Up-and-coming designer strikes gold

By Seleoe Nonyane

Joachim Garments is fast becoming a household name in the country after the clothing brand recently released a new collection called “TAEMANE”.

Joachim Garments is a Basotho luxury streetwear brand that offers a wide range of clothing such as dresses, jackets, pants and more.

Founded in 2019, Joachim Garments is a local fashion brand owned by a self-taught fashion designer, Katiso Tsoho, a Health Information Management graduate from Botho University. His masterpieces are inspired by Basotho culture and history.

He explained that the idea for “TAEMANE” was entirely a deconstruction of his miner uncle’s Brentwood Argyle print sweater or “LETAESE” (dice) as it commonly called in Sesotho. An argyle is a pattern composed of diamonds of various colours on a plain background, used in knitted garments such as sweaters and socks.

Tsoho said although the collection is still new, it has opened up possibilities he never imagined. It has also made him appreciate the importance of life experiences and how they mould his perspective in fashion as a designer.

Joachim Garments has also collaborated with giant companies in the country, providing them with custom-made clothing. These companies are Econet Telecom Lesotho, Vodacom Lesotho, Maluti Mountain Brewery, KAO, Standard Lesotho Bank, Stanlib, and Metropolitan.

The fashion designer has since grown his business and ventured into the business of manufacturing as he now owns a production company called Liaparo.

Talking to theReporter this week, Tsoho said Liaparo is an independent firm that manufactures clothes in bulk for various clients, including Joachim Garments itself.

“The manufacturing company follows specific guidelines when producing clothes for other companies or individuals. These include the number of units per design and the available resources for production,” he noted.

Customers who approach the company receive guidance and assistance based on their individual needs, and prices vary according to these requirements.

Tsoho indicated that running the business has proven to be an exciting journey. He however, acknowledged that running it comes with a lot of hurdles, the major challenge is lack of resources.

He said he had to find ways to tackle this problem and he would travel South Africa in search of the right fabric.

This notwithstanding, Tsoho still marvels at business’ growth which he attributes to his marketing strategy and collaborating with famous local influencers to enhance brand awareness.

He said he got into the industry through his curiosity in the art. He always thought there was a missing touch in the existing fashion industry that he could not get anywhere.

That is when he decided to start creating ideas in his imagination to life by sewing clothing pieces for himself using his grandfather’s machine. This all happened when he was still at Botho in 2018.

“I never went to school for fashion designing. It is something that I learnt on my own and perfected on my own,” he said.

From making clothes for himself, people started asking him to design some wear for them. That boosted his passion to move on, making him an attraction to many fashion lovers.

Tsoho describes the feeling of seeing his brand making such a mark as humbling.

Orders can be placed on this number +266 59155530