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EVE MWATSE

Mary Doma Entertainment Reporter
Intwasa fashion show scheduled for Hope Centre as part of the Intwasa Extra to be held on Saturday will feature 12 top local designers. The designers will showcase 10 garments each from their 2015 collections.

Producer of the show Gilmore Moyo, popularly known as Gilmore Tee, said the event came at a time when Bulawayo is celebrating 120th anniversary as a modern settlement and also to proliferate fashion existence in the city.

“We are going to be celebrating our city’s anniversary through this fashion show and at the same time showcase our beautiful designers collections,”said Gilmore Tee.

“The festival has been running for 10 years and this marks the role that the fashion industry has played in the growth of our communities. Our designers are now internationally recognised,” he said

Designers to participate in the event include upcoming artists Lorraine Fusiren; Sam Lui by Humphrey Sarimu — who was part of the Zimbabwe Fashion Week young talents; Crox Designs winner of Clothing Indaba; Ganu Creations, who recently showcased at the Sadc Fashion Week; Shadow by Sidumiso who showcased at the Durban Fashion Fair; Ara Kani who won best male designer at the recently launched Matabeleland Fashion Week; and Harare-based guest designer Tapfumaneyi Munenge among others.

Moyo said public personalities in the likes curvy actress of Eve Mwatse and others were being used as models to cater for women of different shapes and sizes.

“We recruited different set of models that is the professional models to the plus size models so as to break the norm of targeting one type of women because everyone is a fashionasta and it also helps to widen the customer base,” he said.

“This year we have partnered with Edgars who have agreed to offer two designers for a six-month to one-year attachment as an approach of supporting local designers to reach their full potential,” he said.

The Intwasa Fashion Show comes as part of the Intwasa Extra. The festival, which happened in September this year, celebrating 10 years of existence, is the second largest festival in Zimbabwe after the Harare International Festival of the Arts. The fashion sector has been lacking within the festival, and through the Intwasa Extra activities, fashionistas and those within the business will exchange ideas.

The Intwasa Fashion Show is a collaboration between Hunnar Management Agency and Intwasa Arts Festival koBulawayo. The show is supported by Edgars Stores Zimbabwe and the Alliance Française de Bulawayo.

The event is being produced by Style Icon & Global Citizen and Gilmore Tee, who recently won an award for his outstanding contributions to the fashion industry in Zimbabwe at the launch of Matabeleland Fashion Week.