The Standard Bank Luju Food & Lifestyle Festival is Eswatini’s not-to-be-missed fashion event of the year, and 2024 was no different, with a packed programme of future-forward fashion!
The sixth edition of the Standard Bank Luju Food & Lifestyle Festival was held from 1-2 August 2025.
Festivalgoers enjoy the spectacle of the Luju Fashion Show on the Mastercard Stage, where a host of talented designers from Eswatini and the region showcase their unique and directional collections in a high-energy performance and storytelling runway experience.
The Luju fashion program spotlights local designers, with a focus on their journey to showcasing at the Luju Fashion Show. Through the provision of mentorship, trade linkages, technical support, and media coverage, the program supports the growth and development of Eswatini fashion entrepreneurs, all while promoting cultural exchanges between regional designers, using fashion as a medium to tell African stories, and to driving awareness on environmental sustainability in fashion production and consumption.
The Standard Bank Luju Fashion Indaba, an industry conference on the business of fashion preceding the main festival, draws focus to the current state of Eswatini fashion, and common challenges facing fashion designers and the industry at large, working towards cultivating a value chain that prioritizes sustainable production and consumption within the fashion industry.
This event brings together various stakeholders within the local fashion industry to engage in discussions aimed at empowering the sector to tackle common challenges, revealing growth opportunities, and sharing valuable knowledge, as we work towards cultivating a value chain that prioritizes sustainable production and consumption within the fashion industry.
With panel discussions facilitated by industry experts from across Southern Africa, the Luju Fashion Indaba invites local fashion entrepreneurs & enthusiasts, financial and academic institutions, government agencies, local NGOs, and others with a stake in the future of fashion in the country and across the continent.
Luju Festival
Overview
The Standard Bank Luju Food & Lifestyle Festival is an annual two-day regional showcase of culinary exploits, future-forward fashion, fine music, and wholesome entertainment. Inspired by the festival ethos, “A Return to the African Future”, Luju celebrates the sophistication and elegance of African heritage, cuisine and creative design.
Theme
This year’s fashion theme is “Threads of Time: African Textiles Past, Present, & Future”. Threads of Time makes reference to the rich tapestry of African cultural wisdom as expressed through the evolution of African textiles, fashion and adornment over the years. This theme encourages festival attendees to explore the history, materials, inspiration and storytelling behind African textiles, and to consider how these textiles have transformed alongside fashion trends and influences throughout the years.
Examining traditional African textiles opens a pathway to culturally significant and sustainable fashion. By drawing on Africa’s rich textile heritage and utilizing inherent natural resources, the African fashion industry can create a future that honors the past while meeting the needs of both present and future generations. A future embracing fashion circulatory created in Africa.
The Fashion Café
A fusion of more than 30 authentic local handcraft, fashion and beauty brands, as well as a Taste of Mozambique with 6 craft and fashion brands, the Fashion Café marketplace is a hive of creative abundance, selling diverse African fashion, accessories as well as skin and hair care products.
Festivalgoers can find a wide range of items inspired by African culture and heritage, including vibrant clothing, unique jewelry, and nourishing skin care products.
Whether festivalgoers are looking to add some bold statement pieces to their look or want to incorporate natural, plant-based ingredients into their skin care routine, this marketplace has something for everyone.
The Fashion Café supports enterprise growth and development for Eswatini’s craft brands, encouraging sustainable materials and innovative design. Festivalgoers can shop with confidence, knowing that they are supporting small independent businesses with a strong sustainability focus and promoting the beauty of African craftsmanship.
