View full report - Fibre2fashion

Peter Bosman (Interview: 3/7/06)
Bosman and his partner (Edward), are both white males and, have been designers for the
past 20 years. Their designs are based on African ethnic tradition and their clientele are all
African women. Many of their garments are worn at traditional events and a number of
their clients are in government positions. Neither Bosman nor his partner have any formal
training in the clothing industry. They began their business by selling their own range of
clothes at informal markets and from street-corners before they had saved enough money
to open their own boutique and purchase better equipment. They also sell their ranges
through mail-order and export to Botswana, America and Namibia, to about 250 foreign
customers. They source their fabric locally and produce all the work in-house at their own
factory where they employ two assistants. They outsource requirements for beadwork to
women in the informal sector. Bosman took part in the 2006 Durban MTN Fashion Week.
Sifiso Mthethwa (Interview: 4/7/06.a)
Mthethwa is a young African male designer in his twenties who started his own range three
years ago while studying for his Fashion Diploma. He took part in the 2005 Durban Designer
Collection, the 2006 Durban Designer Collection and the Sanlam SA 2006 Fashion Week.
His range of men’s wear is targeted to urban youth, produced from home and using his
own savings to buy equipment. He currently employs one person to help him manufacture
the garments, outsourcing only when he is pressed to meet delivery deadlines or when he
is doing a range for a fashion event, but has to monitor the production process closely as
the quality from CMTs does not always meet his standards. He currently supplies a number
of private boutiques in Durban and Johannesburg and hopes that the exposure from the
two fashion events will help to increase his business. He is currently looking for
manufacturing and retail space in which to operate.
Karen Monk (Interview: 6/7/06)
Monk is a white designer in her thirties who launched her own label in 2001. She has a
Diploma from the Durban Institute of Technology in clothing design. She worked in the
corporate banking sector, but having always dreamed of designing and selling her own
label, worked on her range during weekends and lunch-breaks. She gained experience in
the clothing sector by working in the men’s, ladies and children’s department of a large
retail outlet. She used her own savings to launch her range of clothing for males and
females, with distinctive features of colour and design-intensity. She has designed for Lee
Jeans and for an Italian sportswear company. She currently works from home and
employs one person to assist her. For beadwork embellishments, she outsources to a local
NGO supporting women affected by HIV/AIDS. Monk says it is extremely difficult to find
good CMTs, as their quality and service tends to be sub-standard. She took part in the
78