Ishmael the emerging fashion designer

Fanuel Kangondo Deputy Lifestyle Editor
Some consider it as a calling and give it all they have to make sure that they fulfil the wishes that they are destined to accomplish and do so with so much zeal and commitment that they remain focused.
This is the case for 22-year-old Ishmael Tsakadza, who is a third year student at the University of Zimbabwe’s College of Health Sciences studying physiotherapy but finds time to follow his passion as a fashion designer.

Despite the demands of his pressing studies, Ishmael has been unrelenting in the pursuit of his passion for fashion which has seen him come up with a unique and distinctive brand of elegant designs which are aesthetically pleasing to the eye, ranging from haute couture, avant-garde, contemporary, formal and ready to wear that is set to dominate the local fashion scene.

Ishmael’s designs are coming under the Zargue’sia label.

The target market is the modern day man and woman that are after the trendy outfits that seem to be evolving on a daily basis.

Ishmael’s presence at this year’s Hifa main fashion show, last year’s Zimbabwe Fashion Week, Cultural and Social Fair and the Castle Tankard have firmly etched his mark as one of the emerging designers in the country.

“I am a creative individual and from my days in high school, I always had a passion for fashion and I started exhibiting my works at the Midlands Agricultural Show in 2012 where I got an award in the Home Industry section,” he said in an interview.

The young designer said he was motivated by his sister whom he described as a fashionsta.

Last weekend, Ishmael last showcased some of his designs at Strathaven Shopping Centre at a fashion show hosted by recently opened coffee shop Springjava and Sistarzinc Kidz. To market his designs, he also uses the social media as he posts some of the exhibitions on his Facebook page that has managed to attract a steady following.

He is grateful for the support of his parents who have bankrolled most of his ventures although he said that offshoots were now promising as a profitable business.

On the future, Ishmael who is from Gweru, said that he was determined to complete his studies at the UZ and perhaps go into practice briefly, but was most likely to end up in the fashion industry.

“We will see how it goes, but I’m likely to end up in fashion.  I am hoping to set up my own fashion studio and it is my hope within the next five years to break through on the international scene with prospects of featuring in some of the fashion capitals such as Paris, Rome, Milan and New York.”