I am the perennial and unashamed fangirl of Thebe Magugu. I have been ever since he sent me his zine, conceived and created in the time-honoured tradition of creative high school self-publishing, back in the day when he was just a kid in Kimberley and his mother assisted with the printing operation at her office.
Such is Thebe’s vision and energy that all who encounter him want to gain participation certificates in the Magugu enterprise.
He has a long line of enthusiasts, from LVMH, which bestowed on him the first prize awarded to an African designer in its prestigious competition, to multiple global brands, from Dior to adidas, that have rushed to collaborate with him.
The Mount Nelson in Cape Town has invited him to create a glorious suite inspired by his brand codes — or, as the Nellie has called it, “a true Afro-Modernist sanctuary” — as well as to install a Cape Town rendition of Magugu House, his curated space in Joburg.
I am talking about all these delightful developments with Thebe at the second Executive Wine and Executive Club dinner at Fairlawns in my capacity as the editor of our sister paper Business Day’s Wanted magazine. We are being talked through the delicious wine pairings from Terre Paisable in Stellenbosch and giving the club members an intimate peek into Thebe’s world.
He says I have unlocked the zine memory for him.
“That publication was called Little Black Book, and I remember I used to write all the articles — fashion and philosophy. I used to publish maybe every six months. My mother and I would sneak into her office at night, and she’d print 100 copies, and then we’d bind them, and I’d sell them at school the next day. It was really special. It was incredible to have a supportive mother who, from the minute I said, ‘I’m really interested in this,’ supported me unstintingly.”
I became completely obsessed, to the point where my grandmother sometimes would give up watching Generations, which was unheard of, to watch the collections with me.
He believes that “sleepy towns create dreamers”. He’s also had his cohort of lifelong collaborators. “I’ve known photographer Trevor Stuurman since crèche; we grew up together. We both loved fashion and art and photography so much that during break times I would style some of the students, and he would shoot it on his flip phone. The quality was terrible. But I believe that because we didn’t have a lot of resources around us, that almost makes you retreat into your mind and become quite imaginative.
“I always say it’s two things that led me to fashion. One was certainly my mother. She loved fashion so much that she was almost a victim of it in a lot of ways, to the point where her feet get sore if she’s not in heels.
“I’m from Galeshewe, a township in Kimberley, and when I mentioned to my mother that I wanted to become a fashion designer, one of her earliest gifts to me was a big black sketchbook.
“She said, ‘If you want to be a fashion designer, you need to sketch and practise every day.’ I find that’s so rare, to have that unwavering support. The second gift was that she saved up enough to have us subscribe to DStv, and one of the first channels that came on when we switched it on for the first time was FTV.
“I became completely obsessed, to the point where my grandmother sometimes would give up watching Generations, which was unheard of, to watch the collections with me."
He is still producing a zine, under the auspices of his brand Faculty Press, as an annual that captures the essence of his work and the themes that have shaped his ideas.
“I moved to Joburg and studied at LISOF. Fashion design, technical photography and media because I realised that it’s not enough to just have a garment on a rail; you have to be able to put that into a story.
“We started talking about decolonising fashion, right? Because we’ve always thought of fashion as a very European and American thing. In a lot of ways it’s such a dramatic term, but I was radicalised in my fashion studies, and I really started thinking like, who’s documenting our culture? Who’s documenting our stories and showcasing the nuance and sophistication of South African fashion and African fashion?”
Winning the LVMH prize after leaving his first corporate job at Woolworths and then really struggling to catch a break was a vindication of the great leap of faith he took.
He was discovered by Vogue Italia on Instagram, followed by Vogue UK, and then suddenly presented to Anna Wintour and the rest of the intimidating panel.
He has managed to build and sustain an internationally successful brand but, most importantly, brought it back home to his roots.
“I’m really proud to have opened up Magugu House. We opened it on May 11 last year. Up until that point, the brand had almost become international before it became local.
“And I think the past few years I have been focused on trying to circle back in a lot of ways. Because, you know, when I won that prize, the retailers selling the brand, Bergdorf and Dover Street Market, meant that people could access my clothes internationally, but not here.
“It’s a really incredible space. Time magazine just named it one of the greatest places as well. It’s a really special space. On one side it’s my showroom with my collections, but then there are two small art galleries on the property.
“And we’re opening Magugu House in Cape Town in the new year — just going back to this idea of showcasing the nuance and the sophistication of South African design and for people to be able to experience the brand in a very physical way.”
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