Designers
Design Brand To Know: Thabo Makhetha
Thabo Makhetha-Kwinana is an award-winning fashion designer and owner of the leading women’s wear label, which bears her name. The brand was established in South Africa in 2009 and within a few years became one of the handful of African brands considered as being at the forefront of African luxury.
The label is globally recognised for using and taking inspiration from authentic Basotho blankets and creating a collection of winter wear jackets and coats. The Basotho blanket is a symbol of status with deep cultural roots dating over a century in Lesotho, a small landlocked country in Southern Africa ruled by a monarchy. Fashion designer Thabo Makhetha- Kwinana was born in Lesotho and raised in South Africa; her collection is an ode to her own Basotho heritage.
Thabo Makhetha-Kwinana has garnered numerous awards and accolades; in 2014 she made her runway debut at Vancouver Fashion Week in Canada, where she was praised for the quality and creativity of her work. She has showcased in South Africa, Lesotho, the United Kingdom and Italy. Her work has been featured in publications across the globe and most recently the BBC profiled her.
In South Africa she was listed as a Top 40 under 40 business leaders of 2014 by the Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber and in the same year was awarded the Impact Award for Design Excellence. Emilie Gambade, then Editor of Elle Magazine, nominated Thabo’s starburst coat for Most Beautiful Object in South Africa 2016 and in 2017 she was recognised as one of the Top 200 young South Africans. Thabo Makhetha-Kwinana is a Mandela Washington Fellowship 2018 alumnae
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