Thebe Magugu, one of Design Indaba’s Emerging Creatives from 2017, made history as the first African to win the coveted LVMH Award for young fashion designers in 2019. In the years since winning the award, Magugu has designed an exhibition for Le Bon Marché Rive Gauche in Paris, was named a guest designer for Pitti Uomo’s Menswear show in 2021, and had his designs worn by international celebrities like Miley Cyrus and Rihanna – among many other accolades.
Most recently, Magugu has collaborated with sports apparel brand Adidas to create a multi-functional collection inspired by African women – particularly the women in Magugu’s life. The collection, which was released in two drops, spans a variety of sports like running, swimming, training, tennis, football, and cycling, as well as casual lifestyle pieces. The first collection, the mainline one, was released in the beginning of August, while the exclusive tennis range will debut at the US Open in the first week of September.
Magugu has stated that the collection is really a celebration of all the positive influences and joy in his life, including the influences of his mother, aunt, and grandmother. Made with a series of recycled materials, each of the collection’s gender-neutral and womenswear pieces feature bright colours like orange, yellow, pink and lilac. Magugu himself describes the twofold collection as "a bold performance and lifestyle collection developed by Adidas and myself, inspired by the often overlooked beauty in our everyday lives."
The tennis range, which will be available in a variety of sizes, is set to bring diversity, inclusivity, and vibrancy to the sport, both on and off the court. Like the mainline collection, the tennis range is also a colourful celebration of culture and the female influences in Magugu’s life and will feature an illustrative print of a woman dancing by Phathu Nembilwi. This second phase of the collection will debut during the 2022 US Open on inspirational Adidas athletes Dana Mathewson, Felix Auger Aliassime, Daria Kasatkina, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Jessica Pegula, Garbiñe Muguruza and Dominic Thiem.
Shop the Adidas x Thebe Magugu collection online at https://www.adidas.co.za/thebe-magugu.
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Thebe Magugu takes a seat at the fashion table.
Credits: Adidas x Thebe Magugu
