Djanine Naidoo

The Sophisticated Zoya Handbags

Since I was little, I have a passion for fashion and design. I love the elegance that comes from the polished shapes, the geometric and essential archi-tectures, the studied details, a job well done,” says Djanine Naidoo, founder of Zoya, the brand of leath-er, vegan leather and velvet handbags produced in Mozambique.

The brand was launched in Maputo in December 2019. Two collections per year, of clean, minimalist, but very refined lines: each detail is the expression of a deep and continuous research both in design and in the materials used.

“I get inspired by trends, but I try to achieve sim-plicity, in a process of deconstruction until reach-ing the minimal shape of the object,” Djanine says, who named the brand after her second name, Zoya. “Only then do I look for materials that can work in the best way on the object that I have idealised in my head, under a sobriety that never calls creativity into question.”

The pandemic has made it difficult to find materi-als. “The first collection was made in South Africa, but my idea was to make everything in Mozambique. We did advertising via social media. Timidly, but with a lot of determination, we made the second collection in Mozambique. The pandemic pushed me further towards making the project come true,” Djanine says. She took advantage of the opportunity in times of crisis, taking a different look at what is on the Mozambican market in terms of materials.

Each detail of the handbags is the expression of a deep and continuous research, whether in the design or in the materials used.

Thus was born the third collection, in vegan leather, faux crocodile skin, satin and velvet, an authentic tribute to life and optimism that has just left her hands and her team of tailors: the very minimalist handbag, “Envelope Clutch” and the handbag with a propitiatory name, “Fortune Bag”, in the shape of a fortune cookie, in vegan leather and velvet. “Green was not my favorite color, but I found materials in that colour… I became a fan of green!” – Djanine comments, who sells her handbags via Facebook and Instagram, and at exhibitions/sales in var-ious locations accros the country’s capital, but who will soon launch her own website.

The green bottle in velvet conveys the arrival of winter to the south of Ecuador with the need for more heat and the satin takes us to seek refuge in the object of our desires. The vegan faux crocodile skin re-minds us of the animal we saved and the usefulness of a more robust suitcase for everyday life, with monochromatic tones on the way to the coming winter. What better message?

Issue 67 May/Jun | Download.