As we approach the final stretch of 2025, I am encouraged by the progress we continue to make in advancing our localisation agenda and strengthening our call to action - Buy Local to Create Jobs. The month of October was characterised by meaningful engagements, collaborative partnerships, and on-the-ground activities that reinforced our commitment to building a stronger and more self-sustaining South African economy.
I had the privilege of participating in several high-level engagements that brought together key stakeholders from business, government, and civil society. At the Sanlam SMME Collective, I joined a panel discussion under the theme “Market Access: Breaking Barriers - Pathways to Markets and Beyond.” The conversation focused on how we can create sustainable access to markets for South African small businesses, which remain at the heart of job creation and inclusive growth.
I also attended the Export Symposium, which provided valuable insights into how we can enhance South Africa’s global competitiveness while empowering local exporters to thrive beyond our borders. Further to this, I participated in the Haleon Policy Roundtable, which explored the role of partnerships between the public and private sectors in strengthening local manufacturing and building long-term economic resilience.
The promotion of the local fashion industry continued to be the main theme in the month of October as we barrelled towards the twilight of an action-packed year. During this month, the team traversed the length and breadth of the country, undertaking supplementary activities that champion the Local Fashion Police, a nationwide initiative that promotes the local fashion industry and shores up the retail, textile, clothing, footwear, and leather industries.
Taking the localisation agenda forward, our Chief Marketing Officer, Happy MaKhumalo Ngidi, took to the North West, where she featured on a panel discussion at the T20 Summit. She highlighted the role of entrepreneurship and the importance of supporting local, reinforcing the impact of small businesses on job creation and inclusive growth.
Proudly South African remained active in industry development efforts. We took part in the University of Johannesburg R-CTFL Workshop, where industry experts gathered to exchange ideas on strengthening the retail, clothing, textile, footwear, and leather value chain, one of the most labour-intensive sectors in our economy.
Earlier in the month, we also had the opportunity to showcase local innovation on the international stage. In Paris, SAB’s Brutal Fruit Spritzers, one of South Africa’s finest homegrown products, invited Proudly South African to take part in Paris Fashion Week. The activation highlighted the collaboration with local knitwear couture brand, MAXHOSA AFRICA, as it made its highly anticipated debut at the global event.
As a custodian of the local fashion industry in South Africa, Proudly South African used the opportunity of Paris Fashion Week to profile four of its members, creatives and fashion designers who dressed its Chief Marketing Officer, Happy MaKhumalo Ngidi, at the event. These local fashion designers are SCALO by Sello Medupe, Otsile Sefolo, the founder of Otiz Seflo, Imprint ZA, founded by Mzukisi Mbane and Township Luxury by Lebogang Khumalo.
In pursuance of its mandate to promote the local fashion industry and encourage South Africans to wear locally and support home-grown designers, the Local Fashion Police is complemented by ancillary activations that comprise a series of empowering masterclasses where industry experts share valuable practical insights with emerging fashion designers.
We partnered with Stadio to host the Pretoria leg of the workshop. Zizipho Mqwala, Head of Strategic Partnership Management at African Bank, gave banking tips to emerging fashion designers; Lesedi Leketi, Head Facilitator for Skills and Leadership Programmes for Clothing and Textiles Manufacturing (FP&M SETA), shared insights about South Africa’s textile industry,
while Happy MaKhumalo Ngidi, Chief Marketing Officer at Proudly South African, spoke about the impact of online, e-commerce retailers on South African retailers and the local textile industry.
Greg Wallis addressed a more grounded topic by sharing advice on how to navigate industry challenges, red tape, and consumer psychology, while fashion designers Madonsela and Khosi Nkosi recounted their business journey with the audience.
Still on the theme of Local Fashion Police, Proudly South African unveiled the names of the winners who were handpicked by a panel of nine judges who are leading fashion designers and household names on the local fashion scene. Each of the judges selected their favourite finalist who will walk away with R50 000 worth of fashion from the designers’ line and get an opportunity to strut their stuff on the runway at the star-studded grand finale, which takes place on the 27th of November. Since its launch, the Local Fashion Police has grown from strength to strength and has become one of the signature events in the local fashion scene.
We wrapped the month of October with an education and youth engagement drive by teaming up with Freedom Stationery on a school visitation to Thusanang Primary School in Soweto. This activation sought to inspire learners to take pride in being South African, celebrate local creativity and innovation, and encourage a culture of buying local to build a stronger, more self-sustaining economy.
The event was filled with energy, laughter, and learning, featuring interactive games, motivational talks, and a special appearance by our beloved mascot, Lolo Warona, who brought the Proudly South African message to life in a fun and memorable way.
2025 has been an eventful year occasioned by increasingly uncertain global geopolitical developments. These unprecedented events in the international trade arena have reaffirmed the importance of supporting local industries and demonstrated that support for local companies, products and services is not only a patriotic act, but an existential one.
As the ripple effects of increased trade tariffs start to seep into the economy, we need to step harder on the pedal and make the buy local message louder and more emphatic. Though the year is winding down to a close, our eyes are looking towards the horizon to the historic 14th edition of the Buy Local Summit & Expo in 2026. We have disseminated an expression of interest to all our active members to participate in our flagship event, and we encourage those who have yet to respond to reach out to us as soon as they can.
As we prepare to retire our tools of trade, go on a shopping spree and get into the festive mood, let us not forget to spend conscientiously by supporting local industries, companies and services whenever and wherever possible.
Join the conversation and show your support for local fashion! Follow Proudly South African on X, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Tik Tok and YouTube using the hashtags #LocalFashionPolice2025 #fashionablebanking and #LovedHereMadeHere.
For information on South African products to look forward to, please contact our team at [email protected]. We will gladly share insights from our trusted member stakeholders.
Remember to check out Proudly SA’s latest CI document to see the various ways in which you as a member of Proudly SA can use our logo on all your qualifying products, websites, and other marketing material.
Should you have any questions or suggestions, or would like to collaborate on future initiatives, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. Should you wish to share with the newsletter team any milestones, events, awards, or sales, please send your email to [email protected]. We value your feedback and involvement in shaping the course of our movement.
We are also pleased to share with you our CODE OF CONDUCT for your kind perusal and understanding.
Sincerely,
Chief Executive Officer
