Thebe Magugu and Laduma Ngxokolo: The Designers Taking South Africa to the World
Thebe Magugu and Laduma Ngxokolo have, between them, reframed what South African fashion can mean on a world stage.
Zanele Mthembu
·5 min read
Thebe Magugu and Laduma Ngxokolo have, between them, reframed what South African fashion can mean on a world stage — the former a globally stocked Johannesburg house, the latter the architect of a knitwear language rooted in Xhosa tradition.
Both are nominated across multiple 2026 SA Fashion Awards categories, a reminder that the country's most internationally recognised designers are also its most locally rooted.
Design as translation
Their work succeeds precisely because it does not choose between here and there.
The most exportable African design turns out to be the most particular.
Written by
Zanele MthembuLifestyle & Travel Editor
Zanele Mthembu writes on fashion, food, travel and culture from across the continent.
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