The Absa Champagne in Africa Festival, the continent’s foremost celebration of authentic French champagne and luxury culture, unveiled one of its most anticipated creative highlights this year: an exclusive fashion collaboration with internationally acclaimed designer Rich Mnisi.
As the festival marked its 23rd edition and ushered in a new era through its first-ever national expansion to Cape Town, the Johannesburg showcase introduced an artistic dimension that resonated deeply with fashion and design communities across the continent.
Known for his boundary-breaking approach to African luxury, Mnisi created a bespoke limited-edition capsule exclusively for the 2025 Absa Champagne in Africa Festival. This collaboration formed a major design moment, seamlessly blending:
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African identity and minimalist opulence
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French champagne heritage
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Collectible, wearable art
Central to the capsule were two signature items:
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A limited-edition silk scarf, and
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A matching pocket square,
both designed as keepsake pieces for festival guests. In true Rich Mnisi fashion, the artworks layered bold symbolism, elegant linework, and a reverence for storytelling, capturing the intersection of African expression and refined European craft that defines the festival.
“These pieces weren’t created as accessories; they were created as stories,” Mnisi shared onsite. “The festival holds such a unique space in African luxury culture, and I wanted the capsule to feel like a bridge between worlds, contemporary, grounded, expressive and timeless.”
As title sponsor, Absa has expanded the festival’s purpose beyond champagne appreciation, shaping it into a cultural platform spotlighting excellence in African creativity, from gastronomy to design to fashion.
“The collaboration with Rich Mnisi represents exactly what the Absa Champagne in Africa Festival stands for,” said Sydney Mbhele, Group Chief Marketing and Corporate Affairs Officer at Absa Group. “It is a celebration of craft and culture, and a reminder that African creativity belongs firmly at the centre of global luxury conversations.”
The 2025 festival’s Johannesburg edition, curated in partnership with Ambassadeur Dignitaire of L’Ordre des Coteaux de Champagne, Shaun Anderson, welcomed guests into a world where couture sensibility met the artistry of over 40 authentic French champagne houses.
Mnisi’s capsule became one of the most photographed and discussed elements of the evening, embraced by collectors, stylists, cultural tastemakers and design-forward attendees.
The Absa Champagne in Africa Festival has long been a space where fashion and luxury naturally converge. This year’s collaboration signals a deeper commitment to positioning African creators at the forefront of global luxury narratives, aligning with Absa’s broader ambition to champion African talent and creative entrepreneurship.
With the festival’s national expansion, including the Cape Town edition on 22 November at the Norval Arts Foundation, fashion audiences could expect this lens of luxury and cultural storytelling to continue evolving.
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