Onwaba Mvele, Zazi Clothing Factory founder.
Photo: Supplied
From humble factory headquarters in East London, Eastern Cape, to making her way to New York Fashion Week, Onwaba Mvele’s Zazi Clothing Factory is heading to the global stage.
Only two years into her journey bringing her Xhosa and African-print-inspired designs to high profile figures like members of Parliament and actress Lusanda Mbane, Onwaba is preparing to showcase the part of an upcoming collection at the autumn/winter New York Fashion Week show on 10 February 2024.
When that direct message (DM) from the organisers came in, she couldn’t believe it. In fact, Onwaba thought it was a scam.
She tells TRUELOVE exactly how she felt when she got the news.
“It felt unreal. When I got the invite ku-DM, I thought it was just a scammer who’s trying to take chances. I ignored it maybe for a week or so. Then they sent another message and I didn’t say much, I just gave them my email address. Then I said, ‘can I please get a formal invite with all the details’ because it was still unreal. As much as going to the New York Fashion Week was one of my biggest dreams, I didn’t think it would happen so soon.
“So, it felt unreal until I got the email, then, ja. Actually, it still feels unreal. I think when I’m on the plane, jetting off, only then it will feel [real]. Like even now, I’m busy with the collection but still, I’m still numb.”
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Still in shock at the personal request she got from New York Fashion Week’s organisers to be a part of the prestigious event after seeing her work worn in the U.S. on social media, Onwaba takes flight on 3 February 2024 ahead of her show.
While Zazi Clothing Factory started as a uniform factory producing items like hospital linen in 2018, it was through divine intervention as she Onwaba sees it that opened her up to creating traditional garments for the masses.
“I was only doing clothing for myself. I wasn’t doing clothing for anyone else. Then I decided when everything was coming into my dreams, seeing a shop full of traditional clothes and all that. Some designs – I would see a design in my dream. I’m like, okay, I’m sure it’s saying something, and I was pregnant at that time. Our main factory was in Butterworth … It was like an hour and a half drive from East London,” she explains.
“I talked to my husband, ‘you know what, I think let’s open something little here in East London. Then you’ll go to Butterworth, I’ll handle this one because I cannot be driving up and down now in this condition that I’m in. That’s how we started the East London one and I told him here we’re not going to do the uniforms we’re going to do clothes and we’re going to specialise the traditional way.”
Zazi Clothing Factory has grown to even dressing ministers and deputy ministers alike, Onwaba reveals how she took the leap of faith and reached out to 1802: Love Defies Time actress Zenande Mfenyana for the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever premiere.
“I reached out to uZenande. She is the person I reached out [to] and I said … [I would like] for you, when you’re going to an event, to be dressed by us. Like I was taking a chance and she responded, and she said, ‘I have an event, a Wakanda something something, that’s coming up. Can you please do something for me’.
“And I said please don’t give me any design. For your events, just tell me what’s the event about and the theme and let me do the rest. That’s where Lusanda Mbane saw us, at that Wakanda. Then Lusanda reached out and said, ‘I saw a beautiful dress on Zenande. Please, I think you are one brand that will get me. Can I wear your brand every day?’”
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While Onwaba’s current collections are almost purely based on traditional Xhosa print, she hopes to expand her designs to reflect all cultures across South Africa and the continent.
When it comes to her upcoming showcase at New York Fashion Week, Onwaba is excited to show off a collection that will feature all the prominent colours associated with local traditional wear and build onto that for future collections that represent more cultures.
“Since we haven’t tapped in all other cultures, this is what we decided to do with the range. We have a little bit of each and every colour. It’s a colourful, traditional range. You know, your Sotho colours, your Venda colours, your Xhosa colours. So, we did a collection that will touch in each and every colour of the African way. So that when we introduce the range of all other Africans – actually we’re using it as a base.”
As much as Zazi Clothing Factory was invited to showcase in New York, it comes at a cost. Organisations like Absa Bank and the Small Enterprise Development Agency (SEDA) assisted Onwaba with funding to attend the show.
With big plans to expand her offerings to be inclusive of all cultures, Onwaba adds that, “We were approached by ECPACC (Eastern Cape Provincial Arts and Culture Council) for a documentary coming up that will also cover the New York trip.”