Heather Moore is the woman behind the South African brand Skinny laMinx. She was an early adopter in the land of web shops and this resulted in an international client list. That’s why she’ll soon be selling the international edition of Flow magazine.
Can you tell us a little about yourself?
“Originally I am from Johannesburg, but I’ve been living in Capetown for the past sixteen years. I’ve been running Skinny laMinx from here since 2007 and two years ago I also started my own shop. For about fifteen years before that, I’d been finding my way, studying Drama and English and Teaching, and then working as an illustrator, textbook writer and comics scriptwriter. All of these were a lot of fun as well, but I’m glad I found what I like best, which is designing and creating patterns, and telling stories around them.”
How is life in Capetown?
“I’m completely in love with this place. The lifestyle mix of beach and mountain and city is truly wonderful, and the beauty we see on a daily basis never ceases to astonish me. On the other hand, South Africa is a developing economy, with a lot of social inequalities and a great deal of poverty. We are very grateful to have a business that is doing well, and that we are able to help other people find worthwhile employment with us.”
They say that Capetown has this creative energy, do you agree?
“I really do think there is a big new energy in Capetown. In my opinion, it is something to do with a new generation of young designers who no longer suffer from the inferiority complex that our country’s political history gave the generation before. Our young designers believe themselves to be part of a global design community, and they believe that South African design has something special to offer the world. In the last few years, especially, I’ve seen so many new, exciting, energetic businesses start up, and many of them manage to succeed and thrive. This year in particular is an exciting one for Cape Town, as we’ve been chosen as the World Design Capital for 2014.”
