African Designers Want Chinese Market, and Investment, to Grow Local Fashion Industry
LONDON — Would the Chinese buy African fashion? Hannah Wanjie Ryder, chief executive officer of Development Reimagined, a Beijing-based consultancy that promotes Sino-Africa trade and development, certainly hopes so.
With funding from the African Export — Import Bank, some 22 designer brands from 12 African countries came to China last week and took over a sizable area within Shanghai Fashion Week's official trade show Mode under the name Africa Reimagined to show their latest work to local press and buyers.
More from WWD
Designers Stick to What They Know Best in Shanghai Amid Tough Trading Environment
Meet Oude Waag, Where Avant-garde Meets Eastern Sensibility
Penhaligon's Debuts Exhibition Centering Britishness With Local Artisanal Touch in Shanghai
The brands later staged a runway show on March 29 with the hope of unlocking business and investment opportunities from China that can ultimately transform Africa's local fashion sector.
By shining a light on high-end, sustainable African brands in China, helping them reach new audiences and unlock long-term commercial opportunities, Ryder said Africa Reimagined offers a place to showcase the continent's diverse styles, rich culture, and rising talents to China.
'China's a diverse market. We want people to see that the African continent is like that, too. In terms of the different styles of fashion, you can get very heavy prints, you can get totally different fabrics. One of our designers here sources fabrics from 15 different African countries but then brings them together into her designs. There's some incredible talent on the continent, and we just thought that we should showcase them here,' Ryder said.
There is a broader vision behind it, too.
Ryder said Africa Reimagined also serves as an opportunity to attract Chinese investment in African manufacturing, drive industrial growth, job creation and deeper trade relations between Africa, Asia and the global fashion ecosystem.
'When you think about the future of the African continent, we want to be a manufacturing hub, just like China. But you don't get there by doing small things. You have to be very intentional. And we have a long way to go to become the kind of manufacturing hub that China is now,' she said.
'We have to use fashion as a gateway, especially the textiles and apparel sector. You help people see that you have the highest-quality, most beautiful products. It can help people think, OK, maybe some really great things can be produced on the continent. We will go and invest, moving our factories or opening new factories there for that market and also for China,' Ryder continued.
Designers traveling to China with Africa Reimagined included South Africa's David Tlale, Imprint Za by Mzukisi Mbane, Rich Mnisi, and Mantsho; Senegal's Adama Paris; Ghana's Studio 189; Nigeria's Ejiro Amos Tafiri and Bloke; and Egypt's Maison Farah Wali, and more.
Tlale, a seasoned designer who started 21 years ago and has shown in New York and Paris, said Africa Reimagined creates a gateway for African brands to expand across Asia and marks a historic development in China-Africa cultural relations.
'African craftsmanship is exceptional, and the world is finally recognizing its influence on luxury fashion. Shanghai Fashion Week provides the perfect stage for African designers to prove that African design is not just relevant, it is essential to the future of global luxury fashion,' said Tlale.
'Not everybody gets to travel to South Africa or anywhere else in the continent. Here, you get to see and feel what Africa has to offer. We are a beautiful cohort of designers who are creative and talented and have been in the industry for some time. We can say we are the voice of the current Africa, and we can represent our continent with pride,' he added.
The South African designer said that while his designs are all manufactured in Africa, he has been sourcing in China since 2014.
'South Africa is part of BRICS. It's very important that we cross-pollinate and grow together. I believe that between the two continents, there's a lot that we can share. The world is not ready of what's going to come out of China, and the world is not ready what's going to come out of Africa. And if we collaborate, I think we are able to change the game in every aspect,' said Tlale.
Best of WWD
The Definitive Timeline for Sean 'Diddy' Combs' Sean John Fashion Brand: Lawsuits, Runway Shows and Who Owns It Now
What the Highest-paid CEOs at U.S. Fashion and Retail Companies Make
Confidence Holds Up, But How Much Can Consumers Take?
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
UPI
2 hours ago
- UPI
China to fast-track applications for rare-earth minerals to US, EU
A rare earth mine is in Ganxian county in central China's Jiangxi province. Photo by EPA-ESE June 7 (UPI) -- China has agreed to fast-track approvals for the shipment of rare earth minerals to the United States and some European Union nations. U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping spoke Thursday about easing trade tensions. On Saturday, China's Minister Seceary Wang Wentao said his nation is "willing to establish a green channel for qualified applications to speed up approval." Details weren't given, including the speed of the process and which EU nations are included. China controls 90% of the global processing of rare earth minerals. Major deposits also are found in the United States, Australia and Russia. Smaller amounts are in Canada, India, South Africa and Southeast Asia. Rare earth minerals are in the Earth's crust, making them difficult to extract. They include lanthanide, scandium and yttrium, all on the Periodic Table of Elements. Some major minerals that contain rare earth elements are bastnasite, monazite, loparite and laterite clays. The first rare-earth mineral was discovered in 1787 -- gadolinite, a black mineral composed of cerium, yttrium, iron, silicon and other elements. U.S. needs rare earth minerals The minerals are critical to American industries and defense, including use in cars and fighter jets. Batteries contain the minerals Trump posted on Truth Social on Thursday "there should no longer be any questions respecting the complexity of rare Earth products." On April 29, the United States and Ukraine created a Reconstruction Investment Fund that includes rare earth mineral rights in the European nation. Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky were originally set to sign the minerals deal on Feb. 28, but the plan was scrapped after a tense exchange between them in the Oval Office in which Trump accused him of "gambling with World War III." The United States wants access to more than 20 raw materials in Ukraine, including some non-minerals, such as oil and natural gas, as well as titanium, lithium, graphite and manganese. The Chinese commerce ministry confirmed some applications have been approved without specifying industries covered. Some Chinese suppliers have recently received six-month export licenses, the American Chamber of Commerce in China said Friday, but it noted that there is a backlog of license applications. In a survey of member companies conducted by the American Chamber of Commerce in China late week, 75% say their stock would run out within three months, CNN reported. Jens Eskelund, the chamber president, said member companies were "still struggling" with the situation. "I hadn't realized just how important this rare earth card was before. Now the U.S. side is clearly anxious and eager to resolve this issue," he said a video on Thursday. "But of course, we'll link this issue to others -- the U.S. is restricting China on chips and jet engines, then China certainly has every reason to make use of this card. "As for whether China will change its rare earth export control policy, that probably still needs to be negotiated in more detail," Jin added. Trump said Xi and himself "straightened out" some points related to rare earth magnets, calling it "very complex stuff." The U.S. federal government said China had reneged on its promise made in Geneva on May 12. Delegations from Beijing and Washington plan to meet in Great Britain on Monday for trade negotiations. At the height of tariff war, China had imposed export restrictions on some minerals on April 4. Trump two days planned a 120% "reciprocal" tax on top of 25% levy on Chinese goods. But one week later it paused the bigger tariffs, including on other countries for 90 days. European nations' needs China's commerce ministry pledged to address the EU's concerns and establish a "green channel" for eligible applications to expedite approvals. He went to Brussels, Belgium, earlier this week and met with European Union's trade commissioner, Maros Sefcovic. It's a problem for China and the EU. Sefcovic said the pause was slowing deliveries for manufacturers of a wide range of items from cars to washing machines. Wang urged the EU to "take effective measures to facilitate, safeguard and promote compliant trade of high-tech products to China." On Friday, the European Chamber, a Beijing lobby group, warned progress had "not been sufficient" to prevent severe supply chain disruptions for many companies.
New York Post
2 hours ago
- New York Post
The ultimate loser of Trump and Musk's bloody battle royale could be the nation
Godzilla vs King Kong. Ali vs Frazier. Yankees vs. Red Sox. Trump vs. Musk is bigger than all of them because — unlike the first match — this one is real. And unlike the other two, it has real-world consequences. The future of the republic — not to mention the future of Tesla, SpaceX and Musk's other cutting-edge tech companies — could be at stake, depending on how bad it all gets. Of course, with this pair, they could make up while this column is at the printer. Musk is known to do 180s in business like most people breathe, and he seems open (at least for now) to rapprochement. That's why, after tanking during early rounds of the fight, Tesla shares spiked on Friday. Trump, meanwhile, can be forgiving when he sees an opportunity. Remember how he mocked 'Little Marco,' who after a MAGA-esque transformation is now Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Trump wanted to ban TikTok but as I was first to report, he's extending its life in the US. He came to believe that even if it is Chinese spyware, it helped him win a second term. But there's a better case that the Trump-Musk feud will linger. These men maintain some of the biggest egos on the planet; Musk actually thinks he's the reason Trump got elected since Elon owns X (formerly Twitter), which became a MAGA megaphone. If you know Trump like I do, someone taking credit for his success is a third rail. Plus, Musk isn't a natural convert to MAGA. These dudes bonded because Musk, a former Democrat, believed his party lost its mind on woke. His EV maker Tesla, a darling of the environmental movement, has a big operation in China, the main target of Trump's trade war. Musk called Peter Navarro, Trump's lead trade warrior, 'Peter Retarrdo' because Elon's no fan of tariffs. For his part, Trump is no budget hawk. It's telling that this fight started with Musk's critique that the president's 'big, beautiful bill' spends too much money. It quickly exposed other fissures lurking beneath the surface, according to my sources, and now it has gotten messy. No way to treat a pal Trump is teeing up killing all of Musk's lucrative government contracting after Musk outrageously — and foolishly — claimed the president is holding back the Jeffrey Epstein files because Trump's in the docs in some nefarious way. Not a way to treat a friend, particularly a powerful one. All of which gets me to laying odds on the winner if this feud keeps going. I say Trump is the heavy favorite. Musk has no political base, even if he splinters and begins spending his billions on Dems. Yes, some lefties are relishing the battle, but Musk will never be acceptable to most Democrats for the unforgivable sin of aiding Trump, then via DOGE cutting all that government lefty spending. Charlie Gasparino has his finger on the pulse of where business, politics and finance meet Sign up to receive On The Money by Charlie Gasparino in your inbox every Thursday. Thanks for signing up! Enter your email address Please provide a valid email address. By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Never miss a story. Check out more newsletters Meanwhile, Musk poses little threat to MAGA. He's not a natural politician — he's not even comfortable in his own skin. He controls X and has a huge following, but Trump has his own following and social media platform that attracts as much media attention. And Trump can hit him where it hurts — his pocketbook. Musk is the world's richest man, but mostly on paper. It could diminish fast given how much of it is built on government work. Recall Musk smoking a joint on Joe Rogan, which is a no-no when you do defense contracting as SpaceX does. I reported how it sparked scrutiny by the feds that went nowhere. Maybe now it goes somewhere. Musk's accounting at Tesla has drawn regulatory attention in the past; it now might get some more. The company just had a lousy quarter as its lefty EV-buying base went somewhere else. Shares have recovered somewhat but remain under pressure. They fell as much as 16% when the feud went defcon. Trump could go after other parts of the Musk empire. The president could throttle SpaceX's government contracts, using the weed issue as an excuse to re-examine the relationship. Maybe more of those go by the wayside along with all his other government contracts. Musk is obviously miffed that Trump's tax bill didn't cut enough fat, but what might have really stoked his anger is that it did take aim at various green-tax credits that Tesla has feasted upon. Musk's recklessness in his attacks underscores one of his weaknesses as a CEO; he once said he had a buyer to take it private at a premium but no one emerged. And you wonder why the Epstein barb shouldn't be taken seriously. The smarter move Yes, Trump has a lot of levers to pull to get at what makes Musk so powerful. But here's why he shouldn't: For all of Musk's flaws, he's smart and has his finger on the pulse of the emerging economy. Tesla's tech is first-rate. SpaceX is transformational, and serves a significant national security function. Musk is rich and can continue to elect Republicans to keep Trump from being impeached and derailing what is really working in his second term, such as his war on woke, closing the border and, when this tariff stuff subsidies, tax cuts to grow the economy. And they did make beautiful music together exposing stuff with DOGE. Someone please call a timeout.
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Why Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited (HMY) Crashed On Friday
We recently published a list of . In this article, we are going to take a look at where Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited (NYSE:HMY) stands against other Friday's worst-performing stocks. Harmony Gold saw its share prices decline by 5.27 percent on Friday to finish at $14.56 apiece as investor sentiment was dampened by the death of another mine worker—allegedly the 10th death case recorded this year alone. The news sparked investor concerns about the company's safety regulations and strategy, especially as it aims to achieve zero harm and foster a proactive safety culture. An open pit mine with heavy excavation machinery toiling away against the backdrop of a hidden valley. 'Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited regrets to announce a loss of life due to a fall of ground at its Joel mine in the Free State province. All relevant authorities, family members, and colleagues have been informed,' it said. 'We have been on a journey to achieve zero harm since 2016, and we continually assess the maturity of this journey to identify areas for improvement,' it added. Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited (NYSE:HMY) said that it achieved six months of death-free shifts, showing that its strategy was correct. 'We continue to believe that zero loss of life is possible,' it noted. Overall, HMY ranks 4th on our list of Friday's worst-performing stocks. While we acknowledge the potential of HMY as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an extremely cheap AI stock that is also a major beneficiary of Trump tariffs and onshoring, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
