admin
Johannesburg. — Rhythm City actress Nolo Phiri has put her foot into the world of fashion Phiri, who plays Niki in the popular drama, launched a clothing line with designer Abongile Gwele called ‘Apples and Oranges for Nolo Phiri’. Phiri launched this as a start to her idea of collaborating with a lot of local designers as she believes it is a way of growing both herself and other young designers.Speaking to Sowetan LIVE at the Apples and Oranges launch in Sandton, Phiri said she has successfully launched Nolo Phiri Projects.
“I’m gonna be collaborating with other young designers to empower them and to again, diversify my own brand,” said Phiri.
“. . . this is what I was trying to launch through this with Apples and Oranges for Nolo Phiri. I wanted people to know that there’s more. I am interested in empowerment, I am interested in growing myself, I am interested in seeing how the creative industry as a whole can grow in the process.”
According to Phiri, the collaboration with local designers is a preparation for the launch of her own clothing line in future. She said she is not rushing it as she admits a lot knowledge and experience of the fashion world will have to go into it.
“I think once people know that for me it’s an asset collaborating with someone to see what that comes out of. Once I have that movement, once people understand, and once I understand what it is that I eventually want to put out there, I don’t see why I shouldn’t start my own movement and empire. I really don’t see why it’s impossible to do that. But I feel I need to learn a lot in the process, I need to see who’s doing what, I need to know what’s out there. So this is me doing it, this is me starting the movement.”
Gwele, founder of Apples and Oranges, said she launched the line specifically for Phiri basically giving us a side people do not know. The businesswoman side of her life.
Explaining the whole point to the line, Gwele outlined that people know Phiri only as an actress and not a fully-fledged businesswoman she is.
“For me, my brand and my company has to be associated with a kind of personalities that will highlight, the already existing philosophy and concepts.
“I feel uNolo is a very inspirational character. She’s very relatable to wide South African market, a lot of people relate to her, yes she’s a well known personality, she’s a celebrity but she is that girl next door. And she has a very relatable personality,” explained Gwele. — sowetan.
Online Reporter