TRU BELLE: A FASHION CUT ABOVE THE REST
Tru Belle Fashion was started by 22-year-old Gaone Mangogola in 2017 and is already making waves in the fashion industry; clients from across the country trip over each other to have a garment made by the talented lass. Her star rose in 2019 when she was one of the fashion designers who showcases at the Miss Botswana Fashion show. In an interview with Vibe, she said she has always known from a young age that she has an eye for fashion, so being a fashion designer has always been her dream. Her skill and talent were unleashed in 2017 when she ordered a fashion garment online but it took a long time to arrive, so she decided to do it for herself. “It came out perfectly, and I took a picture and posted it online. People were amazed by what I had created. I then started making different garments for myself, and my family and friends were impressed by my talent.The positive feedback was enough confirmation that I have what it takes to be a good fashion designer,” she said.
Soon enough, she started working on establishing her fashion business and she has not looked back since then. “When I started out, I was not confident at the time, but with practise I became more confident and improved on my skills.”
Mangogola also said that she sources inspiration from anything around her. She also said that her target market is women only because the female silhouette is more interesting to play around with and because of the diversity of fashion that women wear.“Generally, women tend to be more fashionable and men’ fashion is limited while women have more options, that is why I focus on them. It is always great to play around with the different designs, styles, fabrics and colours to create beautiful garments for different occasions.”
Mangogola explained that when she started out her fashion business, some people doubted her because she is still young but she took the criticism as an opportunity to work hard in order to prove that she has what it takes to create the type of quality garments that most experienced fashion designers can make.
Money is a great incentive and it is fantastic that she gets paid for doing what she loves, she noted. But the highlight for her in her fashion career, is getting recognition and positive feedback from her clients. “I like making people look beautiful and seeing a garment from the design stage to completion is an amazing experience.”