AFI launches AFI PRIVÉ at Melrose Arch
AFI PRIVÉ, the ultimate Pop-Up destination for the finest of African fashion collections, opens at Mel-rose Arch, Johannesburg, today (October 30) and will stay open until mid-December.
Providing shoppers with expertly curated and exclusive ready-to-wear design and accessories from the best African brands on the continent, brands currently being carried by AFI PRIVÉ include Abigail Betz, Adeko.A, David Tlale, Habits, Hugo Flear and Joel Janse Van Vuuren from South Africa and Ghanaians Dwaba Serwa-Ghane and Christie Brown.
“As a premier African fashion and lifestyle luxury retailer, AFI PRIVÉ will offer a one-stop, personalised shopping experience with unrivaled styling advice to suit our clients’ tastes and requirements” says Africa Fashion International (AFI) Group Marketing Manager, Sizwe Nzimande.
Although not part of AFI’s pan-continental sartorial showcase, Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Africa, AFI PRIVÉ will open on the penultimate day of the fashion event’s run at Melrose Arch.
Unlike AFI’s Fashion Weeks (Joburg, Cape Town and Africa), where designers choose to participate, AFI PRIVÉ selects the designers, making for exclusive African apparel at the Pop-Up store.
The launch of a series that will resemble the French “vente privee” concept – of curated trunk-shows taking place at a specific time and lasting a few days – following the Johannesburg Pop-Up store, other Pop-Ups will take place in Cape Town and other African countries while an online store will go live in November and carry the same brands as in the retail store.
“The AFI PRIVÉ vision has always been to take the best of African fashion to the world. As such, we are pushing that vision forward with the e-commerce platform, allowing us to extend a global reach” adds Sizwe Nzimande.
What’s for sure is that during the months of October-November-December, Africa’s fashion nucleus will undoubtedly be located at Johannesburg’s Melrose Arch.
ENDS
AFI PRIVÉ is located at Melrose Arch (opposite Exclusive Books)
Store hours: Mon-Sat 9am-6pm; Sun. 9am-4pm; Public Holidays – 9am-3pm.
Brand collections can be viewed here – afiprive.com