Zimpapers Logo

Valerie Mpundu Arts Reporter

Local fashion designer, Michael Lionel Nzeve, of the brand Je.ro.me wear, has said second hand clothes and operators known as “runners” have destroyed the essence of local brand originality as fashionistas are more inclined to their products.

Nzeve said in an interview with The Herald Arts that “it is like a jungle out there as there is competition between designers and mabhero”.

He said it was the case of survival of the fittest and urged designers to continue standing for what is real and original. “It is a jungle out there and we are competing for market with these so-called runners,” said Nzeve.

“They bring in their own stuff at very low prices and it is often a struggle to beat that as clients are hard to convince. In an industry where we rely on each other as artists, celebrities often lie to us as designers on endorsements.”

Nzeve called for local shops to accommodate designers so they can sell their merchandise.

He cited another challenge on celebrities whom abuse their work in the name of brand endorsements and advertising.

“They approach us and promise us heaven on earth, but once we design for them they never come back, it is still something we face on numerous occasions,” said Nzeve.

He said it had been often hard to break out in the feminine industry as sometimes the male designers were labelled wrongly. For Nzeve, his journey into designing was met with mixed feelings as his family would not embrace his choice.

“I started off in 2009 merely doing sketches, by then I thought it was just an obsession,” he said. “I was staying with my aunt then and she did not believe in me that much as designer.

“My family would associate my type of art with drugs and suitable for low life characters, people with no ambition and vision whatsoever.”

Nzeve, a self-taught designer, appreciates how he managed to grasp concepts as he curved his path to stardom. “Not going to university for me was a blessing in disguise,” he said. “l was very flexible with my time and I would grasp the concepts on my own. Relying very much on the internet for guidelines.

“This prompted me to start my own designs as I distinctively put my own detail to trademark my brand which is ‘Je.ro.me’ wear meaning “Jesus reigns over me”.

Putting his name on the map as an A Level student then in 2012, the budding designer said he was happy as he once dressed the late Soul Jah Luv and Bounty Lisa. “I have worked with notable artistes who include Freeman HKD, Peter Moyo, Jah Prayzah, Mambo Dhuterere, T.Gonzi, Enzo Ishal, Juntal, Terry Afrika, Poptain and Taffy Geez, among others,” he said.

Apart from designing, Nzeve is also a model who has featured in Feli Nandi’s latest visuals “Ndobatirira.”