The wait is over as South African sneaker brand, Bathu, finally unveiled their latest collection in collaboration with media personality, Somizi Mhlongo-Motaung.
Launched at the Bathu warehouse in Centurion on Thursday, the new BathuxSomizi sneaker comes in four different mineral range; the platinum, gold, diamond and ruby.
On the collection, Theo Baloyi, founder of the brand, said: “Somizi and I have been working on this concept for about two years now. We did so many designs, and the timing wasn’t right at the time.
“Somizi wanted something that embodies and accommodate the minerals and the richness of Africa. And we are known to be rich in minerals and gold, and Somizi was like ‘how about we take the richness of Africa and incorporate it into shoes?”
Mhlongo-Motaung, who is all about glamorous fashion, was hands-on and precise with the colours, detail and packaging. He said what he likes most about the sneakers is that they work for every occasion. For example, if he wants chilled vibes, he’ll go for platinum and, for some sophistication, gold is the to-go, while ruby is edgy and retro.
About the collaboration, Mhlongo-Motaung said: “January last year, I had an 'aha' moment, and thought, how about we have a mineral range, gold, silver, platinum and ruby?
“Theo loved it, designed the shoes and brought the samples. I loved it, excited, enjoyed it and knew that this was going to work because I am ‘king of bling’. I love stones, my favourite stones are tanzanite, diamond, ruby, the gems. That’s how the range BathuXSomizi came about.
“And it’s because of the love of finer things in life, the love of celebrating the richness of Africa and the love for just beautiful things”.
Within the next 15 years, Baloyi plans on making Bathu the best sneaker brand in Africa.