Five years ago, on an average day, students at Stellenbosch University (SU) would stroll to class dressed and draped in their favourite chinos and leggings. These outfits were, come rain or shine, paired with their favourite pair of “plakkies” all year-round, with few exceptions.
Now, fashion in Stellenbosch is on the rise as students are regularly seen in linen dresses, colourful prints and even high fashion brands such as Balenciaga and Off-White.
The recent upswing in fashion interest around campus is rooted in the impact that social media has. It is hard to look past the roles that “influencers” and celebrities, such as the Kardashian family and models like Luka Sabbat, have played in shaping the current fashion landscape.
Trends have always shaped and influenced people to dress in ways that the general public sees as fashionable.
Even before Instagram became the social media superpower it is today, Stellenbosch was flooded by the plague of white Converse All-Star high-tops from 2014 to around the end of 2015.
Many brands have, in recent years, reinvented themselves catering specifically to an audience that consumes their products on social media first. Products are teased in impeccably well thought out ad campaigns that match or even trump the work done by established companies.
Cast your mind to Balenciaga’s “paparazzi” campaign for spring 2018. Locally, online presence brands like Sol-Sol have garnered attention mainly through social media.
Now, more than ever, a large number of young adults are so cultured in developments in fashion that individuals see and incorporate fashion from different areas, “whether that be trends originating in Johannesburg or Cape Town,” said Danielle Gradwell (21), a member of Style Indaba.
The Style Indaba team from left to right: Viwe Benxa (23), Bagcine Gabelana (21), Naledi Yona (21), Danielle Gradwell (21), Nicole Weels (21) and Zolisa Pule (21). PHOTO: Casey Delport
Viwe Benxa (23), a student in B Social Work at SU, started the Style Indaba page as a student movement which gives recognition to students who invest time and effort into curating a distinctive look for themselves.
“I started Style Indaba because of my love for fashion and styling. However, the main reason was the whole misconception of Stellies fashion.” He says he got fed-up with the narrative that all SU students wear “plakkies” and shorts without consideration for their appearance.
“Stellies people can actually dress. People do put in the effort every morning into what they wear, and the page was designed to recognise those people who actually think before they dress.”
Style Indaba is an influencer and those who feature on the page should also be seen as influencers.
It might seem vain, but everybody enjoys a compliment about the way they are dressed and that is exactly what Style Indaba does: observe and search for that one special outfit on campus to show appreciation for.
Bagcine Gabelana (21), co-founder of Style Indaba shares this view. “I feel as though it [fashion] will still have a big jump now that there’s Style Indaba because people are actually getting recognised. I mean who wouldn’t want to be?” said Gabelana.
The Style Indaba team also agreed that SU fashion has evolved in a very short period of time, with students taking more and more inspiration from what they see online.
This brings its own challenges as most brands seen on Instagram are not available in South Africa. However, people have worked around this by using the branded clothes as inspiration and interpreting the looks in their own ways.
SU fashion is best explained by Naledi Yona (21), who is also a member of the Style Indaba team. “Stellies fashion is growing as opposed to before. When I came here, leggings and skinny jeans were enough to prove ‘slayage’ but now, students are more experimental.”
“It’s not about doing it for others, but rather as a way to showcase yourself. Show what makes you an individual and who knows, with the leaps being made in Stellenbosch, we may consider the Rooiplein a catwalk sooner than later”
Style Indaba celebrated their first anniversary on 13 May this year with a glittering event at the GUS gallery.