Worldview | East Africa’s Leading Fashion Week Gains Momentum
🇪🇹 The Hub of Africa Fashion Week attracts designers from across the continent. The latest edition of the event took place from Jan. 13-17 in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa. The annual showcase was founded in 2010 “to create space for African fashion to be seen, valued, and taken seriously both locally and globally,” says co-founder Mahlet Teklemariam. It is now the longest continuously running fashion week in East Africa. With events in neighbouring countries having either shuttered or experienced disruptions, the Ethiopian platform has gained a reputation for being the most consistent in the sub-region. Kenyan fashion curator Sunny Dolat, a partner at Nairobi-based Heva Fund, an investment firm for the creative industries, describes the Ethiopian event as “a beacon within the East African fashion ecosystem.” “Over the past 15 years, the show has solidified its position as a key platform for designers across the region to present at and work toward,” says Dolat. Kenyan womenswear brand Studio Fit took part this season but Ethiopians continue to make up the majority of participants, including well-known names like Mafi Mafi and Samra Leather, alongside emerging labels Dagmawit, Hindeke and Mero. A younger generation of designers, including Afom, Beza and Methii, were given support by the British Council’s Creative DNA 3.0 programme. Beyond East Africa, designers from Nigeria, Cameroon and South Africa also presented their collections on the runway. “This edition reflects how far we’ve come and the powerful future ahead,” says Teklemariam. [BoF Inbox] 🇨🇳 Hong Kong retail giants continue to close mainland China stores. Following last month’s news that luxury department store Lane Crawford is shuttering its branch in Chengdu, the buzzy capital of Sichuan province, other retailers have announced similar measures. “The series of closures come as a combined result of their outdated business models and profound changes in the macroeconomic environment,” Wang Tianshi, a Shanghai analyst at LeadLeo Research Institute, recently told SCMP. Hong Kong multi-brand beauty retailer Sa Sa International has also revealed plans to close its entire network of physical stores in the mainland. By the end of the year, Mannings, another Hong Kong-based beauty and health retailer, had fully exited the mainland market. International players such as Zara have been scaling back too and German lingerie brand Triumph recently exited the country. [South China Morning Post, China Daily]🇰🇿 Saks in Kazakhstan is running “smoothly” despite bankruptcy in the US. A spokesperson for Viled Group, the local license partner for the US department store group’s Kazakhstan outlet, confirmed on Monday that “Viled Group and Saks Fifth Avenue Almaty are continuing to operate on a business-as-usual basis,” noting that “everything is operating smoothly on our side.” Saks Global, which filed for bankruptcy in the US last week, once had a much larger footprint of licensed and franchised stores outside North America, from Saudi Arabia to Mexico. Most of these locations have shuttered over the years, most recently the Bahrain outpost which reportedly stopped trading in December. Saks Fifth Avenue did not respond to BoF’s request for comment on the status of its remaining international footprint or the retailer’s plans to enter India which were announcement one year ago through a franchise agreement with Reliance Industries. [BoF Inbox] 🇮🇳 India’s q-commerce firms must stop promising 10-minute delivery. The government reportedly told quick commerce, also known as instant retail, executives from companies including Swiggy, Zepto and Eternal’s Blinkit that apps pledging exceptionally short delivery windows compromise “workplace safety”. “This is a significant and much-needed step in protecting the lives and dignity of gig and platform workers,” said Shaik Salauddin, national general secretary of the Indian Federation of App-Based Transport Workers. “The 10-minute delivery model forced delivery partners into dangerous road behaviour, extreme stress and unsafe working conditions.” Q-commerce apps have become increasingly popular channels to sell groceries, health and beauty products to middle class consumers in Indian cities. [Financial Times]🇴🇲 Muscat Fashion Week returns to Oman under new leadership. The first edition of the showcase in its current form took place from Jan. 13-15 in the Omani capital, following intermittent events under the same banner but different organisers in earlier years. Founded by local designer Amal Al Raisi, the event took place present during Muscat Nights, an annual cultural and entertainment festival. Omani designers including Bait Al Fanar’s Faiza Al Balushi, Bthaina’s Buthaina Zadjali and Kawashi Fashion’s Khadija Al Lamki took to the runway alongside designers from the wider Middle East and North Africa region such as Qatar’s Muna Al Kaabi for Moonlight Concept, Tunisia’s Ahmed Talfit, Lebanon’s Elio Abu Faisal and Morocco’s Sara Chraibi. Brands from India, Russia, Turkey and the UK also took part. [BoF Inbox, Oman Observer]🇮🇳 Some analysts are sceptical about India’s luxury market outlook. Citing low traffic in some malls and a consumer preference for shopping abroad, some Indian analysts are increasingly cautious about the scale and pace of growth of the local luxury market. It’s worth noting that Reliance Retail’s foreign brands division lost about $30 million in the financial year ending March 2025. “Limited scale, high overheads and regulatory hurdles keep many joint ventures unprofitable,” Ankit Yadav of Redseer Strategy Consultants recently told the FT. “High rentals and the scarcity of grade-A mall infrastructure continue to be major constraints for luxury retail expansion beyond [main cities].” [Financial Times]🇨🇳 Chow Tai Fook is expanding its international retail footprint. The Hong Kong-based jewellery giant, which operates over 5000 stores in Greater China, opened another store in Thailand this month. The company, which already operates stores in Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore, Canada and the US, said it has plans to enter Australia, and open more in Canada by the end of June. It also aims to expand to the UAE and Qatar in the coming years. [Reuters, BoF]🇮🇳 Indian haircare brand &Done raises $3 million. The Gurugram-based company founded in 2023 by Atit Jain and Saumya Yadav has secured the funding in a round led by RTP Global, with participation from All-in Capital, Suashish, and angel investors including Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal, cofounders of Titan Capital. “We’ve seen firsthand how difficult it is for Indian consumers to find truly effective hair care. Our goal is to change that — to create a science-driven, high-trust professional brand made for Indian hair but benchmarked to global standards,” said Yadav. [Economic Times]🇹🇭 Etro debuts Southeast Asia residential developments in Thailand. The Italian luxury brand has unveiled The Etro Residences Phuket project on the Thai island, comprising eight units inside the Gardens of Eden resort. Developed by Thailand-based Amal Development, the branded residences were designed by real estate firm The One Atelier. Etro also has branded real estate in Istanbul, Turkey. [Retalk Asia]🇮🇳 Unilever Ventures invests in Indian fragrance brand Secret Alchemist. The brand founded in 2022 by Ankita Thadani, Akash Valia and actress Samantha Ruth Prabhu has raised $3 million in funding in a round led by the venture capital arm of the FMCG multinational, with participation from DSG Consumer Partners. Unilever Ventures also recently invested in Indian skincare brand SkinInspired in a Series A round led by Spring Marketing Capital. [Economic Times]🇺🇿 Uzbekistan’s textile and garment exports fell 14.6% in Jan–Nov period. The Central Asian nation, one of the world’s largest producers of cotton, recorded exports of $2.27 billion of textiles and garments in the first eleven months of 2025, with yarn and fabric shipments declining amid weakening international demand. Apparel exports rose 18.7 percent during the period, as policies shifted production away from upstream manufacturing. [Fibre2Fashion]🇮🇳 Indian footwear brand Neeman’s raises $4 million from Snam and others. The Hyderabad-based brand has secured the funding in a Series B2 round from Snam Group’s investment arm Snam Solution, with participation from existing investors Anicut Capital, Enam Investments and Harsh Mariwala’s Sharrp Ventures. The company was founded in 2017 by Taranjeet Singh Chhabra and Amar Preet Singh. [Economic Times]🇨🇳 Vogue China founding editor Angelica Cheung joins Four Seasons board. The former Vogue editor-in-chief and venture partner at Hongshan Group, formerly Sequoia Capital China, was appointed to the luxury hotel group’s board of directors alongside Moncler Group veteran Roberto Eggs. Cheung also sits on the boards of Zegna Group, Ami Paris and We11done among others. [BoF Inbox]🇦🇺 Myer shutters Australian brand Sass & Bide ahead of a relaunch. The Melbourne-based department store group and owner of Sass & Bide is closing pausing the brand’s operations and closing its stores. Myer signalled it plans to relaunch the brand, founded in 1999 by Sarah-Jane Clarke and Heidi Middleton, after the devising a new strategy. [Australian Financial Review]
