Why Authentic African Fashion Matters and How It is Taking Its Rightful Place on the Global Stage

As the world continues to turn its aesthetic gaze to Africa, Africans are taking the opportunity to wrest control of their narrative. Collaborations between African designers and Western fashion stalwarts are providing a new authenticity to African-inspired collections, and they’re putting money back into the local pockets, which further sustains the development of the African fashion industry. With no fewer than 60% of retailers developing propositions to work with local communities, the knock-on effect of this on building communities and building economies is huge. But the potential lies even beyond that. It’s time we increased our focus on local manufacturing. Not only due to lessons learnt during the current COVID19 pandemic around minimising the risk of the majority of one’s manufacturing taking place in other countries, but as importantly the myriad of additional opportunities that would be created by other players in the supply chain, leveraging off local knowledge for supply to a global audience.      

SOURCE: AFRICA.COM