adminMelissa Mpofu/Bongani Ndlovu Showbiz Reporters
Back in the day when luxury coaches in Zimbabwe were still trendy, there was one particular bus which was mainly boarded by females. This was simply because it had stylish and tidy men who wore expensive fragrances as hosts, drawing passengers’ attention. And among these men was one Craig Zoowie, a former St Columbus pupil.
He was not an ordinary host. What made him different from the rest was his love for bowties which always gave him the wow factor. So bad was the situation that some passengers would contact the coach asking if the route they were travelling was being served by Zoowie.
To pursue his passion for all things fashion, Zoowie who was raised in Njube, Bulawayo left the transport industry in 2012 to join the fashion industry. He was immediately employed by one of the country’s fastest growing events management companies – VIP Hosting as one of their event designers.
“I always had a passion for fashion from when I was about 8-years-old. I’d always coordinate my clothes and my mum knew better than to shop without me. She knew I was particular about my clothes,” Zoowie said.
Years later, Zoowie is setting the fashion tone for the whole country, especially after being named the Zimbabwe Fashion Week (ZFW) Style Icon of the Year for the second year running.
To affirm his style icon status, Zoowie who has scooped several fashion awards, also won the Stylist of the Year award at the ZFW awards ceremony held at the Palm Estate in Harare at the weekend.
“Style is a way to say who you’re without having to speak. Fashion is something that comes from within you,” says the fashionista who styles ZiFM’s Candice Mwakalyelye, VIP Hosting boss – Lungile Dlodlo and Teapot Zimbabwe presenters.
He outshone other contenders including Bulawayo’s Welshman Sibanda and Gilmore Tee, Pokello Nare, Haleema Mekani, radio personalities Samantha “MisRed” Mussa, Lorraine “Locnation” Bgoya and Trish Carmen.
“I wasn’t expecting to win the style icon title this year. On the night of the awards, I was on Facebook typing a congratulatory message to whoever had won, waiting to fill in their name. When they announced my name, I couldn’t believe it because all those who were nominated with me have style and a good fashion sense,” said Zoowie.
He said being original and true to himself had seen him grow. “One should exude confidence when presenting their lifestyle as a fashion icon. Being a style icon entails what one wears, what they eat and drink, as well as the places they hang out and the company they keep. Basically, one should be original and be themselves.”
Inspired by America’s Pharrell Williams, Zoowie described his fashion style as comfortable practicability.
“Comfortable practicability means I wear something that is snug and handy at the same time, something that I can fit into and look good in. That’s my fashion sense,” he said.
The fashion icon revealed plans to launch a bowtie range – Craig Zoowie – towards the end of the year.
“I’ll be launching a bowtie range named the Craig Zoowie collection. It’ll be out by end of year.”
Those who learnt with Zoowie at St Columbus vividly remember him as that guy who always looked strikingly neat from 7:30AM to 1PM.
“Craig was always smart, from morning until knock off time. He wouldn’t at anytime of the day, remove or loosen his tie like other boys and made sure he was always on point,” said Zoowie’s former schoolmate and friend, Roberta Katunga.
“He never engaged in activities that’d make him dirty, preferring to take a longer route home on a tarred road, avoiding dusty shortcuts as he never wanted to have dust on his shoes.”
She said it was not surprising that Zoowie was now the country’s style icon as he was a fashion police at high school, dishing free advice to fellow students.
“He always gave fashion advice in class, commenting on people’s dressing. Calm and collected, Craig was fussy about everything, always with a shoe brush in his satchel to wipe off any dust.”
Online Reporter