The Forbes 30/50 AFI Fashion Showcase

Dr. Precious Moloi-Motsepe is a medical doctor by trade, but an interest in fashion—and desire to help African fashion brands get global attention—inspired her to found the African Fashion Institute in 2007. Through AFI, Motsepe is working to bring investment and consumer attention to African designers of all types; to date, the AFI platform includes 100 emerging and established designers.

On March 7, during the inaugural Forbes 30/50 Summit in Abu Dhabi, AFI partnered with Forbes on a fashion showcase featuring seven of AFI’s best designers, who traveled to the UAE from Ghana, South Africa, Egypt and beyond. The evening culminated with 56-year-old supermodel Paulina Porizkova making a triumphant return to the catwalk, closing the show in a vibrant Sara Tamimi dress and overcoat.

Keep scrolling to see the dazzling designs from the showcase and hear insights from Dr. Motsepe and each designer.

Sober Design House / Tshepo Mafokwane

Tshepo Mafokwane launched Sober Design House in South Africa in 2006. A fashion design graduate from the Tshwane University of Technology, Mafokwane has said her goal is to celebrate all women and their tremendous ability to conquer anything.

Christie Brown / Aisha Ayensu

Two-time African Designer of the Year award winner Aisha Ayensu founded the Ghana-based Christie Brown label in 2008. Ayensu’s designs have been worn by Alicia Keys, Kelly Rowland, and Beyoncé and appeared on the pages of Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue Italia. Ayensu was also listed as one of Forbes‘ Most Promising Entrepreneurs in 2016.

Marie Louis Bishara

Marie Louis Bishara is a Cairo-based fashion designer who has shown her work at Paris Fashion Week and the Prêt a Porter and Haute Couture fashion shows. She is first female president of The Egyptian Apparel & Export Council, and she is also the CEO and vice chairman of Egyptian agricultural company Bishara Group.

Laaniraani / Shamyra Moodley

Shamyra Moodley was on maternity leave when she developed the idea for Laaniraani, a South African design label with a focus on sustainability and multiculturalism: All of Moodley’s work is handmade with reclaimed or recycled pieces of fabric, and each piece aims to reflect her African, Indian and Irish heritage. In 2021, Moodley was named an AFI Fastrack Young Designer of the Year.

Sima Collezione / Sima Azadegan

When she turned 50 years old, Iranian-American designer Sima Azadegan founded the Sima Collezione with a goal of using her work to help empower women of all ages. Her designs have appeared at New York Fashion Week and have upcoming showcases in the Paris and Milan Fashion Weeks.

Eric Raisina

Born in Madagascar, educated in Paris and now based in Siem Reap, Cambodia, Raisina is known for his “haute texture” technique, which he developed while working for for Yves Saint Laurent. His process involves taking a raw textile, like silk, and transforming it into something else entirely, like fur.

Sara Tamimi

Abu Dhabi’s own Sara Tamimi always wanted to be a fashion designer; she says that even when she was a child, she’d create the clothes she couldn’t find in the store. Today, Tamimi runs a label with a focus on sustainability—she’s been outspoken against fast fashion’s negative effects on the environment—and detail.

copy by Maggie McGrath; video by Ivan Clow and Tim Pierson; photos by Colin Baldwin and photo editing from Merrilee Barton