SWAHILI FASHION WEEK 2015 – AND THE WINNERS ARE …
(Posted 11th December 2015)
The Swahili Fashion Week 2015 came to a grand finale last Sunday evening, when at the Seacliff Hotel in Dar es Salaam the last round of designers showcased their collections before the winners of the event were announced. A whopping 200.000 plus thousand votes had been received for the various categories, a number not only exceeding all expectations but also showing the growing popularity of East Africa’s premier fashion event.
Uganda bagged two of the awards, first with Vivian Mutesi as East Africa’s model of the year 2015 before the Pearl of Africa’s own fashion icon Sylvia Owori took home the EATV East African Designer of the Year award. For Sylvia it was not only a personal triumph but also a return to the very stage where she saw her career launched some 15 years ago.
Watch Sylvia’s interview with this correspondent via this YouTube link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PQ_mkC_-kE in which also Ashley Klinger, a selfprofessed ‘Fashionista’ and in her professional life an Emirates Captain flying the B777, features.
Male Model of the Year
Chichi Maugo
Baileys Female Model of the Year
Upendo Mlay (Arusha)
East African Model of the Year
Vivian Mutesi (Uganda)
New Face of the Year
Suma YM
Darling Hair and Makeup Artist of the Year
Simply Gorgeous
Accessory Designer of the Year
Kauli (Moshi)
Stylish Male Personality
Rio Paul (Tanzania)
Baileys Stylish Female Personality
Jokate Mwegelo
Emerging Designers Competition 2015 Winner
Lilian Patropa
EATV East African Designer of the Year
Sylvia Owori (Uganda)
Khimji’s Upcoming Designer of the Year
Upendo Mkonya
Men’s Wear Designer of the Year
Martin Kadinda
361 Degrees African Designer of the Year
Paledi Segapo (South Africa)
Vodacom Innovative Designer of the Year
Martin Kadinda
East African Fashion Journalist of the Year
Sarah Hassan (Kenya)
Fashion Journalist of the Year
Maimuna Kubegeya
Fashion Photographer of the Year
Ousmane Kazi (Arusha)
Vodacom Fashion Blog of the Year
8020Fashions
KCB Bank Humanitarian Award of the Year
Mabinti Centre
Zakhia Meghji Life Time Achievement Award
Khadija Mwanamboka (VVK)
Jaguar Style Icon of the Year
Mohammed Dewji
Vodacom Stylist of the Year
Noel Ndale
Jaguar Designer of the Year
Nisa Abayas
This correspondent was chosen to hand over the award to Kenya’s Sarah Hassan for East African Fashion Journalist of the Year 2015, in recognition of the regular coverage given to fashion events in the region in general and in particular the Swahili Fashion Week and its creator Mustafa Hassanali.
The event turned out to be everything the attending record crowd had hoped for and sales in fashion accessories and designer clothes were reportedly brisk too, not just at the open shop day but also outside the main venue at the Seacliff Hotel. This correspondent travelled from Entebbe / Uganda on Fastjet’s direct flight via Kilimanjaro to Dar es Salaam as the airline was one of the sponsors of the event, also flying in a team from Johannesburg. For more information about the event check out www.swahilifashionweek.com
