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From entrepreneurs building their own empires to community leaders driving change on the ground, womxn continue to shape industries, lead innovation, and inspire generations. Womxn’s Month is an opportunity to honour their work, learn from their experiences, and create space for meaningful conversations.
This August, let’s do more than celebrate. Let’s commit to building a society where womxn’s contributions are valued all year round, not just in one month.
From skincare founders to circular fashion pioneers, these 10 women-owned brands are shaping culture in bold, intentional ways. Each one is rooted in creativity, care, and leadership worth celebrating.
They’re not just running businesses, they’re building legacies, shifting industries, and inspiring the next generation of South African entrepreneurs.
Follow them. Support them. Share their stories. Save this list to revisit anytime you want to be reminded of the magic that happens when women lead. And remember, when you buy from a womxn-owned business, you’re investing in a movement far bigger than a single purchase.
Amanda Du-Pont is a South African actress, model, and entrepreneur. In April 2020, amid the uncertainties of the pandemic, she launched Lelive, a skincare brand born from her personal experiences and a desire to co-create with her growing wellness-focused community
Lelive is a proudly South African, vegan, cruelty-free skincare range that blends African botanicals with clinician-grade actives in clean, minimalist packaging. Its name “light of the world,” a nod to Amanda’s Swazi name and the brand's ethos of illuminating beauty
Amanda launched Lelive because she saw a gap for skincare products that were affordable, effective, and rooted in African heritage. Co-developed through feedback from her online community, the brand reflects a mission to create authentic products that celebrate local ingredients and resonate with diverse skin needs.
Ann-Kathrin Joos moved to South Africa in 2018 and, after an earlier business setback, founded Standard Beauty in June 2020 during lockdown. Ann-Kathrin created Standard Beauty to make premium skincare accessible to all, not just the few. While supporting the South African economy. Her vision was to shift beauty from an exclusive market to something inclusive, local, and confidence-building
Standard Beauty offers dermatologist-approved, active-packed skincare in vibrant, inclusive packaging, delivering clean, affordable beauty made locally. Since starting from her kitchen, the brand has expanded to include its own factory and R&D lab, while empowering local talent.
Donna Parekh is the founder of In Sync, a Cape Town-based fashion brand that embodies effortless summer moments. Inspired by the harmony and ease found in heatwave days, Donna’s vision was to create pieces that feel as natural as they are stylish. She began the brand during the COVID-19 lockdown as a means to generate income when her real estate work was on hold. Starting with just one dress style made from premium bamboo fabric, Donna quickly realized the demand and grew the business from there.
In Sync is known for its cult-favourite dresses designed to travel with you, offering versatile styling options to be worn both casually and for more elevated occasions. Each piece is crafted from high-quality fabrics chosen for their effortless aesthetic and comfort.
The brand reflects a commitment to design with intention, inviting wearers to feel unapologetically themselves: comfortable, free, and confident. The brand celebrates fashion rules being broken, particularly loving open backs as a signature feature, emphasising playful yet sophisticated style.
Mikayla McClean is a wellness creative and founder of Ceremony Matcha South Africa, a brand dedicated to bringing authentic Japanese matcha culture to a South African audience.
Motivated by a personal desire to find a calming, healthier alternative to coffee, Mikayla focused on making sustainably sourced, organic matcha from Uji, Japan, accessible and easy to prepare for everyday use.
Ceremony Matcha offers 100% organic, ceremonial-grade matcha powder that preserves the rich tradition of Japanese tea rituals while providing a natural, uplifting alternative to caffeine.
The brand emphasizes mindfulness, ritual, and wellness, encouraging customers to slow down and enjoy the moment through tea. Ceremony’s mission centres on fair trade sourcing and sustainable practices, aiming to bridge ancient traditions with modern lifestyles. The brand started from Mikayla’s personal health journey and has since become a symbol of holistic wellbeing and intentional living.
Emma Daye Vith is the founder of The Stranger’s Club, a multidisciplinary cultural space located in Green Point, Cape Town. Emerging from her parents’ heritage farmstead business “Out of This World,” Emma transformed their 1828 building into a vibrant incubator for Cape Town’s creative community. Starting modestly with a coffee machine and a few tables, Emma’s vision was to create a welcoming space where locals and travellers alike could experience authentic African culture, hospitality, and creativity.
The Stranger’s Club combines food, art, and lifestyle in a thoughtfully curated environment that honours the history of the location while championing local makers and artists. The menu focuses on simple, high-quality, locally sourced ingredients that reflect the abundance of the Western Cape, paired with an extensive offering of coffees and fresh beverages.
The retail section showcases ethical, locally made clothing, accessories, and African art, all aligned with values of craftsmanship and conscious consumption. Beyond commerce, The Stranger’s Club hosts gatherings that foster community, learning, and collaboration, making it a cultural hub rooted in authenticity and heart.
Style Rotate was co-founded by Cleo Marcopoulos and Natasha Liesner, two South African fashion industry professionals who share a passion for sustainable fashion. Cleo, formerly the fashion director at Cosmopolitan SA, is an advocate for borrowing, lending, and vintage fashion. Natasha worked as a buyer at a major South African retailer and witnessed firsthand the damaging impact of fast fashion’s production cycle. Their combined experience and concern about wasteful fashion practices led them to launch Style Rotate in late 2019 as a solution to promote circularity and conscious consumption.
Style Rotate is South Africa’s premier circular fashion platform, offering rental, resale, and lending services for high-quality, designer fashion. The brand’s mission is to redefine fashion consumption by combating the “wear and dispose” culture and encouraging sustainable alternatives. Whether renting to try new styles guilt-free, reselling cherished items, or lending to foster community sharing, Style Rotate creates a movement where garments are enjoyed by multiple people, extending their lifecycle and reducing textile waste. The platform is designed to make sustainable fashion accessible, stylish, and community-driven, shaping a more responsible industry one rotation at a time.
Alexa Schempers is the founder and designer behind Rethread, a Cape Town-based sustainable fashion label. Alexa’s journey began during her Masters in Fashion Enterprise Creation at the Amsterdam Fashion Institute, where she was challenged to create a fashion business from scratch. Plans to launch in Amsterdam shifted due to the pandemic, leading her to refocus and officially launch Rethread in Cape Town in November 2020. Her vision was to create a brand that combines style, sustainability, and craftsmanship while promoting circular fashion principles.
Rethread’s business model merges three key components: up-cycling thrifted clothes into fashion-forward garments, designing new pieces in-house with local artisans, and curating vintage selections.
The brand emphasizes small-batch production, thoughtful design, and circularity, aiming to reduce fashion waste and offer versatile wardrobe staples. Each piece is crafted to last, be worn often, and reimagined by its wearer, blending creativity with responsibility. Rethread stands as a testament to sustainable innovation, empowering consumers to dress better while doing good for the planet.
Jessica Lea is the founder and designer behind Yellow, a jewellery design studio based in Cape Town since 2009. Jessica’s work is deeply rooted in local craftsmanship, creating handmade pieces using sterling silver and brass sourced ethically and sustainably. She honed her skills through years of experimentation and formal training at Studio Jewelers in New York City, graduating in 2015. Her designs combine minimalism with a youthful, rebellious edge inspired by cultural icons like David Bowie, creating jewellery that is simultaneously timeless, playful, and sophisticated.
Yellow is known for its distinctive blend of rock ’n’ roll attitude, minimalistic chic, and bold shapes, crafting pieces that are wearable art. The brand’s ethos revolves around creating jewellery that elevates the wearer’s mood and stands out as progressive yet classic. Yellow’s pieces are made with care in Jessica’s Woodstock studio and have been showcased internationally at events like Design Indaba, Kamers Makers, and International Jewellery London. Committed to pushing creative boundaries while respecting sustainable practices, Yellow continues to redefine jewellery design with heart and innovation.
Rabia Ghoor is the founder of Swiitch Beauty, a South African makeup and skincare brand she started five years ago when she was just 14. Beginning from a small, four-square-meter space in her bedroom, Rabia’s entrepreneurial journey was sparked by her discovery of international beauty trends on YouTube and her observation that South African brands were lagging behind or absent.
Driven by the desire to create affordable, effective, and user-friendly beauty products that South Africans could be proud to use, Rabia began researching product formulation, sourcing, packaging, and design, all while still attending high school.
Swiitch Beauty is known for its crowd-sourced product development process, where consumer feedback and ideas shape new launches. The brand’s philosophy emphasizes accessibility and simplicity, offering makeup and skincare that are easy to use and designed to deliver on their promises without breaking the bank. Rabia’s hands-on approach, creating products she uses herself and optimizing for efficacy and ease, sets Swiitch apart as a genuinely user-centred local brand.
Philippa McCann Davies founded People Have Influence as South Africa’s first specialized influencer marketing agency, dedicated to connecting brands with the right influencers for authentic and impactful collaborations. Since launching in 2018, PHI has expertly curated over 200 influencer campaigns, partnering with more than 60 local and global brands while engaging over 2,000 influencers across diverse followings.
The agency focuses on strategic matchmaking, vetting and profiling influencers to ensure brand alignment, delivering campaigns that drive real-time ROI and measurable engagement.
People Have Influence crafts bespoke 360-degree influencer marketing strategies tailored to brand goals, selecting platforms where both brands and influencers can maximize their impact. With a deep understanding of digital word-of-mouth, PHI champions genuine connections between brands and trusted online voices to amplify reach and build lasting consumer trust.
These 10 women-led brands exemplify the power of purpose-driven entrepreneurship in South Africa today. From innovative beauty and sustainable fashion to cultural spaces and cutting-edge marketing, their founders are not only shaping industries but also redefining leadership with creativity, resilience, and vision. Supporting these brands means investing in a future where women’s voices and contributions are valued beyond a single month , it’s about championing legacy, community, and lasting impact.
We encourage you to explore their stories, follow their journeys, and engage with their offerings. By doing so, you become part of a broader movement to elevate women-led businesses that are changing the game, one bold step at a time.
From entrepreneurs building their own empires to community leaders driving change on the ground, womxn continue to shape industries, lead innovation, and inspire generations. Womxn’s Month is an opportunity to honour their work, learn from their experiences, and create space for meaningful conversations.
This August, let’s do more than celebrate. Let’s commit to building a society where womxn’s contributions are valued all year round, not just in one month.
From skincare founders to circular fashion pioneers, these 10 women-owned brands are shaping culture in bold, intentional ways. Each one is rooted in creativity, care, and leadership worth celebrating.
They’re not just running businesses, they’re building legacies, shifting industries, and inspiring the next generation of South African entrepreneurs.
Follow them. Support them. Share their stories. Save this list to revisit anytime you want to be reminded of the magic that happens when women lead. And remember, when you buy from a womxn-owned business, you’re investing in a movement far bigger than a single purchase.
Amanda Du-Pont is a South African actress, model, and entrepreneur. In April 2020, amid the uncertainties of the pandemic, she launched Lelive, a skincare brand born from her personal experiences and a desire to co-create with her growing wellness-focused community
Lelive is a proudly South African, vegan, cruelty-free skincare range that blends African botanicals with clinician-grade actives in clean, minimalist packaging. Its name “light of the world,” a nod to Amanda’s Swazi name and the brand's ethos of illuminating beauty
Amanda launched Lelive because she saw a gap for skincare products that were affordable, effective, and rooted in African heritage. Co-developed through feedback from her online community, the brand reflects a mission to create authentic products that celebrate local ingredients and resonate with diverse skin needs.
Ann-Kathrin Joos moved to South Africa in 2018 and, after an earlier business setback, founded Standard Beauty in June 2020 during lockdown. Ann-Kathrin created Standard Beauty to make premium skincare accessible to all, not just the few. While supporting the South African economy. Her vision was to shift beauty from an exclusive market to something inclusive, local, and confidence-building
Standard Beauty offers dermatologist-approved, active-packed skincare in vibrant, inclusive packaging, delivering clean, affordable beauty made locally. Since starting from her kitchen, the brand has expanded to include its own factory and R&D lab, while empowering local talent.
Donna Parekh is the founder of In Sync, a Cape Town-based fashion brand that embodies effortless summer moments. Inspired by the harmony and ease found in heatwave days, Donna’s vision was to create pieces that feel as natural as they are stylish. She began the brand during the COVID-19 lockdown as a means to generate income when her real estate work was on hold. Starting with just one dress style made from premium bamboo fabric, Donna quickly realized the demand and grew the business from there.
In Sync is known for its cult-favourite dresses designed to travel with you, offering versatile styling options to be worn both casually and for more elevated occasions. Each piece is crafted from high-quality fabrics chosen for their effortless aesthetic and comfort.
The brand reflects a commitment to design with intention, inviting wearers to feel unapologetically themselves: comfortable, free, and confident. The brand celebrates fashion rules being broken, particularly loving open backs as a signature feature, emphasising playful yet sophisticated style.
Mikayla McClean is a wellness creative and founder of Ceremony Matcha South Africa, a brand dedicated to bringing authentic Japanese matcha culture to a South African audience.
Motivated by a personal desire to find a calming, healthier alternative to coffee, Mikayla focused on making sustainably sourced, organic matcha from Uji, Japan, accessible and easy to prepare for everyday use.
Ceremony Matcha offers 100% organic, ceremonial-grade matcha powder that preserves the rich tradition of Japanese tea rituals while providing a natural, uplifting alternative to caffeine.
The brand emphasizes mindfulness, ritual, and wellness, encouraging customers to slow down and enjoy the moment through tea. Ceremony’s mission centres on fair trade sourcing and sustainable practices, aiming to bridge ancient traditions with modern lifestyles. The brand started from Mikayla’s personal health journey and has since become a symbol of holistic wellbeing and intentional living.
Emma Daye Vith is the founder of The Stranger’s Club, a multidisciplinary cultural space located in Green Point, Cape Town. Emerging from her parents’ heritage farmstead business “Out of This World,” Emma transformed their 1828 building into a vibrant incubator for Cape Town’s creative community. Starting modestly with a coffee machine and a few tables, Emma’s vision was to create a welcoming space where locals and travellers alike could experience authentic African culture, hospitality, and creativity.
The Stranger’s Club combines food, art, and lifestyle in a thoughtfully curated environment that honours the history of the location while championing local makers and artists. The menu focuses on simple, high-quality, locally sourced ingredients that reflect the abundance of the Western Cape, paired with an extensive offering of coffees and fresh beverages.
The retail section showcases ethical, locally made clothing, accessories, and African art, all aligned with values of craftsmanship and conscious consumption. Beyond commerce, The Stranger’s Club hosts gatherings that foster community, learning, and collaboration, making it a cultural hub rooted in authenticity and heart.
Style Rotate was co-founded by Cleo Marcopoulos and Natasha Liesner, two South African fashion industry professionals who share a passion for sustainable fashion. Cleo, formerly the fashion director at Cosmopolitan SA, is an advocate for borrowing, lending, and vintage fashion. Natasha worked as a buyer at a major South African retailer and witnessed firsthand the damaging impact of fast fashion’s production cycle. Their combined experience and concern about wasteful fashion practices led them to launch Style Rotate in late 2019 as a solution to promote circularity and conscious consumption.
Style Rotate is South Africa’s premier circular fashion platform, offering rental, resale, and lending services for high-quality, designer fashion. The brand’s mission is to redefine fashion consumption by combating the “wear and dispose” culture and encouraging sustainable alternatives. Whether renting to try new styles guilt-free, reselling cherished items, or lending to foster community sharing, Style Rotate creates a movement where garments are enjoyed by multiple people, extending their lifecycle and reducing textile waste. The platform is designed to make sustainable fashion accessible, stylish, and community-driven, shaping a more responsible industry one rotation at a time.
Alexa Schempers is the founder and designer behind Rethread, a Cape Town-based sustainable fashion label. Alexa’s journey began during her Masters in Fashion Enterprise Creation at the Amsterdam Fashion Institute, where she was challenged to create a fashion business from scratch. Plans to launch in Amsterdam shifted due to the pandemic, leading her to refocus and officially launch Rethread in Cape Town in November 2020. Her vision was to create a brand that combines style, sustainability, and craftsmanship while promoting circular fashion principles.
Rethread’s business model merges three key components: up-cycling thrifted clothes into fashion-forward garments, designing new pieces in-house with local artisans, and curating vintage selections.
The brand emphasizes small-batch production, thoughtful design, and circularity, aiming to reduce fashion waste and offer versatile wardrobe staples. Each piece is crafted to last, be worn often, and reimagined by its wearer, blending creativity with responsibility. Rethread stands as a testament to sustainable innovation, empowering consumers to dress better while doing good for the planet.
Jessica Lea is the founder and designer behind Yellow, a jewellery design studio based in Cape Town since 2009. Jessica’s work is deeply rooted in local craftsmanship, creating handmade pieces using sterling silver and brass sourced ethically and sustainably. She honed her skills through years of experimentation and formal training at Studio Jewelers in New York City, graduating in 2015. Her designs combine minimalism with a youthful, rebellious edge inspired by cultural icons like David Bowie, creating jewellery that is simultaneously timeless, playful, and sophisticated.
Yellow is known for its distinctive blend of rock ’n’ roll attitude, minimalistic chic, and bold shapes, crafting pieces that are wearable art. The brand’s ethos revolves around creating jewellery that elevates the wearer’s mood and stands out as progressive yet classic. Yellow’s pieces are made with care in Jessica’s Woodstock studio and have been showcased internationally at events like Design Indaba, Kamers Makers, and International Jewellery London. Committed to pushing creative boundaries while respecting sustainable practices, Yellow continues to redefine jewellery design with heart and innovation.
Rabia Ghoor is the founder of Swiitch Beauty, a South African makeup and skincare brand she started five years ago when she was just 14. Beginning from a small, four-square-meter space in her bedroom, Rabia’s entrepreneurial journey was sparked by her discovery of international beauty trends on YouTube and her observation that South African brands were lagging behind or absent.
Driven by the desire to create affordable, effective, and user-friendly beauty products that South Africans could be proud to use, Rabia began researching product formulation, sourcing, packaging, and design, all while still attending high school.
Swiitch Beauty is known for its crowd-sourced product development process, where consumer feedback and ideas shape new launches. The brand’s philosophy emphasizes accessibility and simplicity, offering makeup and skincare that are easy to use and designed to deliver on their promises without breaking the bank. Rabia’s hands-on approach, creating products she uses herself and optimizing for efficacy and ease, sets Swiitch apart as a genuinely user-centred local brand.
Philippa McCann Davies founded People Have Influence as South Africa’s first specialized influencer marketing agency, dedicated to connecting brands with the right influencers for authentic and impactful collaborations. Since launching in 2018, PHI has expertly curated over 200 influencer campaigns, partnering with more than 60 local and global brands while engaging over 2,000 influencers across diverse followings.
The agency focuses on strategic matchmaking, vetting and profiling influencers to ensure brand alignment, delivering campaigns that drive real-time ROI and measurable engagement.
People Have Influence crafts bespoke 360-degree influencer marketing strategies tailored to brand goals, selecting platforms where both brands and influencers can maximize their impact. With a deep understanding of digital word-of-mouth, PHI champions genuine connections between brands and trusted online voices to amplify reach and build lasting consumer trust.
These 10 women-led brands exemplify the power of purpose-driven entrepreneurship in South Africa today. From innovative beauty and sustainable fashion to cultural spaces and cutting-edge marketing, their founders are not only shaping industries but also redefining leadership with creativity, resilience, and vision. Supporting these brands means investing in a future where women’s voices and contributions are valued beyond a single month , it’s about championing legacy, community, and lasting impact.
We encourage you to explore their stories, follow their journeys, and engage with their offerings. By doing so, you become part of a broader movement to elevate women-led businesses that are changing the game, one bold step at a time.
We’d love to hear from you. For any enquiries, questions or conversations, feel free to contact us.
