Jay Aych Bee.

Street Fashion. You’ve heard the term a thousand times; you’ve seen it recklessly used to define everything down to which side your fitted cap leans. In a time of mushroom urban-wear and fly-by-night designs; it’s important to understand what street fashion means for the young Jozi kid. Because this is Jozi, and we have to define things for ourselves; at ALL times – otherwise we’ll get lost in the muddle.

We’ve spoken to Menzi Jiyane of GalxBoy about his views on street fashion in relation to Jozi Maboneng, here’s what he had to say:

1. Tell us about yourself, and GalxBoy?

-The Name is Menzi Jiyane, Born in the Eastrand, 24 years of age and I’m a Creative Director for photoshoots,design,Fashion and Events …

Galxboy- is a brand that started in 2008 in Pretoria, it was formally known as Cheeseboy then later went through 2 name changes which were Cheesegalxboy and then GalxBoy because we felt it was more mature and internationally appealing.

GALXBOY is an experimental brand that has matured a lot from making bowties, to caps, t-shirts, beanies and now making female clothes like dresses , crop tops and so much more. The Brand is making progress and we’ve started exporting to Namibia and other neighbouring countries.

2. What is street fashion? And how does it come alive in Joburg?

Street Fashion, from how I understand it, is the more casual form of apparel, it’s more abstract and every item usually has a story to tell, it’s a culture more than it is clothing, were people are usually curious on what made a certain individual design or wear certain items.

Joburg culture is growing and people are aware of what’s cool and what’s not, it’s no longer a monopoly of a few brands running the streets but people now have choice and the bigger corporate brands are now seeing us, and there are more exhibitions supporting the movement…

3. Who/what do you think are the biggest influences to street style in Jhb right now?

There are so many talented people and designers that are doing their thing; but all of us can agree that we are yet to touch what Amakip Kip and Loxion Kulca have done for South African urban street culture.. So right now, we all doing our best to reach those levels.

4. Where do you see the trends going in a year?

Trends change all the time, I think there will be more prints, monochromed design, MK-1 Jackets etc…

5. If there’s one thing you would bring into street style, what would be? 

Look out for our winter range , you will see.

(we had that one coming, didn’t we?)

6. Some people think having a sense of (street) style is a middle class thing. Do you agree? If not, how would you change that perception? 

Street fashion is for everybody, We are even seeing retail stores like Mr Price,Markham & legit being very active with their research and collaborating with designer to create more affordable relevant styles for consumers.. Mix your style up, the internet can also help you put affordable looks together, it’s not about the price tag. It’s really about how you put your look together.

Menzi is one of the kids in the forefront of Joburg street fashion. Also a talented photographer, we’re certainly looking forward to what he and the GalxBoy team have in store for us.

You can follow Menzi on:

Twitter: @Coolkidmenzi
IG: @CoolkidMenzi

You can also find all things GALXBOY here:

Tumblr:galxboy.tumblr.com
IG:@Galxboy_SA
Twitter:@galxboy
Web:galxboy.com
Contact: galxboy@gmail.com