Behind the name: Luyanda Sithole

The beautiful thing about women in this day and age is the fact that women are now hardly boxed into three categories of womanhood namely being a wife,mother and sister. Women are pushing the boundaries and thriving in whatever they set their eyes on so in the spirit of celebrating young women,we travel Los Angeles (YES!! I did say push boundaries) to talk to the ever so stylish Luyanda Sithole. Pennsylvania born,SA raised young lady who is also the founder and CEO of an online fashion store name Revolt Clothing. With her edgy style and drive for success,she shows the world what young women are made of,one stitch at a time.

1.    Luyanda Sithole is a feisty, independent woman. Her favourite position is CEO. She also cannot wait to be a wife and mother. She is quite complex and there is not enough space to get into all that.

2.    Born in Pennsylvania USA, was the transition back to South Africa difficult or rather natural? I was 2 years old when I moved to South Africa so it was pretty natural. All I needed was soft food and toys.

3.   Young as you are, what would you say is the biggest misconception about you? Mmmm lol well people think I don’t listen. I just hardly give the answer you want once asked what I think.

4.    You went to the National School of the Arts in Johannesburg; would you say that was your pinnacle moment in knowing you wanted to be in the Arts? No, my pinnacle moment was when I was 6 years old and loved to dance so my folk put me into ballet. Didn’t help that my family are in the arts too.

5.    What was the biggest challenge in going to a school that's pretty much filled with creatives in every corner? Oh wow that is a complex question, because there were tons of challenges in different aspects, but I would say finding your competitor and beating them. We were always taught to do that, as well as be supportive to one another. Took some time to figure out but we did it.

6.   You then moved to Los Angeles to study fashion marketing, why the decision to move back to the USA? I get asked this question a lot and I wish I had an inspiring story but basically I am a citizen so why not?

7.   Not a lot of people know that you have actually dabbled in music, how did that come about? My parents own a record label so I have always been around the music industry. So for some time I thought it was my dream too…It wasn’t.

8. Working with Tricky Stewart who's pretty much worked with big names such as Mary J Blige, Mariah Carey, Rihanna and even Beyoncé, how was that experience and what did you take from it? It was a very crazy experience to have such an intense internship while I was in my last year of school. It was a lot of late nights in studio. But I learnt how to conduct myself amongst different levels of people. How to get ish done,  no matter what type of pressure you are in. The greatest was how to strive for excellence at all times.

9. You say fashion has always had your heart, would you say that influenced your decision in pursuing it further? Yes, and I know how to do it pretty well. The ecommerce, business side of fashion at least.

10. With this passion, how did you start your fashion career? I really started pursing my fashion career by becoming a social media and marketing specialist for 2 fashion ecommerce. One being a lifestyle boutique and the other a large fast fashion market place.

11. Would you say those were stepping-stones to building what is now your Revolt Brand? Everything I have done, from putting on my first pair of ballet shoes, to now have been the stepping-stones to build my very first company. Every life experience is an extension of how I conduct my business Revolt Clothing, and any future companies under my name.

12.With South Africa celebrating Women's Month, what does this mean to you as a young woman yourself? Me launching Revolt Clothing in Women’s Month was something I had to do. To show that more women are becoming entrepreneurs, while being a daughter, wife, mother, friend and some even still working their 9-5. We are the strongest beings and it is about time we get recognized for it across the board. Especially in South Africa where there is still a perception that women belong in the kitchen. We pretty much have been ruling the world since the beginning of time; everybody else just needs to realize that. *cues Beyonce*

13. What is your take on the pressures the media puts on women especially in the fashion industry? The one thing that I hate that fashion and media pushes is the definition of real women. From Dove commercials showing curvier women and calling them “Real” yet the Victoria Secret models aren’t because they are thin really makes me mad. Every single person who identifies as a woman is a real woman. Body shaming is such a huge part of fashion and media and it needs to stop. No matter what shape, size, colour, height, occupation we are all woman and need to stand together.

14. Many designers believe in wearing your brand means you believe in it so what’s your take

on this? How important is that especially if you want people to believe in your brand as much as you believe in it? Everyone who is selling a product needs to use their product. Not only because you believe in it, but also because you are a walking billboard. It is free advertising so yes wearing your brand is important on so many different levels besides passion. I am wearing Revolt Clothing right now lol.

15. Describe your collection in 3 words. Unique, Timeless and BADASS

16. Seeing that Revolt is about bringing your experiences in fashion home, are we going to the seeing more than the online boutique? Maybe pop up stores? The sky is the limit; this can go in so many different directions. That is the beauty of starting online. And yes, I totally love pop ups it is a great opportunity to meet all the lovely peeps following the Revolt!

Check out the Revolt on www.revoltclothing.net/