The 2026 Award Winners: Four Winners, Four Distinct Writing Styles<\/h2>\n
The jury honored four brands with strong identities that exemplify the richness, complexity, and stylistic diversity of the African continent:<\/p>\n
1. Mzukisi Mbane – Imprint South Africa – Best Designer Africa Award 2026<\/h3>\n
![\"Africa](\"https:\/\/africafashiontour.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Africa-Fashion-Up-Say-Who_Ayka-Lux-78-1024x683.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
- \n
- The award:<\/strong> Presented by Annika Mohr Storf\u00e4lt, Global Director of Sustainability at Balenciaga<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
- Identity:<\/strong> At the forefront of South African design, the Imprint South Africa brand has distinguished itself through its unapologetically Afro-futuristic aesthetic. Through vibrant, narrative prints and highly modern, sculptural silhouettes, Mzukisi Mbane redefines luxury ready-to-wear with undeniable visual impact. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
2. Mpumelelo Dhlamini – Ezokhetho – Special Jury Prize<\/h3>\n
- \n
- The Award:<\/strong> Presented by Clarisse Reille, Executive Director of DEFI<\/strong> andIFTH<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
- Identity:<\/strong> Another leading South African designer, Ezokhetho stands out for the profound poetry of her textile storytelling. Mpumelelo Dhlamini conceives her collections as living stories, where the choice of materials and the fluidity of the draping stand out as a vibrant tribute to cultural heritage and its transmission. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
3. Esther Okonta – Estaz – Young Designer Award<\/h3>\n
- \n
- The Award:<\/strong> Presented by Alexandre Liot, Deputy Chief Executive Officer in charge of operations on the Galeries Lafayette<\/strong> Executive Committee.<\/li>\n
- Brand Identity:<\/strong> Hailing from Nigeria, designer Esther Okonta offers, through her label Estaz, a particularly elegant contemporary women\u2019s collection characterized by ethical sourcing and responsible manufacturing techniques.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
4. William Kouakou Mackenzie & Thierry Bohui Aguy – Maison Kanty’s – Eco-Responsible Award<\/h3>\n
![\"Africa](\"https:\/\/africafashiontour.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Africa-Fashion-Up-Say-Who_Ayka-Lux-76-1024x683.jpg\")
<\/p>\n- \n
- The Award:<\/strong> Presented by \u00c9l\u00e9onore Caroit, Minister Delegate for the Francophonie, International Partnerships, and French Citizens Abroad<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
- Identity:<\/strong> The Ivorian duo behind Maison Kanty’s won over the jury with their eco-conscious and sustainable vision of fashion. By skillfully combining luxury upcycling, a respect for natural fibers, and excellent craftsmanship, they prove that West Africa\u2019s textile leadership hinges on environmental innovation. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Alongside these four award winners, the renowned Madagascan fashion designer \u00c9ric Raisina<\/strong> also shone on the runway, presenting an exclusive and colorful capsule collection that showcased his legendary mastery of silk craftsmanship.<\/p>\n
Between Luxury, Diplomacy, and Influence<\/h2>\n
More than 400 handpicked guests attended this exceptional evening, which brought together the most influential figures from the worlds of diplomacy, major institutions, and the global luxury industry.<\/p>\n
Among the attendees were leading executives from the fashion and jewelry industries, such as Gianfranco Gianangeli, CEO <\/strong>of Balenciaga, and Touhfa Rahali-Tellier, President <\/strong>of EMEA at Boucheron, Claire Coletti, <\/strong>Global Sustainability Director <\/strong>at Guerlain, and Vanessa Moungar<\/strong>, Group VP of Social Responsibility & Inclusion at LVMH.<\/p>\n
Pan-African culture and influence were also championed by stunning ambassadors such as Olivia Yac\u00e9<\/strong> (Miss C\u00f4te d’Ivoire 2021 and 2nd runner-up in Miss World 2022), Cl\u00e9mence Botino<\/strong> (Miss France 2020), and Flora Coquerel<\/strong> (Miss France 2014).<\/p>\n
Prominent social media influencers such as Coach Hamond Chic<\/strong>, Sophy Aiida<\/strong>, A\u00efssa Moments<\/strong>, and Simiane Tatu<\/strong> also widely promoted the event to their global communities, while artists like Blaqbonez<\/strong> and Yann Antonio<\/strong> set the tone for the evening with top-notch musical performances.<\/p>\n
From Brand Visibility to Industrial Brand Structuring<\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/africafashiontour.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Africa-Fashion-Up-Say-Who_Ayka-Lux-82_-1024x683.jpg\")
<\/p>\nWhat makes Africa Fashion Up uniquely strong is its refusal to limit itself to a mere, short-lived public relations event. The program serves as a genuine tool for long-term business growth for designers. <\/p>\n
Throughout Fashion Week, the four winners took part in an intensive business immersion program in Paris:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Balenciaga:<\/strong> The prestigious luxury fashion house offered a customized entrepreneurial mentorship program to help designers manage their growth.<\/li>\n
- HEC Paris:<\/strong> Teams and alumni from the HEC network led masterclasses on positioning strategy and profitability analysis for their brands.<\/li>\n
- Istituto Marangoni Paris:<\/strong> This leading fashion school has put its expertise to work for designers through workshops in design and applied art direction.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
As Gianfranco Gianangeli, CEO of Balenciaga, points out:<\/p>\n
“Through its commitment, the House contributes to the development of creativity in fashion by supporting emerging African designers on their entrepreneurial journey.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Changing Perspectives, Conquering Markets<\/h2>\n
By bringing together, for its $6^{\\text{e}$ By bringing together the biggest players in the luxury industry with a new generation of talent from Africa and its diaspora, Africa Fashion Up demonstrates that African fashion has everything it needs to conquer the world\u2019s most selective retail channels.<\/p>\n
From Maison Kanty’s eco-conscious rigor to Imprint’s boldness, the winners of the 2026 class no longer need permission to show in Paris: they\u2019ve made their mark there through the sheer power of their creativity and vision.<\/p>\n
\nRead also<\/p>\n
- \n
- GALXBOY: The South African streetwear success story that is redefining African luxury<\/a><\/li>\n
- Marina Esso, founder of the Sanaa brand<\/a><\/li>\n
- The Lagos Fashion Week Manifesto for African Fashion<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
On June 26, 2026, in the midst of Fashion Week, the Mus\u00e9e du quai Branly hosted the closing ceremony of the 6th edition of Africa Fashion Up. Held under the patronage of Emmanuel Macron, this event\u2014founded by Val\u00e9rie Ka and Share Africa\u2014celebrates contemporary African design as a major creative and entrepreneurial force in the global industry. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":13495,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[147],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13503","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mode-en"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/africafashiontour.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13503","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/africafashiontour.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/africafashiontour.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/africafashiontour.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/africafashiontour.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13503"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/africafashiontour.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13503\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13517,"href":"https:\/\/africafashiontour.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13503\/revisions\/13517"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/africafashiontour.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13495"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/africafashiontour.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13503"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/africafashiontour.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13503"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/africafashiontour.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13503"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
- Marina Esso, founder of the Sanaa brand<\/a><\/li>\n
- HEC Paris:<\/strong> Teams and alumni from the HEC network led masterclasses on positioning strategy and profitability analysis for their brands.<\/li>\n
- Identity:<\/strong> The Ivorian duo behind Maison Kanty’s won over the jury with their eco-conscious and sustainable vision of fashion. By skillfully combining luxury upcycling, a respect for natural fibers, and excellent craftsmanship, they prove that West Africa\u2019s textile leadership hinges on environmental innovation. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- Brand Identity:<\/strong> Hailing from Nigeria, designer Esther Okonta offers, through her label Estaz, a particularly elegant contemporary women\u2019s collection characterized by ethical sourcing and responsible manufacturing techniques.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- Identity:<\/strong> Another leading South African designer, Ezokhetho stands out for the profound poetry of her textile storytelling. Mpumelelo Dhlamini conceives her collections as living stories, where the choice of materials and the fluidity of the draping stand out as a vibrant tribute to cultural heritage and its transmission. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- Identity:<\/strong> At the forefront of South African design, the Imprint South Africa brand has distinguished itself through its unapologetically Afro-futuristic aesthetic. Through vibrant, narrative prints and highly modern, sculptural silhouettes, Mzukisi Mbane redefines luxury ready-to-wear with undeniable visual impact. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n