The year has been so full of surprises for her and her brand that she thought nothing could stun her anymore.
Until she found out that she would be showcasing her work at SA Fashion Week, one of the biggest platforms for any designer in the country.
Thando Ntuli founded her brand MUNKUS in 2019. She used her nickname that her family gave her when she was a child.
Speaking to Drum a day before her showcase at this year’s Autumn /Winter at SA Fashion Week, the founder of MUNKUS, says this whole year has been a lot of surprises and she appreciates the amount of faith that's been placed on her and her brand.
As the creative director and owner of the brand, she wants to use the power of storytelling through her clothing to allow women to be their most colourful, comfortable, and loud self.
She says she wanted a brand that has a sense of home, one that made you think of who you are when you are home.
She is one of the three creatives who are collaborating with OPPO for the Autumn/Winter collection at the fashion week.
She won a new talent competition in order to cement MUNKUS' spot in the show.
"I took the opportunity of becoming part of the OPPO collection and that is how I got to this specific show.
“OPPO picked me, Ntando XV, and Black Coffee, and I thought about how I can conceptualise something out of this because they are a tech brand, clearly they see something out of my brand that speaks to them as well as values.”
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Thando shares how she got here.
“I won the new talent for SA Fashion Week this year, and since then I have been showcasing. I am also showcasing in Nigeria now for Lagos Fashion Week, and I’ll also be showcasing in Kenya for Rwanda and Kenya Fashion Week in November. My brand is based on layering, the point is for the person wearing it to be able to layer it or wear it the way that they want.
"The brand is not specifically commercial or eventful type of luxury; the collection is my kind of going through the layering step and the process of allowing people to find themselves within the clothing and closing the age gap between older and younger women.”
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She says the whole brand is inspired by the women in her life, her mother, grandmother, and her great grandmother and this is why she mixes her style from her era to theirs.
Through craftsmanship, the Soweto-born designer wants to raise the voice of the everyday woman.
“MUNKUS lets you create layered looks by offering pieces that can be assembled in different ways or worn alone. MUNKUS garments are simple yet multi-purposeful go-to pieces for every occasion. Relatable to any woman no matter who you are or where you are. Women should feel the same fuzziness when hearing the name and wearing the clothing. This is an entire local experience in youthful attire that tells a story through colours and prints,” she says.
She says she is a millennial rooted in history and influenced by our predecessors. She aims to create something new with what is and what was.
“The idea of the brand is to incorporate the history of South Africa. MUNKUS lies within the streets of Soweto and townships like Gugulethu. A brand that will continue to grow because its inspirations are rooted within African intergenerational history.”
