Chronicle Editor
Bongani Ndlovu, Chronicle Reporter
GENERALLY, a pupil who excels in a subject like Fashion and Fabrics is not considered academically gifted.
Due to the colonial legacy of schools churning job seekers and not job creators, Fashion and Fabrics is one of the subjects looked down upon.
However, for Ms Pamela Mwapaura it is the foundation on which she started one of the most successful African attire making businesses in Bulawayo.
Pamela Creations has become synonymous with unique tailoring and imaginative African attire designs.
Talk of an apple not falling far from the tree; she is a third generation tailor as her grandmother and mother were dressmakers of note.
The two are her cheerleaders and pillars of support.
Ms Mwapaura literally grew up around needles, threads and cloth.
She hails from Mzilikazi suburb in a family of five daughters.
The mother of three said it was her mum’s encouragement to take up fashion and fabrics that helped her set up the business.
Ms Mwapaura attended Mzilikazi Primary School and then St Columba’s High School for her secondary education.
Building on her school days’ passion, she decided to pursue a course in cutting and design.
From there, she established Pamela Creations that is making a buzz in the fashion industry.
The company was last year chosen as one of the National Dress Ambassadors where people can buy cloth and have outfits tailor-made for them.
The business has 15 employees who work under the watchful eye of Ms Mwapaura who is in charge of quality control.
A Chronicle news crew visited Pamela Creations in Bulawayo’s CBD and found Ms Mwapaura deftly cutting up an African design cloth into a dress for a client.
The shop has various on-the-go outfits, mostly African attire-themed skirts, dresses and shirts.
At the back, there are two rooms.
In the first, tailors put together various outfits and the other is for orders catering for corporates and schools.
When one wants a tailor-made outfit, one of Pamela Creations’ employees takes measurements, Ms Mwapaura cuts the fabric, then the tailors join the pieces and others iron the finished product.
Parents, she said, must not look down on Fashion and Fabrics or Food and Nutrition if their children are passionate about them.
“I want to say to young people, follow your heart don’t listen to people who will look down upon you if you love Fashion and Fabrics. For me, throughout high school, I did well in two subjects, Fashion and Fabrics and Food and Nutrition. My mother was a pillar of support to me and she said I should do what I loved.
“So, I did it with all my heart because I wanted to impress my parents. My mother made sure I did both Fashion and Fabrics and Food and Nutrition to vary my skills set,” said Ms Mwapaura.
“The inspiration also came from my grandmother who used to make patchwork blankets for Ekuphumuleni Old People’s Home. Also, my grandmother used to do some stuff for Mzilikazi Arts and Craft Centre. My mother worked for Arusha Timbers as a tailor for more than 15 years.”
She said family support is also important as her aunt and mother gifted Ms Mwapaura with her first sewing machines.
“In 2004 my aunt in the United Kingdom bought me a small domestic sewing machine. My mother gave me a hand-me-down sewing machine a Singer electrical.
I then moved to the city centre and started working at a building in a rented chair and managed to buy another machine,” said Ms Mwapaura.
At the start of her career, predominantly, her clients were walk-in.
As she was making a name for herself, Ms Mwapaura met her husband Mr Kwambe Mwemba in 2005 while buying fabric.
“We met at Brookes he was buying fabric for his company. Things started there and we fell in love. In no time he was helping me grow my business by giving me a machine. He is the one who enabled me to move from the rent-a-chair to a bigger space next to the National Art Gallery,” said Ms Mwapaura.
Around 2007, there was an interest in African wear through the Ankara fabric, and this is when Ms Mwapaura started making a name for herself.
“Ankara Wear was trending and there was virtually no competition in Bulawayo. So I decided that this will be my field and it has been so since 2007,” said Ms Mwapaura.
What makes her a cut above the rest?
Ms Mwapaura said she is hands-on as she knows every stage that a dress goes through.
“I’m hands-on in the making of the garments, and other customers then assume, because there are employees it won’t have that special Pamela touch. I cut the garments myself so that there are no mistakes. The seamstresses will just join the pieces. The secret is in the cutting of the cloth, that’s where I do the quality control. If the pieces are cut wrongly the garment’s quality is compromised.,” said the highly acclaimed tailor.
She said the acceptance of Africa-themed attire during weddings or lobola negotiations has brought good business.
“The busiest is between April and May, then August right through December. In April it’s usually Trade Fair, Independence and Easter. May is our busiest because of Africa Day celebrations. From October until December, it’s mostly weddings and lobola ceremonies where people come and buy stuff. Whoever created this Roora or Lobola squad trend, we thank them,” said Ms Mwapaura.
Online Reporter