Honestly speaking, the global fashion industry has been neglecting south Africa for way too long. 2026 marks the year where that ends – no more will fashion be kept out of the hands of those who deserve to be part of it. For years, Paris and New York have captured all of the attention of the fashion world, and this needs to change, a fresh wave of upcoming women fashion designers from South Africa has quietly been building something extraordinary , and now the world is finally paying attention. Instead of simply requesting a place at the table anymore, the ladies are now bringing their chairs and sitting down while redesigning the table as well.
The fashion industry in South Africa has evolved into a new chapter , bold, culturally grounded, international in scope and unapologetically feminine. If you’ve been watching anything within the industry, you will know that Thebe Magugu and Laduma Ngxokolo have had a tremendous impact on the international catwalks. However, what is taking place within those spaces, with the women that are breaking down these barriers, this is the real story. So, let’s take a look.
The Global Moment That Changed Everything
In September 2024, something happened at New York Fashion Week that South Africans won’t be forgetting for a long time. Five upcoming women fashion designers from South Africa , Gugu Peteni, Tsakane Mashaba, Manthe Ribane Liebmann, Thando Ntuli, and Keneilwe Mothoa , took the NYFW runway as part of Jaguar’s #GiveHerACrown campaign. The original charitable program, created as a way for female artists to get funds for educational purposes, has now expanded into an international platform. The five women mentioned in this context did a fantastic job of bringing life and creativity to their designs.
The importance of this time period wasn’t only the visibility; it was the way each designer created their line of clothing through inspiration from the life and experiences of women, taking from both African culture as well as the feelings that European fashion house put forth when they produced the styles they want us to wear. All five of these very talented women have endured various life experiences and continue to live those experiences through their clothing lines and eventually continue to inspire other women around the world.
Gugu Peteni and Gugubygugu
If street fashion and premium clothing had a child and were raised in Africa with an education in politics, it would probably look similar to Gugubygugu. Gugu Peteni’s collection shown during New York Fashion Week, entitled Do Not Tumble Dry AW25, was inspired by a poem about women taking back their hidden power — in this case, encouraging women to unshrink themselves and take up space. Her clothing is gender-neutral, boundary-pushing, and has gained recognition through both Design Indaba and Project Runway South Africa. You should keep your eye on Gugu as she continues to make noise with her business for the year 2026.
Tsakane Mashaba and HAMETHOP
HAMETHOP is Tsakane Mashaba’s label, which exemplifies the intersection of African art, textiles and architecture in a most aesthetically pleasing manner. In her New York Fashion Week Collection titled Resonance, Mashaba has interpreted the wisdom handed down through the generations of women – that is, the wisdom carried by your grandmother’s hands, combined with your mother’s silence. The pieces Tsakane has handcrafted represent the experience of her people and their culture, making them an example of how she has carved a niche within the indecorous realm of fast fashion.
Thando Ntuli and MUNKUS
Thando Ntuli grew up in Soweto, where the clothes of her mom and grandmother experienced as much of an education for her in terms of fashion as going to Primary School. Her MUNKUS label draws from the 1970s and 1980s for its inspiration. The bold colours, unique prints, and bold shapes used reflect this period but also have a modern-day quality to them. The collection “Iphupho” (meaning “dream”) that she presented at NYFW 2022 shows that the most influential design elements and sources often come from one’s own experiences. As a result, MUNKUS will enjoy tremendous growth in terms of its worldwide fan base over the next several years (i.e., until to 2026).
Manthe Ribane Liebmann
A musician, performer, and fashion designer are one and the same person in Manthe, who will not settle on any single path through her creative existence. She exhibited her M. Aura collection through NYFW with a fantastic vision for the future, featuring very abstract accessories, monochromatic clothing with an energy all of its own, which creates an incredible feeling of being an expression and not just an item of clothing, making this collection more like a manifesto.
Manthe has been very vocal about how the experience of participating in the #GiveHerACrown movement has helped connect her with a community of women working in the male-dominated fashion industry, as well as how powerful and often non-existent this support network can be, and how very important this was in her career development. Every piece created by Manthe provides a clear expression of her passion and her integrity.
Keneilwe Mothoa and Neimil
Fashion and interiors may seem like an odd combination until you see the work produced by Keneilwe Mothoa; once you do, you’ll think “why aren’t more people doing this?”
Her brand, Neimil, has both bold, rigidly patterned cuts and a very modern African feel. NYFW was her first runway show ever, and she stepped on stage and nailed it! Not confidence, but conviction.
The Women Dressing South Africa’s Biggest Moments
While those five were owning New York, back home another group of women designers was making its mark on one of South Africa’s most-watched stages.
Londeka Buthelezi-Ndaba and Malondie
There has been a lot of buzz surrounding Londeka Buthelezi-Ndaba lately, as she is the name taking over the media. She is a Pretoria-based designer for her own fashion line “Malondie”. Now 34 years old and with an LLB, an MBA from Unisa, and creating clothing that many people will “stop and stare” at (or at least look twice) is quite impressive on its own . But she was born in Ulundi and now lives in Durban; her use of “heritage” in her designs is what makes them unique. Londeka Buthelezi-Ndaba interprets her heritage into current, high-fashion-style pieces of clothing that do not feel like a costume and therefore seem very current.
During the Miss South Africa 2025 finale event (who knew that pageant would still exist!), she dressed all of the finalists under the common theme of “Heritage in Motion”, and since then she has created an exclusive collaboration this past March that included hats with wide brims, baskets as purses/totes, and scarves for fashion purposes really quickly. Ultimately, she is creating a strong brand and has built tremendous momentum for herself and her brand.
Sandi Mazibuko and Fabrosanz
Sandi Mazibuko, who was born in Durban, has been involved in the industry long enough to have built up a track record, yet her sense of energy gives the impression that she feels as if she is only at the beginning of her career. FabroSanz combines high fashion and street fashion in such a complimentary way that the finished pieces allow for all of the artistry, while at the same time being truly accessible to all consumers. In addition to her participation in the Miss SA 2025 finale, Sandi Mazibuko was once again part of that event this year and exhibited the same level of boldness that she has exhibited over the course of her career.
The Pioneer Who Paved the Way
Sindiso Khumalo
You cannot talk about upcoming women fashion designers from South Africa in It’s hard to imagine 2026 without also acknowledging the woman who has arguably given many of those participating today the opportunity to participate in the discussion at an international level. Sindiso Khumalo is a designer based in Cape Town who won the LVMH Prize in the joint award in 2020 (when virtually every other part of the planet was locked into a spiraling international pandemic) and used that moment to launch her brand into the awareness of a genuinely international audience.
She is known for her iconic recycled cotton smocks and play sets influenced by the female figures shown in vintage portraits of women from Africa and the African diaspora. She has partnered with weavers from Burkina Faso, through the UN’s Ethical Fashion Initiative and produced collections for many of the world’s leading brands, most notably & Other Stories. Her designs are unapologetically feminine, rigorously sustainable and politically conscious. She didn’t only create a brand, she created a prototype.
What’s Actually Happening in 2026
With an estimated value of $31 billion and rapid growth, the African fashion sector is one of the fastest-growing industries on the continent and internationally. The annual fashion export market for Africa is currently valued at $15.5 billion, as stated by UNESCO. The EU will implement its Circular Economy law in 2026, resulting in major changes to global fashion sustainability and fast-tracking South African designers who have worked with natural fibres and created their goods sustainably for years to be ahead of the game.
Another confirmation that the fashion industry in South Africa is moving forward with purpose and ambition was South African Fashion Week held in September 2025. Also in March 2026, the Forbes Woman Africa Leading Women Summit held in Johannesburg highlighted African Fashion as a cultural and economic force; in all honesty, many of these designers could have predicted this five years earlier.
The takeaway here is that while the rest of the world is now beginning to acknowledge and understand what already existed within the African fashion sector.
Why This Matters Beyond the Runway
In relation to fashion week, fashion campaigns and photo shoots, we predominantly see and hear about the journey of these inspiring women in all forms of media, both through traditional and social platforms. We sometimes overlook the fact that these incredible women are establishing each of their companies in a challenging business climate. The many challenges include limitations on funding from lack of access to capital and financing, lack of available infrastructure in their areas, an undervalued domestic market for African design products and an international market that continues to learn how to open itself to African designers and their products at the same level as non-African designers.
