It was billed to be the biggest and most extraordinary fashion show Windhoek fashion lovers would see this year. However, from my floor view between two seated guests, while squatting with a fellow journalist in our attempt to get good shots, Africa’s Fashion Culture (AFC) fashion show was more of a disappointment.
With the fashion season on hiatus through the winter months, this could be regarded as the official opening of the fashion season. With this in mind, one would expect organisers to set the tone, with an ‘at-least-decent-show’ or at least standard quality organisation.
But, well… the doors opened an hour later than advertised, there weren’t enough seats for all guests and the bar service provided by the Hilton Hotel staff was atrocious. All of this created a chaotic atmosphere of dolled-up trend spotters wondering if they made the right decision in attending the event at all.
Despite the poor management of logistics though, the designers did not disappoint. Thirteen designers took part in the marathon fashion show, and the talent on display was undeniable.
Towa Mungandi’s Social Butterfly brand was a definite crowd favourite, with dramatic hems and sleeves in African print. The West African influenced collection is one that can be worn by people of all sizes.
Melisa Poulton’s collection was sleek, soft and very feminine while Taimi Sakeus made clothes for the woman on the go. I felt that she could have pushed the boundaries even further though, instead of playing by the rules with the now world celebrated African tribal print. The judges begged to differ though as Sakeus walked away N$5000 richer, beating the other designers by one point. Jeremy Duffield-Harding, Swakara’s marketing manager and also one of the judges at the event said Sakeus had an overall solid collection. “It was a very close competition between the first four designers [who showcased] but Taimi stood out as her collection had a good sense of colour, pattern and shape. The single point that made her win came from the collection’s wearability.”
An equally disappointed organiser of the show, Eva Miarka, blamed the venue management for the poor logistics.
Since the first edition of the event was a success, Miarka and her partners will hopefully redeem themselves with the next one.
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