Lesego Malatsi, on the left

Lesego Malatsi is a young fashion designer from Soweto who has just made his debut at London Fashion Week. And by all accounts it looks like he owned the show! His clothing range was very popular on the ramp and he received high praise for his work.

After the show, one of the organisers, Fashions Finest, said the collection had set the catwalk alight, tweeting the clothes were “hotter than hot”. Make it work!

Malatsi manages his own business, Mzansi Designers Emporium, that currently provides 17 people with jobs. Here’s what he had to say after his debut:

“I never dreamed I would be showing my clothes on the international stage. I never realised it could happen and it is very exciting. I grew up under a corrugated-metal roof in Soweto.

There is a lot of talent in Africa. It made me realise how important my success was to not just me and my family [but] for empowering other people. I didn’t set out to be an entrepreneur, I wanted to work, but now I find I have a business and a vision. I have a five-year plan to create 850 jobs in South Africa and to take African fashion global.”

[Source: Channel24]