our own retail spaces overseas rather than work through a merchant. But that is long-term, we are still focused on growing our market share here in South Africa. Though we are doing well, I believe there is still an untapped market in places like Durban, Mpumalanga and the North West that we must harness.”

The brand has grown locally in popularity, thanks to its signature designs and prints, which he says are rooted in Xhosa heritage, but are also a celebration of other African cultures.

“We are proud to be a South African brand. We can boast that nearly 90 per cent of our clothes are made in South Africa, as we not only have a factory in Port Elizabeth, but we also source our raw materials locally.”

Mantsho: Offering exclusivity and uniqueness

Johannesburg-based brand Mantsho and founder Palesa Mokubung made international headlines in 2019 when Mantsho became the first African brand to collaborate with Swedish retail giant H&M. The capsule collection was sold in 61 stores in 11 countries. Mokubung describes Mantsho as “a global brand that is based in South Africa with a solid international and local following”.

Like Maxhosa, Mantsho recently had a selection of designs featured in the movie, Coming 2 America, which also stars local actress Nomzamo Mbatha. Mokubung says that the brand is uniquely South African because she is “consciously making sure that my pride is evident in the Mantsho prints and textiles, which all tell a story of my culture and heritage.”

Available online and instore at her studio at Victoria Yards in Johannesburg, at the Africa Stores at Sandton City and Menlyn in Pretoria, Mokubung says that most of her sales are currently happening online due to the pandemic, which has also made customers more price-sensitive. “However, our clientele values quality, exclusivity and luxury and they’re more than willing to pay for it.”

Mokubung says that the competition among local fashion brands is not stiff because the industry is so small. “There is enough space for all of us. We compete as colleagues, but not as rivals,” she explains.

Africa your time is now: Making a statement to the world

The Africa Your Time is Now brand is the brainchild of Papama Mtwisha, the founder and owner. “Our brand was conceptualised, founded and is manufactured in South Africa. Manufacturing in South Africa was very deliberate on our part. Even though it would be cheaper to produce in the East, it made more sense for us to keep the currency circulating here on the continent and keep people employed.

“Our mandate was very clear from the outset, namely, that we want to inspire in every single way – from the message we are spreading to creating employment by working with local manufacturers.”

The T-shirts, hoodies, sweatshirts and other fashion items bearing the slogan have become popular and a mainstay in the fashion world, with most of the label’s sales happening online.

“As a brand that launched online, our online sales are consistently strong. This is attributed to the fact that we timeously deliver orders and if there is a challenge, we communicate. Most of our clients love the convenience of having their parcels delivered to their door,” Mtwisha explains.

She says that although the brand’s clientele is mostly local, it does have an international footprint. “We are currently available in Europe, the United States, Australia and some major cities throughout Africa.”

SA designers are major contributors to the local GDP 

South African designers contributed at least R1-billion to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) during 2019. This is according to the study, Assessing the Economic Value of the Designer Fashion Sector in South Africa, released last year before the pandemic. The study was a collaboration between the Department of Trade and Industry and Competition and the South African Cotton Cluster (SACC).

The research also revealed that the sector can aggressively target the growing upper-middle class, who are more inclined towards buying “slow fashion”, rather than the fast fashion dominating the mass retail market. Slow fashion is a growing trend in international markets, where consumers are taking a more conscious approach to fashion and favouring small-scale and responsibly produced products.

The South African designer clothing sector is in the position to adopt and cater to this trend says the report. “The sector has the ability to service the increasingly stringent requirements of the market when it comes to sustainability and ethicality throughout the brands’ value chains. There are ample opportunities when it comes to positioning the designer apparel sector as a pioneer and custodian of sustainability,” the report states.