Fashion designer ‘sews’ empowerment through garment creations
Having recently launched his brand, Tatenda Kubonera hopes to impart his knowledge to young emerging creatives.
NOT all fashion designers are cut from the same cloth, some use their material to enhance the skills of others.
In doing so, the fabric is weaved into an extraordinary garment that is something to behold. Fashion designer and creative director, Tatenda Kubonera is made from this philosophical thread.
Having recently launched his brand, the Bluff resident hopes to impart his knowledge with young emerging creatives.
“I work with and create opportunities to tailor upcoming designers who I distribute work to if I am doing a mass production. This gives them experience and exposure. Also from time to time, I give upcoming models a chance to learn and establish themselves with our brand,” said Tatenda.
“We do this by providing unique designs made by our in-house designers. Through this, our make-up artist and photographer also shine as they get to showcase their skills. We do this to help them establish the right way without being taken advantage of. This is how employment is created,” said the 29-year-old.
The Treasure Beach launch on Saturday, 10 April was a platform to provide an opportunity for creativity through Tatenda’s designer wear.
He described the event as an evening full of life and an outstanding experience for those who attended.
“We create clothing for all kinds of people from different walks of life. We decided on The Walk In Wardrobe theme so that everybody got a different feel of an artistic experience of what we do on a daily basis.”
“We had a pop-up shop in one section of the wardrobe to display our clothing and clients were then able to make direct orders. In another section, we had a studio feel, where models and clients could take pictures with the clothing on to explore the different kinds of textures of materials used.”
“We ended off with a toast to new beginnings and an adventurous insight to what the brand has in store for the world yet to see,” he said.
Besides designing and making clothing, Tatenda enjoys reading books, playing the guitar and researching an array of topics. He said his affair with stitching material started when he finished college.
“I enjoyed putting pieces together to create clothing. I ended up applying for studies in fashion institutions and managed to study in Zimbabwe at Demoyo School of Designing.”
“From there I started pursuing my personal life dream and would travel to different countries to attend fashion events and learn of other fashion cultures,” said the fashion enthusiast.
The likes of fashion designers Virgil Abloh and Kanye West pique his interests and often refers to their journeys as inspiring.
“I enjoy the process of creating, designing and clothing others. I prefer working from behind the scenes. I enjoy the excitement and joy people get when they wear what we create. Establishing my brand is definitely an achievement for me. I have managed to strike a deal with an international online platform that works with designers, which is where some of my clothes will be sold.”
“The clothes and designs of my brand are a representation of a modern style of the African skill, knowledge and ability. From family I mainly require prayers and for them to be the brand ambassadors wherever they are. The brand is growing and I’m grateful to God and all the clients,” he added.
