Industrie Africa Is the New Platform To Discover Top African Designers
The digital showroom launched June 1 and goes beyond highlighting trends.
Named the "Wikipedia of African Fashion" by Vogue, Industrie Africa is a new digital showroom featuring African designers.
The website was launched on June 1 by Nisha Kanabar and Georgia Bobley who wanted to create an online platform that reflected the growing diversity of designers across the continent. The platform currently has over 80 designers from 24 different countries. Speaking about her motivations for creating the site, Kanabar said to Vogue's Chioma Nnadi, "People often view African fashion as a trend that comes in waves and it's so much more than that." The site goes beyond highlighting trends to creating an online archive for brands across the continent.
While African designers have been making global headlines for years, it is often difficult to know the most efficient way of searching and browsing through new brands. Every archive needs a method, and the site allows users to search for designers by country, by product (ready to wear, shoes, accessories), or by clothing category (menswear, women's wear, unisex). The site also shows the production location of the brands and whether a brand is sustainable.
Some of the brands featured include Elia, Kidd Hunta, Orange Culture, Thebe Magugu, Rich Mnisi, Taibo Bacar and Haute Baso.
Check out their site here, and follow them on their Instagram here.
