Uganda’s fashion industry got its own dedicated runway moment this week, as Bold Fashion Week made its debut in Kampala with two days of programming built around retail and runway. A marketplace event ran on August 22 at the Kampala Artisan Market, followed by the runway show on August 23 at Motiv Kampala.
Nine Ugandan labels showed collections, including Axarya, Discreet Street x Local, Good Fibre, Joan Jade, Kifahari, Kwesh, Lamara, Ofumbi and Shurea Yasmin, alongside Nigerian designer Yemi Shoyemi as the event’s international guest. The weekend was backed by I&M Bank and Johnnie Walker, with support from the Kampala Artisan Market.
Organisers built the weekend around commercial opportunity as much as creativity, pairing runway exposure with a marketplace where designers could sell directly to shoppers and meet industry buyers.
Lincoln Axarya said the fashion scene across Africa is improving and becoming more profitable, adding that the industry is moving in the right direction, according to a report on the event. I&M Bank’s Annette Nakiyaga framed fashion as more than creativity, calling it a catalyst for entrepreneurship and an important contributor to Africa’s expanding creative economy.
I think the format says something about where African fashion weeks are heading generally: fewer are content to be pure spectacle, and more are building in a retail layer that gives designers a shot at revenue the same weekend as the applause. That mirrors a wider trend toward practical, wearable pieces getting as much attention as showpiece looks, the same instinct behind guides like Africentra’s aso ebi styling guide for events back home.
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Kampala’s event adds to a busy year for African fashion weeks, with cities from Lagos to Nairobi hosting their own showcases in 2026 as the continent’s designers push for a bigger share of the global luxury conversation.
