THABANG REGOENG
Masa Square Hotel in Gaborone launched their fashion mentorship program this past Thursday night ahead of their upcoming Masa Fashion Show on 21st October.
Under the theme ‘Working together to build Botswana’s creative Industry’ the program will see 12 promising fashion designers mentored by 12 seasoned designers from the local fashion industry.
Speaking at the launch Masa Square Hotel General Manager,Greg Soutter said the sole ambition of the show is to aid in the development of the local fashion industry and the promotion of local entrepreneurship.
“We are looking to support already practising enthusiasts and active designers. Through this initiative, we are looking to support those who either want to go professional or are designers looking to expand their business. We look forward to seeing the show grow as our participation in bringing people together aligns with our mission to redefine the hospitality business and its contribution to the growth of Botswana business,” Soutter told Time Out.
Present at the launch was the Minister of Investment,Trade and Industry Vincent Seretse who shared the same sentiments on developing arts and fashion sector in Botswana.
“The Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry holds the core mandate encompassing the promotion and attraction of both domestic, foreign productive investments to fuel the industrial and commercial sectors of Botswana. I have been informed that the theme of the 2017 Masa Fashion show is and I quote ‘working together to grow Botswana creative Industry’. What a timely theme for the era that our beloved nation, the great Republic of Botswana is in today,” Seretse stated.
Seretse further encouraged the 12 mentees who made the cut in the programme to embrace every single opportunity to learn from this programme.
“To the chosen 12 mentees to participate in the inaugural MSH Fashion Mentorship Program and the Masa Fashion Show, I congratulate you. More importantly, it is vital that you embrace every single opportunity to learn from this programme. Embrace the critiques and challenges that your mentors will place before you as you prepare yourselves. For such feedback are valuable lessons to learn to sharpen their craft,” he concluded.
Lame Chilume, Mothusi Lesolle, Tlamo Mosinyi, Kaone Moremong, Lesedi Matlapeng, Natasha Selelo,Tankiso Mathware, Aobakwe Molosiwa, Delayna Scott and Thabiso Dibeela have all been tasked with aiding the development of the mentees in the next 7 months.
Applications for the mentorship program were open to the public and ran from 1st February.Submission of applications closed on 14th February 2017.Mentees were chosen through a public application process Masa Square Hotel’s social media platforms, including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Over a period of 7 months, starting from 1st March,2017 the mentees will be tasked with designing exclusive collections for the Masa Fashion Show billed for October this year.