The 20yr Vet

Rubicon

Meet the designer behind one of South Africa’s leading brands

Now that fashion week is over and all the diverse collections from Africa’s leading designers have been showcased, it is time to place the spotlight on some of our favorite designers. And the fashion brand Rubicon, is undeniably one that deserves a massive spotlight on not only the culture of the brand but their triumphs as well. Rubicon as a brand has been in establishment for 19 years, an impressive benchmark for the company and since their inception in 2002 it has become one of South Africa’s most desirable labels for “women with a worldliness inspired mind-set”. Most notably the brand has been participating in SA Fashion Week for the last 10 years.

Founder of Rubicon, Hangwani Nengovhela’s passion for fashion started at the ripe age of 7 when she started making clothing, the first ever garment she created was a skirt. A lot of her younger years were spent helping her mother design and manufacture clothing and from then on, the passion went on to flourish. Hangwani believes that she did not decide to love fashion, but rather, she was born to do it. Hangwani wanted a name that had meaning behind it and by choosing this name; she ensured that the brand would hold deep meaning and become the embodiment of the tale of Rubicon. The name Rubicon means “Crossing the Rubicon”, which pertains to Julius Caesar crossing the Rubicon river with his army, an act that was forbidden by the Roman Senate as it was a Northern boundary of Italy. Caesar crossed the river regardless, and this disobedience was considered as insurrection, treason and a declaration of war. Now, crossing the Rubicon has become a metaphor that describes “To pass a point of no return”. And this is what Hangwani did, she established her brand in 2002 and never looked back, now almost 20 years later, the brand is still standing and more successful than ever. To Hangwani, it’s all about resilience and not looking back; she had failed once before and got up once again to create a brand that has withstood any force within its path.

This year’s Fashion week was rather different for Hangwani as her father had recently passed, a great tragedy, but with the strength of her resilience and the need for the completion of the collection, she powered through it all and was able to give fashion week one of its best pieces for the show. She stated in the interview I conducted with her that “I felt as though my dad really was there all the time, it was such a peaceful collection to create”

Hangwani gained inspiration from Japanese fashion for the SS21 collection that was showcased in S.A fashion week. She stated that “I love how they come up with their way of how they influence the culture into their fashion. And in that sense, it’s very clean and minimalistic” she went on to further describe how “The top stitching itself it brings a lot of glamor; it brings glamour to any aesthetic. So I added the top stitching on it and layering of fabrics with the Japanese influence and just finishing into a traditional Rubicon aesthetic.” Hangwani’s designs are aimed at making women feel beautiful in garments and to ensure that the fabric she uses feels soft on the skin.

Africa is a deeply spiritual place, and I would be lying if I said that I didn’t see the authenticity and spirituality of Africa not only in this brand, but within the creator of the brand as well. A lot of her collections take a look at Africa’s history to ensure that every collection tells a story. She has a deep connection to the life that runs through the roots and history of Africa. And this connection runs deeper than the trees and plants that she speaks to. This connection runs through the seams and fabrics of each piece of clothing the brand produces. She breathes life into every piece of clothing that the brand creates, by picking up the material used and feeling it in between her fingertips as she believes that nothing is lifeless. There can be life and meaning found in anything. What is next for this brand? Hangwani has no interest in slowing down as her brand continues to grow each day. She has the intention to create a collection dedicated to her father that has recently passed, much similar to the collection she dedicated to her mother titled “Myth of Origin”. This is an aspect to definitely keep your eye out for as each collection she produces is as spectacular as the last. You might see some interesting collaborations come up in the future of Rubicon as Hangwani has stated that international partnership is always on the table. And with Rubicons already impressive features in the destinations of Nigeria, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Switzerland, China, Paris and Mozambique, the future looks bright for this brand as we could be seeing more countries added to this already notable list and more beautiful garments and designs yet to be shown.