South Africa-based Thembani Mubochwa yesterday donated 100 school uniforms and 45 choir sets to Chikato Primary School in Masvingo. Mubochwa said he had been touched by the predicament faced by some children attending the school. BY STAFF REPORTER
“We were working with one of the teachers who travelled to Durban and told us of the plight of the children at the school,” said Mubochwa. “We are hoping corporates and the donor community can emulate our effort as this is just a drop in the ocean.”
Mubochwa said he would roll out more similar programmes to ensure that he makes a difference in children’s lives.
“I am not a rich man, but I know the little I can spare goes a long way in improving the life of the person next to me. It is that belief that we are nurturing with this donation.
“We have very little information of the school, but we understand that there are a lot of families struggling to send their children to school.
“In our engagements we also encourage that families afford their children equal opportunities and not discriminate on the basis of gender. All my kids are girls and I cannot be happier. A girl child is just as able as a boy only if we gave them equal support.”
Mubochwa is the founder and director of Durban-based TZM Fashion House.
The fashion designer has dressed several celebrities in the South African port city.
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Mubochwa was born in 1983 in Harare’s Glen View suburb. He grew up in a family of five.
At the age of 17 he was introduced to what was to be his career, fashion designing, and he has not looked back.
He was to move to South Africa in 2004 in a quest to further his knowledge and exploits.
And indeed he has managed to touch and broaden his horizons and now caters for a significant number of red carpet outfits at several events in Durban.
According to Mubochwa, there is a lot of joy in impacting the next person’s life, and to that effect, yesterday he embarked on a long and tiresome journey from Ethekwini to Masvingo where he made the donation.
Mubochwa expects to be participating for the third consecutive year in the annual Zimbabwe Fashion Week.
He also has several projects being initiated in the country that include engaging retail shops that he believes are in dire need of a local touch on their shelves.
“I am also introducing Thembani Mubochwa the designer who will be responsible for the celebrities that need a certain degree of uniqueness,” he said.
“We do have brilliant designers in the country but they do not get the chance to showcase their worth. Film costumes are all taken from shops and no designers benefit from such ventures.
“But my goal is to make sure we acculturate our celebrities so that they know they do not need to go shopping for a special event or a red carpet outfit. Instead they should just engage a designer who takes care of their public image. That way it is difficult to go wrong.”
The designer has engaged radio and television personalities Timothy Hogo and Hazvinei Sakarombe as his brand ambassadors for this year.
