I Went to Windhoek Fashion Week 2022 — RS Clothing 1st Runaway
Friday, 04th of November 2022 — surely a day to remember. I am not familiar with fashion shows, so I wouldn’t be able to describe the quality of the planning but I can surely describe how I felt seeing my sister’s collection on stage, the designer Renata Silva.
We’re three siblings and Renata is our last born — our Princess and balance. Seeing her creations on stage last Friday reminded me of a recent content I heard on the power of incubation. On the importance of not being exposed too soon and having enough isolated time to nurture one’s talent and develop one’s skills well enough.
Growing up, one of the most prominent traits of her personality were how spontaneous and communicative Renata was. Wherever she arrived, her presence would always be felt, simply because of how easygoing she could be with just anyone, within any age bracket.
Renata is also a creative by nature. While in her primary school years, she would always buy coloring books and spend a long time making efforts to get them completed. As we least expected, by the age of 11/12 (I can’t recall exactly), Renata started a series of family events.
She started organizing talent shows often, where most of our younger cousins (around her age at the time) would display their favorite clothing on a fashion show, and those that loved singing and reading poems would also have their slots.
The older cousins, alongside the rest of the family, voted for the best talents and offered gifts, while we all enjoyed a huge family lunch together.
Since then, Renata told everyone that she would become an Events Planner. Literally everyone.
A few years later, her boldness in using social media to reach out to major Events Planning personalities in Angola, telling them her story and aspirations as a way to connect was truly impressive.
She would also attend a few events on the subject. In this video here, she is highlighted as the youngest in the room at one of Karina Barbosa’s (a leading businesswoman and events planner in Angola) interviews.
In 2017, at 15 years old, Renata received a sewing kit from one of our aunties. Until then, she had no contact with fashion. Little did she know what would later unfold from there.
Her creative nature took over. Renata spent hours doing hair bowls. She would then start making cuts on her own clothing and adjusting them to the style she wanted.
Pencils cases, book covers, handbags, and masks (a lot of masks during covid) followed — creations that she sold to all her high school friends.
Requests started coming for very simple pieces of clothing. Renata started taking those requests and using step-by-step videos on Youtube to get them done. Her skills skyrocketed.
“Practice means to perform, over and over again in the face of all obstacles, some act of vision, of faith, of desire. Practice is a means of inviting the perfection desired.” — Martha Graham
Upon finishing High School in 2019, Renata started a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management at Namibia University of Science and Technology, while simultaneously searching and applying for the Top Fashion Schools across the African continent.
Mid-2021, she was accepted into Villioti Fashion Institute in Johannesburg. She finished her second yearof Business Management and put her final year on hold to move to South Africa early this year for a Higher Certificate in Fashion Design which she is currently pursuing. Continues being bold!
What was initially an Instagram page where Renata displayed and sold pencil cases, has become RS Clothing, her brand today.
In 2021 she became an Anzisha Prize Finalist as one of Africa’s Top Young Entrepreneurs below the age of 22 and is currently incubated at Fashionomics Africa — a platform that connects African designers and entrepreneurs with consumers, mentors & investors around the world.
RS Clothing had its debut Fashion Show last Friday at Windhoek Fashion Week. As the models passed by, I couldn’t help but have flashbacks of how her trajectory has been.
The incubation time is over. Renata is warming up and now ready for the world and I couldn’t be more proud as an older brother and eternal supporter.
Watch her runway show on my Youtube channel:
More about RS Clothing:
https://linktr.ee/rsclothing1
