Last Month, Proudly South African joined millions of South Africans to commemorate Heritage Month. Heritage Month allowed us to reflect on and celebrate the lives of the heroes and heroines who have shaped our nation.

It also allowed us to honour the rich tapestry of cultures, languages, and histories that define South Africa. As part of the celebrations of Heritage Month, we took time to participate in the annual DStv Delicious International Food & Music Festival Powered by LottoStar in Johannesburg.

For this music and lifestyle extravaganza, we invited eight lifestyle member companies to leverage the popularity of the event. This invaluable market access opportunity allowed our members to capitalise on the popularity of the two-day event to raise their brand profile, generate sales, and interact with existing and potential customers beyond their geographical confines.

The opportunity to exhibit at this musical extravaganza is part of the value proposition of being a member of Proudly South African, and it aligns with market access opportunities the organisation provides to its members.

The member companies that took part in the exhibitions were: Ethereal Candles, Tjiane Creations, RE-L8, Nomakade, Modern Mbadada, Imprint ZA, Shesha 3.2.1 and Ditsala.

In the same month, we also hosted the Young Designer Masterclass in the Mother City, which is part of one of our flagship programme, the Local Fashion Police. We partnered with Fedisa school of fashion to provide their students with tools and insights they need to thrive in the fashion industry outside of the classroom. This session further gave the students the opportunity to learn the tools of the trade from the doyens of the local fashion industry and enhanced their problem-solving skills by addressing practical, everyday challenges that they may encounter on a day-to-day basis.

As the entries for the Local Fashion Police drew to a close, we gave the competition one final push by activating the campaign at the Cradlestone Mall in Johannesburg. The sprawling shopping facility became a beehive of activity with member companies like Thesis on showcase, encouraging mall goers to enter the competition and driving the message of the importance of supporting the local fashion industry.

Looking ahead in October, we will be bringing down the curtain to an exhilarating chapter of the 2025 edition of the Local Fashion Police on Sunday, 5 October. 

After that, a painstaking adjudication process will commence on 10 October, and the top 40 entries will be announced towards the end of October.

In line with its mandate of drumming up support for the local fashion industry, Proudly South African has partnered with SAB’s brand, Brutal Fruit Spritzer, to showcase local innovation and profile local talent at the Paris Fashion Week. This is in line with the shared values both organisations espouse of leveraging their brand equity to support local brands and industries.

Our participation at the Paris Fashion Show is an extension of our localisation efforts and the Local Fashion Police, where we will unashamedly be showcasing exciting creations of four of our local brands to the world, namely SCALO by Sello Medupe, Otsile Sefolo, the founder of Otiz Seflo, Imprint ZA, founded by Mzukisi Mbane and Township Luxury by Lebogang Khumalo. This is in addition to the debut exhibition at the Paris Fashion Week by the renowned knitwear couture house, Maxhosa Africa.

Our activities for Heritage Month were undoubtedly about celebrating local fashion and sartorial excellence. In line with this theme, we will be hosting the final leg of the Local Fashion Police masterclass in Pretoria, where industry veterans will impart technical skills to aspirant and emerging designers and share industry insights with them.

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.