Mihlali and Other SA Icons Make Africa’s Top Fashion Influencers
Mihlali Ndamase has proved herself to be Mzansi’s favourite ‘It Girl’. She broke into the beauty industry only five years ago and yet she’s already conquered Forbes’ #30under30 lists, worked with popular brands like Revlon and Mac Cosmetics and is often making headlines in trending social media news.
Unsurprisingly, Mihlali was recently listed as one of the top five influencers in Africa in a Launchmetrics ranking for WWD. The ranking is based on media impact value (MIV) and South Africans clearly dominate the list. Those alongside Mihlali are Sarah Langa, Kefilwe Mabote and Lesego Legobane (professionally known as Thickleeyonce).
Mihlali in particular is said to have generated $143,000 in MIV for a Fashion Nova Post, $112,000 for one with Revlon and $80,000 for a Dior makeup post. Her listing under Forbes has opened her up to luxury content in partnership with hospitality brands like Radisson Hotels and Protea Hotels by Marriott.
Author and influencer Kefilwe Mabote raked in $49,000 in MIV for an Ugg post and has worked with designers like Burberry, Versace and Tom Ford.
Body-positive, plus-size model Thickleeyonce is not afraid to let fans know she’s living it up due to her social media fame.
“I’m not going to lie to you, once you have reached that level of being a top influencer there is a lot of money…” she said in a Sowetan interview.
“I haven’t been affected by Covid-19 as an influencer. If anything, I have secured more jobs.”
The influencer made $50,000 in MIV for a post with Ivy Park, $63,000 for one with Bombay Sapphire and $39,000 for a Fashion Nova Post.
Sarah Langa, on the other hand, has recently expressed how hard it is to deal with trolls and negative criticism online. Despite these difficulties, Sarah has managed to spread her influence on social media through a variety of brands. She’s generated a combined total of $73 000 in MIV in posts with fast-fashion e-tailer PrettyLittleThing, Nespresso and Patrón Tequila.
International brands have to do extensive research to pick the right influencers to work with. Women like Mihlali and Thickleeyonce have clearly worked hard and smart to grow and solidify their brands in an arena where trends and ‘It Girls’ constantly come and go.