V&A menswear show Africa’s global arena
ABOUT 35 of the continent’s best menswear designers showcased their Summer collections in a variety of ramp catwalk and presentation shows during the South African Menswear Week at the Lookout, V&A Waterfront, at the weekend.
The event is described as Africa’s only stand-alone platform dedicated to development and promotion of menswear within the African continent.
Taking place twice a year in Cape Town, SAMW aims to provide a world-class platform for menswear designers and brands to showcase their latest collections.
The goal is to be the leading platform in terms of innovation, trends, production and, most importantly, the promotion of our designers. It’s about building credibility for the platform that will enable designers to grow their businesses.
Curated by leading industry experts, the panel selects and invites the best of established and upcoming designers to participate each season.
Organisers say their partnership with the platform sees leading SA designers eventually showcase in London, both as a drive to build exports, but also, more importantly, to build awareness of these brands back home in South Africa.
Future SA Menswear Week dates are set internationally in terms of the calendar for other Menswear Weeks, including London, Pitti, Milan, Paris and New York. SAMW is seen as the “African” platform within this global schedule, taking place each season between Paris and New York Menswear shows.