OPINION | Let Rich Mnisi do his thing, the rest of us will head to Giyani for xibelani

I think I figured out why the price of Rich Mnisi's luxury garments gets most of us in our feels ... and while the reasons are sound, I'm also here to tell you that being broke is a “you” problem and definitely not something Rich Mnisi should dim his light for.

Never one to shy away from trailblazing, locally-born fashion designer Rich left Mzansi shook on Monday after he released his latest range, Hiya Kaya, with pieces worth up to a whopping R60k!

The new range features clothing in his signature “Rich Mnisi” style but the item that got tongues wagging the most was a traditional Tsonga xibelani skirt, which will cause worth of R59,999 worth of damage to your bank account.

While the whole net was up in arms and Rich's army was neck-deep in defence mode, the internationally-acclaimed fashion designer and his unapologetic self blue-ticked the commotion.

Here's the thing, this isn't the first time Rich's prices set the TL alight. His range of masks cost R2k and he has a R32k bag, so this is obviously his MO. While he hasn't explicitly said so, the designer's motto seems to be “if you aren't the target market, keep it moving”.

Rich decided to adopt the line “know your worth and then add tax” and never looked back.

If his designs are anything to go by — as an artist and a businessman — Rich is certainly arrogant. However, he has the talent, confidence and money to back his cockiness up so there's that too!

So, for everything that Rich has built his brand to be, I figure he deserves to push the envelope as far as he can take it, be it in art or price. The guy didn't just wake up and start putting “crazy” prices on his garments for fun, he's been building his brand for years.

From what I hear ... (yes, what I hear because I am not Rich Minisi's target market either and therefore don't own a single item of his past or present collections) Rich has paid his dues. In the words of DJ Black Coffee his items are “worth every cent”.

The Instagram page of “Sandton Diamond Walk” also says his clothes are great quality and that he pays attention to each detail of his glorious luxury clothes. Rich's target market sings his praises and wears his items with loud pride. That, speaks to the kind of brand he's built and I agree that if you can afford it, you should buy it and rock it!

Now for the rest of us ... R60k is absolutely ridiculous for a xibelani.

For most people — bar Sho Madjozi — we only wear the garment for special occasions or for Heritage Day on September 24 anyway.

No matter how “broke me” looks at it, there's no way I would ever be able to justify buying a xibelani for the amount of money that buys a second-hand Toyota Tazz with at least dignified car seat covers.

Right now with the addition of the Covid-19 global pandemic to our already long list of financial woes — such as black tax, unbelievably high cost of living prices, ridiculously low salaries and so on  — all most of us can do is put virtual candles on the TL and manifest the day we can actually buy a Rich Mnisi item without guilt.

Until we belong in the tax brackets of people that buy Rich Mnisi's garments, we have to just opt for alternatives. Let me plug you and say you can get a high quality, good looking and functional xibelani in Giyani for a cool R5k, even less if you are respectful and a great negotiator.

It won't be RICH MNISI but it will do the job.