FASHION FROM THE HEART

Meet the fashion trendsetter who’s bringing up-and-coming designers into the heart of uMhlanga with their South African Made clothes and other quirky goodies.

For local business owner and young designer Genna Wae Webster, fashion has always been about the heart. Faced with the challenge of not having an outlet to showcase her unique work, as well as empathising with other young designers battling to break into the tough fashion market, and with a crash course in Italian dressmaking and 13 years of clothing industry experience driving her, Genna jumped into a new adventure, a quirky co-op store titled S.A.M.

The proudly South African shop officially opened its doors last month in the uMhlanga Centre, and stocks only clothes that are locally made by up-and-coming designers. Currently there are over 20 designers selling their creations. “Even though the co-op business model is not necessarily original we are doing it from the heart – with a lot of passion,” explained Genna.

Not only has S.A.M become something of a haven for young designers, but the store hopes to eventually contribute to job creation for the local clothing manufacturing sector.

With a one-of-a-kind fashion style compromising of clashing prints and heaps of colour, Genna’s root inspiration for her own fashion choices stems from “comic books and anything with a ‘girls rule the world’ vibe”. She loves pairing unconventional items of clothing together and swears by what she feels comfortable in, choosing garments that make her feel great as well as complementing her individual style.

Recently married, Genna admits that time does seem to be in short supply and splits it between S.A.M, managing her own factory, consulting for a well-known clothing company and designing her own range of clothes under the WaeWest Brand.

Running not on coffee but creative spirit, Genna gets her constant supply of energy from “the synergies created by all the other creatives, designers and people involved in S.A.M”. But despite her tireless schedule she couldn’t be happier riding this fashion wave. And with four more stores in the pipeline, there’s no stopping this trendsetter.  *