South African designer Laduma Ngoxokolo of the Maxhosa Collections, a knitwear brand, is set to grace the second annual Collective RW fashion show.

It is scheduled for June 10 at Kigali Conference and Exhibition Village.

Collective RW also introduced new designers, Amizero, Moshions, and Uzi Collections to the organisation. They will showcase at the finale alongside founding members; Haute Baso, House of Tayo, Inzuki Designs, and Sonia Mugabo.

The second edition of the Collective RW show will also feature new local fashion houses Ikwiize and Afriek.

Comprising a diverse group of designers, the common thread that runs through Collective RW is an emphasis on quality workmanship and a commitment to promote clothing and accessories that are Made-in-Rwanda.

Teta Isibo, of Inzuki Designs, while addressing the media, said Collective RW looks forward to grow in number every year to support young talent, provide emerging Rwandan designers a platform to demonstrate their talents and show potential in fashion industry.

"We believe there’s strength in numbers; that is the philosophy behind collective RW. We are growing organically as a collective and hope to continue this growth to reach more fashion designers and promote Made-in-Rwanda,” she said.

Matthew Rugamba, of House of Tayo, said guests should expect a bigger event with new products and surprise collections from the designers, and a great view for everybody.

"For our fashion to succeed, we need to grow our profile which is why we want to improve every year, not just in number but also in terms of creativity. This we will do by giving our guests an experience of an exciting fashion show,” he said.

The weeklong event is expected to feature live art demonstrations, a panel discussion, a master class to promote skills transfer, and a grand finale on June 10 showcasing 10 designers.

The finale will be produced alongside LDJ Productions, a New York-based production company responsible for New York and Miami fashion ‘weeks.’

The fashion show is expected to attract guests from across the East African region, as well as retailers of Made-in-Rwanda products.

Promoting creative sector

The Collective RW organisation was founded in 2015 and works in collaboration with industry experts to support and promote a dynamic creative sector, with the goal of generating new jobs and empowering opportunity-driven youth and underserved communities.

Moise Turahirwa, the founder of Moshions Designs, said his brand has been working tirelessly to showcase the creativity and originality of the brand, adding that Collective RW will serve as a platform to showcase their creations to a bigger audience.

The Collective RW Fashion Week is an annual event whose concept is to strengthen, promote, and develop the fashion industry in Rwanda by fostering talent, originality, and representation local, regionally, and internationally. It is aimed at offering support to young talent.

The main sponsors of the Collective RW Week of Fashion include RwandAir, SN Brussels, Park Inn by Raddison and Mutzig, while Illume Creative Studio are content partners.

RwandAir’s senior manager in charge of promotions and market development, Patrick Manzi, said it is the airline’s vision to support Made-in-Rwanda initiative as well as Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Events (MICE) destinations.

"RwandAir will be flying one of the top fashionistas in the world, Laduma, who is in UK, to one of our opened destinations and also we want to work with key players in the fashion industry that promote Made-in-Rwanda products and Collective RW has the top fashion designers in the country,” he said.

editorial@newtimes.co.rw