Khosi Nkosi, one of the largest luxury clothing brand in South Africa, stands on pushing the needs of black people who are into fashion.
The two brains behind the remarkable brand are Nobukhosi Nkosi and her spouse Thabo. The couple said they tried working with a well established retail YDE. However, the collaboration could not attend to the needs of black people.
While Nobukhosi focused on the designs, her partner worked on their marketing strategy. This was during their time as freshmen in varsity and began developing the brand.
Fashion needs of black people
“All we had was a dream that one day we would own a brand that was going to speak to the fashion needs of black people. This is because traditional wear is mostly worn by us,” Khosi explained.
The team has dressed the majority of South African celebrities and Miss SA finalists over the years. They said that they deliberately chose to stay out of the spotlight and let the brand develop naturally.
“When we went our separate ways with YDE, we had to redefine our existence and ask ourselves difficult questions. Questions like what is it that black people like to wear when they are attending ceremonies? The answer was seshweshwe, and we ran with it,” she said.
According to the couple, there is enough space for everyone in the fashion space.
Not competing with anyone
“We love seeing South African brands grow, there is enough space for all of us. No one is stealing anyone’s shine. If our brand thrived without us being at the forefront, then it means every brand has a potential to grow.
“Allowing the brand to grow on its own was intentional from the beginning, because we are not the brand. We have never been to any fashion show because of that reason. Our plan was for it to grow its legs in its own pace and time.”
The brand has recently designed and launched staff uniform for African Bank. They felt it was time to open themselves up to a new and different space that resonated with their beliefs.
“The bank was established in the 60s, we know the kind of clothes that were worn around that time. And to top it off, this is a bank that also represented people who looked like us when it was not fashionable for black people to use banks.”
Working on expanding through collaborations
The duo said they are working on collaborations that aligned with them and are daring enough to make change.
Sharing a secret on how they manage to be a married couple while running a business together, the couple said their friendship is what ties them together.
“We were friends before the brand. So it is easy for us to separate work and business. Another important thing is we knock off from work,” said Thabo.
