Creativity, variety of fashions and well trained models are what marked the Kigali Fashion Week 2018 held on Friday at Kigali Serena Hotel. Hosted by TV personality Friday James, the annual fashion event attracted 16 fashion designers from different countries like Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi, Uganda, Nigeria and Rwandan local designers, both locals and from the diaspora. Arguably the biggest fashion event in Rwanda, the annual fashion gala has seen an incredible rise and is, as a result, regarded as a great platform for local fashion designers and models to showcase their creativity and talents in the industry. Using well trained and talented models, each of the designers got a chance to showcase their finest designs. From local collections like like Rupari Designs, Inkanda, Amami Collections and Ferooz to foreign-based fashion houses like Sol& Wax from Switzerland and Sahorn from Germany as well as finest fashion collections from African designers like Turuso (Nigeria), Ritha Collections (Burundi) and Real Manembe (Congo) among others, designers had a lot to showcase through impressive cut walks from models. What made the event more entertaining was the inclusiveness of young models from Mahama Refugee Camp who were also among the most talented models to hit the runway. Sandrine Murorunkwere, a Rwandan designer based in Munich, Germany, hailed the country’s progress in fashion industry, especially Kigali Fashion Week’s contribution towards promoting locally made fabrics as a way to expose local designers’ creative collections on the international market. She said, “I attended this year’s fashion event having found Rwanda’s incredible journey in promoting locally made products, especially in textile. Together we can achieve more,” Murorunkwere said. According to John Bunyeshuri, the brain behind Kigali Fashion Week, there is a plan for Rwanda to set up a school of fashion to train and produce well trained fashion designers who can push the fashion industry further. editorial@newtimes.co.rw
