David Tlale

The famed South African designer on expensive indulgences and repositioning as a luxury and lifestyle brand.

- Melitta Ngalonkulu

1. How would you say the African fashion market is growing?

We are starting to understand the business of fashion; how to create brands that are custom-made in Africa, which is what we need to be doing and I think more than anything else, we need local customers supporting local designers. Another thing we need to start seeing is retailers supporting proudly ‘made in Africa’ or ‘made in South Africa’ products because that’s the only way for us to become game-changers in the fashion industry. When you look at big brands in the US, Europe or anywhere else in the world, they work very closely with their local designers.

2. Your most expensive indulgence, your most recent acquisition, and what do you mostly spend your money on?

My most expensive indulgence is fabric! When I go to a fabric store, locally and overseas, I am like a kid in a candy store. I would rather buy expensive fabric different to whatever is available locally [South Africa], to make sure I can still sell that to my clients. When it comes to fabric, I go all out.