Ladybrille African Fashion News #35

Fabric Design/Technology/Designer: "PARIS: When young fashion designer Bill Ruterana was looking for inspiration and cheap material to make clothes in his native Rwanda, he found it sprouting under his feet. "Umugwegwe" grows prolifically in Rwanda and when treated produces a frothy wool-like fibre. Ruterana used it to spectacular effect in his latest collection unveiled this weekend at the second edition of Paris' "Labo Ethnik World Fashion Show" spotlighting African, Caribbean and multi-cultural design. "Umugwegwe serves no real purpose but is a goldmine for me. It grows everywhere and it's very easy to work with," said the slight 24-year-old, who is such a fan that he used it not only for flamboyant multicoloured head-dresses but even for a show-stopping wedding gown. He discovered that by pulverising the plant he could tease out fibres and colour them with vegetable dyes. Read more here.

Fashion Model/Fashion Crimes: The body of Guinea born model Katoucha Niane is found in the Seine River in Paris. AFP reports: "PARIS (AP) — The body of Katoucha Niane, one of the first African women to attain international stardom as a model and a vocal opponent of female genital mutilation, was found in the Seine River, police said Friday. Known simply as Katoucha, the former top model for Yves Saint Laurent and other top designers was found Thursday near the Garigliano bridge in Paris, judicial police in Paris said." Read more here.

British Vogue heedsNaomi Campbell's call for more blacks in its fashion pages. Sunna Gottshalk, Jamaican model, got a full spread on British Vogue's fashion pages.

Business of Fashion: The South African rand gets stronger pushing the wool market down. Click here for story. In contrast, the US dollar keeps falling. What it means is a trip to Europe is becoming very expensive, interest rates are increasing, foreclosures abound and retailers are nervous.

Bloomberg reports one of South Africa's biggest gold producer to cut as many as 6,900 jobs due to power crisis! "Feb. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Gold Fields Ltd., Africa's second- biggest gold producer, will eliminate as many as 6,900 jobs, or 13 percent of its South African workforce, as the state-run utility fails to provide enough power for the company's mines.
The cuts are the first by a South African mining company since utility Eskom Holdings Ltd. said power shortages will last for four years. Gold Fields will close part of its operations at Driefontein, Africa's largest gold mine, and redesign its South Deep mine, the company said today. Read more here.

Puma and Chalayan team up: "PARIS — Sportswear brand Puma AG on Thursday named Cyprus-born designer Hussein Chalayan as its creative director and acquired a majority stake in his signature fashion brand, confirming a report in WWD. Financial terms of the deals were not disclosed. The announcement came a day after the London-based designer unveiled his fall women's wear collection here." read the rest here. An even more interesting news is Puma's focus on the African market using soccer as a vehicle. Ladybrille obirin [women] and okurins [men] if you have not thought about investing in Africa, get to gettin' especially if you are from Africa. Annansi Chronicles captures Puma Africa move here.

Fashion Law [Intellectual Property]: From Afro IP, "Afro-IP was alerted by Nola Bond to a recent decision of the Cape High Court in favour of Crocs Inc (“Crocs”) and others defending an appeal brought by Shoprite Checkers against a counterfeit goods seizure in South Africa. Shoprite Checkers is a large retail chain operating throughout South Africa. Crocs successfully seized over 10000 pairs of footwear destined for Shoprite Checkers’ stores early in 2007. Shoprite Checkers sought to set aside the warrant and subsequent seizure on the grounds including that the seized goods were not counterfeit goods. Crocs seized the goods on the basis that they were a reproduction or an adaptation of their design/drawings of the famously ugly and successful, strapless shoe." Read more here. On to the rest of our fashion news about or relating to Africa:

1. Setting the catwalk alight
2. Survival of the fittest in the couture jungle
3. The divas wear Prada and Rajah and ...
4. End of a Supply Chain Era
5. IAL Group launches subsidiary in Tanzania
6. Franchise opportunities offer a leg up for entrepreneurial spirit ...
7. A Chance Encounter In Africa
8. Technology improves efficiencies in the warehouse
9. Africa's organic farms
10. Fashion Icon: Louis Vuitton Luggage
11. South Africa : Menswear range to be launched at SSAFW in Aug
12. Do 'Leading' Film Festivals Discriminate Against African Films?
13. Wal-Mat Raises the Bar But Africa Still Clogged by Plastics
14. Investing in the future for Africa and the west
15. Liberty results
16. IT spending in Middle East and Africa to exceed $40b this year