Johannesburg - A pair of denim jeans are a wardrobe staple for men, women and children, but like a fingerprint, each pair is unique.
All major retail stores sell them in different colours and styles and while prices vary depending on the brand, with consumers sometimes forking out thousands, each pair of jeans is not necessarily the perfect fit.
This is where tailoring comes in, a service that can take ordinary and ill-fitted pants into a personalised pair which can be enjoyed according to each individual’s preferences.
Samkelo Boyde Xaba, a Johannesburg-based multi-disciplinary creative and the founder of an ethical contemporary clothing brand, is passionate about all things tailoring, and he and two others have been selected for an elite European programme.
Xaba, Dennis Collins and Sabelo Shabalala beat out hundreds of other applicants to G-Star RAW’s Certified Tailors service, which has now officially been launched in South Africa.
“I am honoured to be chosen amongst over 400 talented creatives in South Africa,” he said. The trio this week left South Africa to travel to Amsterdam, where the Dutch designer clothing company has its headquarters, to learn about RAW denim stitching techniques in order to turn them into G-Star denim experts, provide them with an insight into the product and enable the men to provide expert free jeans repairs to customers.
“Denim is a staple piece that’s durable, timeless and sustainable in every wardrobe, and now I have the opportunity to learn from the masters of raw denim,” Xaba said.
Last year, G-Star RAW successfully launched a pilot of its Certified Tailors programme across the Netherlands. The tailors provide free G-Star jeans repairs to customers, subsidised by the brand. The renowned fashion brand officially launched Certified Tailors in Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg last month.
The Certified Tailors programme aims to extend the lifetime of a pair of jeans by offering free repairs at selected tailors in South Africa, The Netherlands, Germany and Belgium. By introducing this initiative in South Africa, G-Star hopes to empower local entrepreneurs whilst expanding the life cycle of denim to help reduce the ever-growing fashion footprint.
Xaba, Collins and Shabalala beat out over 400 applicants from across Africa to be selected for the elite tailoring programme.
Collins is an emerging clothing designer based in Cape Town as well as a self-taught tailor, pattern-maker and designer. Through the programme, he is determined to invent products that are well-crafted and of the highest quality.
“I have been trying to push myself into a direction of excellence, and once I received the call from G-Star RAW, it just solidified that I’m on the right path,” he said.
“This whole experience adds to my vision, and is truly gratifying.”
Shabalala, a fashion and textile graduate based in Durban, Kwa-Zulu Natal with experience in design, garment construction and alteration, is also thrilled about being part of the programme.
“I love working with denim because unlike most fabrics you can give denim a second life almost. To be one of the selected tailors is very exciting and I can’t wait to begin working with the G-Star family and its high quality denim products,” he said.
As part of G-Star RAW’s Certified Tailors programme, the new free-of-charge initiative aims to enhance their customers’ experience in several ways.
The first is their ‘Return Your Denim’ policy where garments beyond repair can be handed in at G-Star stores where staff will ensure that they are properly recycled. The second is ‘The Art of RAW,’ a new art platform where international design talents – from interior designers to glass artists - are challenged to work with denim waste and dead stock. Old denim is then transformed into one-of-a-kind art pieces, creating awareness for circularity. The third is ‘Wear Longer, Wear Shorts,’ a new free-of-charge initiative as part of the Certified Tailors program that transforms old jeans into a brand-new pair of shorts to extend their life.