These days everybody calls themselves a fashion designer – unfortunately, some are in it for glamour not real passion. But one of the few in an exclusive league of their own is Tungwane Ignatius Matlala, the owner of Brakpan-based Gali Gali, which manufactures clothes for all occasions, as Transform SA Online’s Joy Kunene discovers in an interview at the company’s premises.
TSAO: From the look of things, Gali Gali is now posed for further growth. How did it all start?
TIM: Though I established Gali Gali in 2014, my journey into this field can be traced from high school, where I studied art. That’s was when I became fascinated with creating things from nothing. With time, I discovered that my passion lied in fashion designing, and then I did a certificate course in fashion design. In a nutshell, that’s where I can say it all started.
TSAO: Your designs are mesmerising. Where do you draw your inspiration from?
TSAO: First of all, let me say in this business you are as good as your last good design. In other words, what you did and impressed customers yesterday might not be someone else’s cup of tea. That’s why you have on your with your ear to the ground all the time. Like most designers, I conduct research on fashion trends and interpret them for my audience. It’s quite an elaborate process.
TSAO: What’s your typical approach to a task?
TIM: You have to understand that you are making garments for people with different shapes and sizes. Hence, accommodate everyone and also make garments for special occasions like weddings and matric dances.
TSAO: We heard that you have launched a label. Tell us more about it?
TIM: My love and passion for fashion and making others look and feel good motivated me to start my own label. I know there are hundreds of thousands of labels out there all competing for the customer’s attention. That’s why to stand out as a small business, I have to offer something distinctive. With big brands, people can just go to a retail store and buy their merchandise but, after research, I opted for a different approach where a customer can determine what kind of outfit they want, without imposing anything on them. In fact, I custom-make to customers’ specifications.
TSAO: Could you disclose any the future plans for the business?
TIM: I have showcased some of my designs but have never hosted my own fashion show. This is his year because I plan to showcase my designs and invite other designers as well. I know that involves hard work, but I will rise to the challenge.
TSAO: Last but not least, it seems you are both a good designer and a businessman. What can you tell our youth about entrepreneurship?
TIM: I have learnt a lot from being self-employed, and I believe I can offer an advice or two to businesses. If there is someone who tells you that operating a business is easy, they are not sincere. To be frank, business is about taking a risk; not only do you invest your money but time as well. Thus, as much as possible, you have to manage the risk of failure and keep your business sustainable as much as possible.
In the saturated fashion design business, I assume the same would apply to other sectors, for one to stand out they have to create a brand that people can relate to.
It is important for youth to grasp very basic facts of operating a business. At the rate things are going, there won’t be many employment opportunities in the coming years, and entrepreneurship might not be a cure-all to the problem, but, at the very least, one of the solutions.
TSAO: What advice would you give to someone who wants to venture in fashion design?
TIM: How best can I put it. Follow your heart, love what you do and research thoroughly. At the moment, our African designs are reshaping the face fashion, what that means is that us designers have the opportunity to make our traditional attires known on a bigger stage. It’s definitely time to seize the moment.
Edited by Transform SA Online Editor
