Madida (28) started earning “proper” cheques at around age 15, when she began racking up beauty pageant wins and success as a TV presenter. She promptly blew all the money.
“I really can’t tell you where it went. I remember buying lots of ice-cream and make-up, as well as those really cool shoes that looked like roller skates! I bought them for all my friends,” she laughs.
It was the last frivolous year she’d spend when it came to her finances, as she was horrified by the thousands of rands she’d wasted and developed an addictive habit of saving. As a result, by the time she launched her own fashion range, Colour, just over a decade later, she had a sizeable amount of her own capital to plough into the business.
“I spent just over R1 million setting up Colour, so it was lucky that I’d become very frugal,” she says. “It was 100% me. There was no sponsorship, government or brand involvement – only my savings. It wasn’t easy, but I’m not in debt, which is the best feeling.”
Colour’s been a good few years in the making, with Madida initially doubting the financial viability of a fashion business, especially in SA. Nevertheless, she says she’d long dreamed of running a clothing range.
“I grew up with Minnie Dlamini and she recently reminded me of the garments I sold in high school called Couple’s Clothing – matching T-shirts for girls and boys. I made a lot of money off all those hormones at school!” she laughs.
“Although I wanted to have a clothing range, I was slightly sceptical about getting into the industry, because I’ve done my research and it’s clear that fashion in SA doesn’t generate a lot of income. It can, but you need to have a big plan for where you want to go.”
With a mix of high-end couture items and striking, ready-to-wear separates starting at R800, Madida seems to have found a fashion sweet spot. The heroine piece in the line, a black, white and brown geometric gown which she unveiled at the BET Awards in June this year, has just been nominated for the Design Indaba’s Most Beautiful Object award for 2017, a firm stamp of approval.
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