The world usually sees the finished garment, not the journey behind it. A handbag under the bright lights of London. A model on the runway. A designer accepting applause. Yet every collection is shaped by years of experimentation, cultural memory, entrepreneurship, craftsmanship and quiet determination.
This month, that story will travel from Zimbabwe to the United Kingdom as two Zimbabwean designers, Chido Kaseke founder of celebrated brand, PatCh Maokoe Zimbabwe and Ropafadzo Kuki Mapira founder and director of SOLEIL, take part in Africa Fashion Week London (AFWL) from August 22 – 23, 2026, one of the continent’s most influential fashion platforms.
Their journey comes to life through the Creative DNA Zimbabwe programme, a pan-African fashion accelerator supported by the British Council and the Swiss Embassy in Zimbabwe and delivered locally by Haus of Stone Showroom.
Danayi Chapfika-Madondo, founder and creative director of Haus of Stone Showroom which is dedicated to taking Zimbabwean design to the world, describes this as part of a wider effort to reposition Zimbabwean creativity within a global conversation that increasingly values authenticity, craftsmanship and cultural storytelling.
The organisation has become one of the country’s most visible fashion development platforms, providing retail pop-ups, mentorship and intensive skills development. Since Creative DNA expanded into Zimbabwe, more than 50 fashion creatives have received support through mentorship, business development and seed funding.
Its growing impact is visible. After helping one Zimbabwean designer reach Africa Fashion Week London in 2025, the programme is now sending two designers to the global stage.
Yet, Chapfika-Madondo is quick to point out that this is not her showcase. “I am not showcasing personally. Instead, I am leading the designers under the Creative DNA Zimbabwe programme,” she explains.
The designers heading to London could hardly be more different, yet together they offer a compelling portrait of contemporary Zimbabwe.
Chido Kaseke has built a reputation through artisanal accessories and bags that celebrate craftsmanship while drawing upon heritage and tradition. Soleil, meanwhile, represents a younger wave of contemporary fashion designers exploring identity through apparel and modern design language.
According to Chapfika-Madondo, both brands are united by storytelling.
“Both designers have practices deeply rooted in storytelling, yet they utilise design in beautifully contrasting ways to articulate the nuances of the Zimbabwean identity. Together, they demonstrate our cultural diversity in a highly dynamic way, one looks inward at our roots and cultural evolution, while the other crafts work deeply rooted in memory.”
Their work arrives at a moment when international consumers are increasingly searching for products that carry meaning rather than simply labels. For African designers, this shift represents an opportunity.
The business behind the runway
The glamour of fashion weeks often obscures a fundamental reality: fashion is business. Chapfika-Madondo describes fashion shows as “the icing on the cake” rather than the main event.
“They exist primarily as marketing tools to generate visibility,” she says. “A designer cannot build brand equity or long-term value without a presence that places them directly before the right audience.”
That philosophy sits at the heart of Africa Fashion Week London, which has evolved into far more than a runway showcase. Alongside the catwalks are retail opportunities, buyer engagements, networking events and commercial conversations that can transform small creative enterprises into export-ready businesses.
The British Council sees this access as one of the most significant barriers facing African designers.
“One of the biggest challenges facing many African designers isn’t a lack of talent, it’s access,” says Farai Ncube Tarwireyi, Regional Arts Director for Sub-Saharan Africa at the British Council.
“Access to new markets and the right markets, to industry networks and to the kinds of opportunities that help creative businesses grow.”
Through Creative DNA, designers are introduced to buyers, industry professionals and creative partners across the United Kingdom and beyond.
“Those connections can open doors that last long after the event has ended, whether that’s a new stockist, a collaboration, or a relationship that helps a business reach new markets,” Tarwireyi says.
“The impact reaches far beyond the designer,” Tarwireyi notes. “Fashion supports a wide network of people from textile producers and artisans to photographers, stylists, marketers, manufacturers and retailers.”
Stitching together an ecosystem
Perhaps the most significant lesson emerging from Africa’s fashion renaissance is that individual success stories alone are not enough.
Chapfika-Madondo argues that fashion weeks themselves do not create fashion industries.
“A Fashion Week serves a critical function by bringing the entire sector into one room, uniting stylists, models, photographers, textile designers, tanneries and even agricultural farmers.”
Building globally competitive fashion industries therefore requires more than creative talent. It requires supportive policy frameworks, investment, infrastructure, education and private-sector participation.
“We need a two-pronged approach,” Chapfika-Madondo says.
“The government must implement supportive policies and structured programmes, while the private sector must engage with designers through mutually beneficial partnerships that drive commercial growth.”
The impact of fashion is perhaps most visible in workshops. Behind every Patch Maokoe handbag are women artisans whose skills have been developed through local training and mentorship.
Chapfika-Madondo explains that the designer works closely with women she has trained herself.
“Beyond equipping these women with the specialised skill sets required to produce globally competitive products, she provides them with sustainable income and economic agency.”
As international demand grows, those opportunities multiply. Business growth means larger production runs, expanded workshops and additional employment.
“Transitioning into export readiness will allow her to receive a fair economic return for her craftsmanship,” Chapfika-Madondo says.
It is a challenge familiar to many African creatives who often operate in domestic markets where purchasing power does not always correspond with the quality of their work.
Telling Africa’s story differently
Fashion has always expressed identity. For Zimbabwe, it is also becoming a powerful tool for changing global perceptions.
“I believe anything deeply rooted in who you are gives you an undeniable edge in a globally competitive space like fashion,” says Chapfika-Madondo. “The world is hungry for authentic stories.”
She believes fashion can reveal a side of Zimbabwe that is rarely seen internationally. “For a long time, Zimbabwe has only been viewed through the narrow lens of our socio-economic and political status. Design offers us a powerful alternative narrative.”
That narrative is one of innovation, heritage, imagination and creativity. According to Rasheeda Nalumoso, Regional Lead for Creative Economy at the British Council, Africa’s creative industries are helping reshape global culture.
“The creative economy has the power to connect communities, create sustainable livelihoods and build new pathways for collaboration between the UK and Africa,” she says.
A global force in the making
When Olori Ronke Ademiluyi-Ogunwusi founded Africa Fashion Week London, her ambition stretched beyond the runway. “Fashion is one of Africa’s greatest storytelling tools, but it is also a powerful economic driver,” she says.
“Behind every collection is a network of designers, artisans, textile producers, manufacturers and entrepreneurs whose creativity has the potential to contribute to global markets.”
Her vision reflects a growing consensus that African fashion is entering a new era. The challenge now is scale.
As Tarwireyi puts it: “Success isn’t measured by one event or one collection. It’s measured by whether designers are building sustainable businesses, creating opportunities for others and contributing to a fashion industry that is increasingly connected, internationally recognised and economically significant.”
For Chapfika-Madondo, the destination is clear. She envisions a future where Zimbabwean fashion is recognised globally as a centre of sustainable luxury, premium craftsmanship and cultural storytelling.
As Patch Maokoe Zimbabwe and Soleil prepare for London, they represent more than Zimbabwean fashion. They embody a growing creative economy built on heritage, craftsmanship and entrepreneurship. In a global industry increasingly seeking authenticity, their stories demonstrate that Africa’s greatest export may not simply be what it makes, but the stories it tells.
