When David Tlale opens South African Fashion Week’s AW27 Collections this month, it will mark more than a return to the runway. Twenty years after winning the SAFW New Talent Search, Tlale is back at the platform where his story began, a powerful reflection of how far South African fashion has travelled, and of the next generation now finding its way into the industry.

The journey from one emerging designer to a generation of established names is central to South African Fashion Week’s designer-development work. Its New Talent Search, established in 1998, and Student Competition, launched in 2019, support talent at two connected stages: students developing their craft, and emerging designers turning a creative practice into a viable business.

The alumni make the case for investing in that journey. Previous New Talent Search winners and finalists include Artho Eksteen, David Tlale, Erre, Jacques Bam, Lukhanyo Mdingi, Mmuso Maxwell and Sipho Mbuto. They have gone on to build fashion businesses, serve retail and private clients, and contribute to the wider industry. Tlale’s return for AW27 brings that progression full circle, from emerging talent to established designer, back home at Fashion Week.

“The central goal is to become a designer whose work is bought, produced, delivered and bought again. Everything these programmes do is built around getting someone to that point,” says Lucilla Booyzen, Founder of South African Fashion Week.

SAFW New Talent Search Powered by J.C. Le Roux

The New Talent Search supports early-stage womenswear designers as they develop original, culturally expressive and responsibly considered collections with commercial potential. Its brief continues to challenge participants to balance creative identity with sustainable practice and market readiness.

This season, the five designers taking part are ZOUR, Martin John Steenkamp, Blackfaces Apparel, Ntwana and Michael Peter Reid. The programme’s judging panel includes Jackie May (Founder of Twyg), Sumendra Chetty, Chris Makhanya and renowned designer Thula Sindi, who bring perspectives across fashion media and sustainability, buying and retail, designer development and commercial strategy.

SAFW Student Competition

The Student Competition introduces designers to professional platforms while they are still in training. For AW27, students were challenged to reimagine the white shirt using 100% cotton, a deceptively simple brief designed to make construction, cut, finish and technique visible.

The 2026 semi-finalists come from six fashion schools across the country, with fourteen designs exploring approaches that range from architectural shaping and anatomical references to reuse, zero-waste construction, heritage and the natural world.

The judging panel comprises Sahil Harilal, who brings experience in fashion media, styling and creative direction; Mart-Marie Fourie, with a fashion retail and operations perspective; and Anna-Mari Pretorius, whose background spans fashion design, collection development and student competitions.

Meet the 14 Semi-Finalists

Listed alphabetically by first name.

Abbygail Smith is a student designer at STADIO School of Fashion and Design exploring zero-waste construction and origami techniques. Her shirt uses the full width of cotton fabric to create a generous, fluid silhouette intended to adapt to different body sizes. Repeated fabric squares are folded into floral forms around the neckline and hem, linking the garment’s decorative detail to its economical use of material.

Busisiwe Leo Mlitwa is a student designer at the University of Johannesburg whose white shirt is defined by extensive fabric manipulation. Repeated folds create a raised, rippling surface across the body and short, voluminous sleeves. A pointed collar retains a recognisable shirt detail, while the compact silhouette and dense texture give the garment a distinctly sculptural appearance from both the front and back.

Fatuma Yasin is a final-year student at the School of Fashion in Pietermaritzburg and received a Rising Star trophy for a first-year collection. Her concept, Transformed Threads, explores giving discarded fabric new purpose through careful manipulation. A high collar, diagonal folds, smocked details and full sleeves create a sculptural white shirt that combines surface texture with soft movement.

Gcobisa Angel Kani is a student designer at STADIO School of Fashion and Design. Inspired by the Nigerian Agbada robe and the contrasting forms of Saharan dunes and rock plateaus, her shirt combines broad wing sleeves with a structured, panelled body. Its reversible construction offers a white face and a hand-painted reverse with brushstrokes and splashes, allowing different styling options within one garment.

Indiphile Njisane is a student designer at Walter Sisulu University whose shirt draws inspiration from the movement of ocean waves. Tucked details echo the folds and lines of water approaching the shore, while a corset-shaped waist follows the curves of the waves. Chains across the open front represent the connection between sea and land, and the white fabric recalls sea foam.

Kelebogile Thoka is a BA Fashion Design student at the University of Johannesburg. Guided Routes uses maps and intersecting pathways as a metaphor for navigating life, with Christian faith providing a sense of direction. Vertical lines, layered strips, gold buttons and flared sleeves translate this idea into a white cotton shirt, giving the design a structured rhythm that reflects journeys, choices and growth.

Lilitha Beyile is studying towards a BA in Fashion Design at STADIO. Inspired by the spine and rib cage, she reimagines the classic white shirt as an outward expression of the body’s internal framework. Fabric manipulation in white calico creates a spinal effect along the sleeves and rib-like shaping across the lower front, giving the garment a sculptural quality rooted in human anatomy.

Lindokuhle Masuku is a BA Fashion Design student at the University of Johannesburg. Her concept, Architectural Femininity, brings the geometry of modern architecture into conversation with softness and movement. The white shirt features a defined collar, textured folds along the front and geometric seam lines across the back, using carefully placed construction details to express strength and elegance within the same garment.

Lukhanyo Kilivile is a Diploma in Fashion student at Walter Sisulu University. Her shirt, Suspended Heart, takes its shape from the curved petals, central openings and hanging blossoms of the bleeding-heart flower. A fitted base supports a detachable sculptural layer, with small suspended floral forms extending the botanical reference. Modular construction and zero-waste pattern-making principles guide a design whose components can also be worn separately.

Ntsoaki (Bonolo) Leteane is a student designer at the University of Johannesburg whose shirt explores feminine strength through romantic styling. Inspired by palace interiors and ideas of soft luxury, the design combines a fitted waist with gathered sleeves and draping around the hips. An asymmetric collar and silver buckle fastenings add structure to the flowing white fabric, expressing both softness and confidence.

Refilwe Mosebi is a student designer at STADIO School of Fashion and Design, with an interest in romantic volume and feminine detail. Drawing on the fashions of the 1800s, she uses pleating and gathering to transform plain white calico. Layered frills frame the yoke, while voluminous trumpet sleeves and a shaped waist give the shirt a dramatic yet delicate silhouette.

Rick Scheepers is a student designer at STADIO School of Fashion and Design whose shirt, Circular Tension, places reuse at the centre of its construction. Repurposed rusted metal rings both colour the fabric and connect sections of the garment. Openings, elongated panels and visible points of tension create the impression of fabric pulling against itself, making the hardware essential to the shirt’s form.

Rose Thabile Nene is a student designer at Fezile Fashion Skills Academy. Her white shirt combines an oversized collar and an asymmetric folded front with open shoulders and full sleeves gathered into cuffs. Green, yellow and brown botanical motifs extend across the front and back, adding colour and detail to the draped fabric. The result is a shirt with a soft silhouette and a distinctive botanical character.

Siviwe Ngcuwe is a student designer at Nelson Mandela University whose white cotton shirt combines a structured silhouette with handcrafted texture. A tall collar and a patchwork bodice give the design definition, while a crocheted belt draws attention to the waist. Inverted box pleats open out at the hem, bringing volume to a shirt that balances precise construction with decorative detail.

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