Luxury and streetwear are now fully integrated terms – and a full scale concept, executed more and more on the runway, both locally and internationally. Recently, SA Fashion Week returned with another standout showcase of the best designers and labels in the country – and this season, REFUSE Clothing brand, founded by Malcolm Mokgope and Minenhle Memela proved among stars of the week, winning the ‘Scouting Menswear 2022’ competition. As alumni of Durban University of Technology renowned Fashion & Textiles department – which I argue is one of the best fashion schools in the country – Malcolm and Minenhle are forces to be reckoned with in African sartorial story-telling through a contemporary lens. Post-DUT, the duo are heading towards scaling REFUSE in Joburg; and their vision for Zulu-enriched streetwear is set to form a critical part of our country’s immense ascent in fashion. We are incredibly honoured to share the first look at their winning AW23 collection, and with REFUSE archiving and creating culture simultaneously – I caught up with Malcolm to discuss the brand’s origin, winning the prize and what lies ahead.
In Chapter 06 ‘The Ascent of Streetwear’ of Interlude – our monthly fashion column – I noted the mysterious nature of REFUSE, albeit incredibly intriguing, saying, “Refuse boasts some of the most intriguing and varied array of garments we have seen in a while – with an editorial and brand identity that is incredibly strong. The design nuances of their collections in the last few years have seen the brand drop suits, bags, shirts – alongside streetwear staples like tees and trackies. Their discreet brand story leaves the brand a mysterious enigma in the local scene – whatever the story is, it’s working overtime.” and it turns out, the mystery was the brand’s behind-the-scenes build up to this year’s AW23 at SA Fashion Week. I remember when writing Chapter 06, how distinctly REFUSE stood out as well-fabricated and constructed streetwear offering – now, with the knowledge that both Malcolm and Minenhle are trained designers emerging from DUT; this is not simply tees and hoodies territory- REFUSE is laying down a realm of accessible, luxury ready-to-wear conveyed through their viewpoint of streetwear.
“Minenhle and I started seeding this idea in varsity, at DUT. During our first year, we each had our own brands – but it became clear that if we partnered, we could build something great. The name itself, ‘REFUSE’, is a play on what people view as trash. We started thrifting in varsity, but as a way to investigate garments – we would deconstruct them, open them up and see how we could apply our findings towards other garments. We like to challenge the notion of channelling trash to luxury – you know, taking the principles of perfectly great clothing that’s been thrown away, and elevating it. The name is a double-pun too – ‘REFUSE’ is also our statement against what society tells us we should be, or how we should be. We want our label to push originality.” Malcolm explains, and offers a sense of clarity around why REFUSE comes off, instantly, as an expression of streetwear that is technically advanced from a construction standpoint. Defining themselves distinctly as streetwear, REFUSE is honing on their set of design codes that invest in high quality – with the vision for Malcolm and Minenhle asserting itself alongside Palace, Daily Paper and Rhude. Regarding the label’s roots in KZN, Malcolm says, “The brand originates in Durban, but we are slowly moving the brand to Joburg. Durban is quite slow when it comes to fashion – and there’s nothing wrong with that, too – and so much of our viewpoint was enriched by Durban and KZN. I think where we see the brand heading – nationally and then internationally – we want REFUSE to be a South African brand as a whole, and not confined to one part of the country.”
Regarding perseverance – a key asset of any designer heading towards big things – REFUSE stunned at SA Fashion Week in late October, winning the ‘Scouting Menswear 2022’ competition. Interestingly, Malcolm tells me, this win comes at a major shift that he and Minenhle had to make – refining the label’s position and story-telling, “We entered the competition last year, and we didn’t win. I don’t like defeat – I take it as a challenge to do better, and get better. So we had to do it again. We fixed our loopholes and came back with a stronger story – we showed up much better prepared. Last year, we were very anxious – so this year, we came in with a renewed confidence, and I think the clothes really speak for themselves.” With a key focus on story-telling – a defining feature we are seeing of leading designers like Thebe Magugu, Wanda Lepotho and Lukhanyo Mdingi – REFUSE have spent the last year, leading up to this season, honing in on what they aim to communicate with their clothing, “When we went up this time around, we unpacked our culture in a really deep way. With REFUSE, we tell a KZN story – specifically Nguni, Zulu – so each garment represents a Zulu / Nguni story, and then the larger story of the collection. We wanted our culture to form the codes of the collection, and the theme of the competition was “sports” – this gave us a space to translate our cultural expression through a very functional, clean canvas of sports and utility dressing. Last year, we focused on sustainability in our collection as quite literal – this year, we showcased sustainability as ‘designing for the future’ – what about cultural and community sustainability? With sustainability defined by long-lasting, quality fabrication.”
The pieces themselves are reflective epitaphs from Malcolm and Minenhle to their ancestry and lineage – with knitwear developed to honour Zulu King, Cetshwayo – and another traditional knitwear, Ingwe, which is worn during events like weddings and gatherings, on this Malcolm says, “We wanted to see these aspects of our culture be able to exist in a contemporary, modern way. There’s another two pieces in the collection, featuring ancient Zulu Kings and Queens – and I made it abstract, so you wouldn’t be able to tell unless you knew. I also put us, our team behind REFUSE, into the print – to unify us with our lineages, as we are leading for the future like kings, too. During SA Fashion Week, we had an amazing response – with buyers talking to us about what the steps would be to get this to Paris and London.” With the brand seeing through a path from runway, to being stocked at Merchants on Long (luxury, South African design’s favourite home) – it feels like the journey is incredibly powerful and clear for Malcolm and Minenhle. South African sartorial consciousness & streetwear – soon to be seen as a jewel in the crown of African design, all over the world. REFUSE Clothing Brand reminds me why I return to fashion, again and again.
Editorial Credits:
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Thami Ndlovu
Written By Holly Bell Beaton
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