Designer jeans in Johannesburg - 8th March 2024

These jeans come from designer Tshepo Mohlala. He's a businessman in South Africa. The jeans are popular with famous people.

Mohlala comes from a poor town in South Africa. People laughed at him for wearing skinny jeans. He studied fashion at design college. But he had to leave his course. He didn't have enough money.

Tshepo Mohlala: "Yeah, I went to design school and then I dropped out due to financial difficulties. Which is, probably was the best thing that has ever happened in my life because it made me think really hard if I really want to be in the fashion space for, forever and for the rest of my life. And I decided to be in it and I forced my way into the industry."

Then, Mohlala started his own business. He borrowed 8,000 rand from his girlfriend. He made jeans for African women. He called his company Tshepo.

Tshepo Mohlala: "A whole lot of African women have a tiny waist and big booties and big hips and then tiny legs. So we created a range of jeans using raw denim with no stretch that is super tailored for a woman but is readily available in our store."

The Tshepo logo is a crown. The crown has three points on it. This is for three important women in Mohlala's life. Now, some of his customers are famous women. Beyonce and the Duchess of Sussex like his jeans.

Tshepo Mohlala: "Well, when Meghan Markle came into the space, I think at the time a lot of South Africans were saying why would I buy Tshepo, why would I do this? And then you have the Duchess of Sussex coming here, really calling me and begging that like I need to get a pair of jeans from you before I leave the country. So for us, it was like a, just a - you know, it's a stamp of affirmation and of approval, of this product is certified. It's good enough for anyone in the world."

A team of 10 people make Tshepo jeans in Johannesburg. The cotton for the jeans comes from Zimbabwe. They can make jeans to your exact body shape for $375. But there are ready-made jeans, t-shirts and hats too. These are very popular.