Fashion Designer

Thula Sindi is passionate about beauty in all its forms. This 29-year-old from Klerksdorp is living the dream — a dream that can be worn and enjoyed by others. He is already a household name in South Africa’s fashion industry and his work has graced the runways of Beijing, Hong Kong, New York, Lagos and Paris. Sindi was passionate about fine art as a child and intended it to be his career. However, at the age of 16, while studying at the National School of the Arts in Johannesburg, he caught the fashion bug. The medium appealed to his sense of proportion and colour and he went on to study Fashion Design at the London International School of Fashion. After graduating he was snapped up by Dutch textile company Vlisco and worked as their head designer. Ambition, coupled with determination and a need to make his vision a reality, spurred Sindi to leave his post at Vlisco, a gutsy move that enabled him to launch his self-titled clothing label; a combination of sophisticated, elegant and timeless women’s clothing, which had its debut during the Couture Fashion Week in Paris in 2007. For his efforts, Sindi has been nominated by African fashion festival Fima as one of the top 10 emerging designers. The workforce of his clothing company, which designs, manufactures and markets his label, is largely made up of women. Sindi takes tremendous pride in this. “When you employ a woman you feed a household, and subsequently educate a new generation,” he says. Sindi has won considerable recognition, including being named the Small Enterprise Development Agency Best Youth Entrepreneur as well as SA Tourism Designer of the Year. He believes his greatest achievements are still ahead of him and says he looks forward to a future of crafting creations that make women feel beautiful and confident.

— Billy Rivers

Twitter: @thulasindi Website: thulasindi.com