Entrepreneur, television personality, and internationally-lauded actress, Nkhensani Nkosi is part of a new wave of activism aimed at creating a post-Apartheid identity for South Africans that is neither white nor black, but South African. She is the Founder and CEO of StonedCherrie. By mixing modern style with images of iconic moments in South Africa’s history, political icons, and symbols banned during Apartheid, Stoned Cherrie’s Afro-centric casual and formal wear has become a pioneer of AFRO-URBAN culture, an explorer of what it means to be African in the 21st Century. Launched at the 2000 South African Fashion Week to great reviews, Nkhensani’s line has been featured on BBC, CNN and Australian Television.
Nkhensani is one of the new voices from Africa: Entrepreneur, television personality and lauded actress. She has travelled throughout the world as an entertainer / host and actress in a series of theatre plays including “Sophiatown, The Coloured Museum and Marabi” which received critical acclaim from international audiences. She boasts a mantelpiece of awards, the most rewarding as a business woman being The Top Success Story of The Year – Top Women in Business And Government 2005 . Other award include The Young Business Achiever of the Year – Young Business Quarterly (2003)
Nkhensani holds a degree in Industrial Psychology and Sociology and is a gifted writer having written articles for O Magazine, Y-Mag, Going Up, amongst others. In 2005 she completed her final season as co-producer and co-host of popular SABC 1 talk show Mojo. Her career in television began as co-owner of a production company called Vicious Funk Productions, producing corporate videos and inserts for Options (SABC3).
She is a coveted speaker, having been invited as guest speaker at numerous events and conferences, including the internationally renowned Design Indaba. She recently addressed a crowd of the worlds leading entrepreneurs at a gala event in New York alongside the likes of Jerry Yang, the founder and chairman of Yahoo as well as Terry Bernstein CEO of Yahoo. She has also been invited to motivate post-graduate students at The Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS).
Having travelled throughout Africa in 1999 as the host and official spokesperson for M-Net’s Face of Africa, Nkhensani recognised that there was a gap in the market – the urban energy that exists on the continent was not being branded and packaged into products. There was an opportunity to build an African brand that celebrated South Africa’s new sense of identity and explored in a creative way what it means to be an African in the 21st Century. She decided it was time to set up a new and now popular African urban fashion label, Stoned Cherrie.
In 2005, she was recognised by U.S-based mentorship programme Endeavor, as a high impact entrepreneur. She was selected from two hundred candidates from different fields as one of only six winners. “Through a rigorous, multi-step selection process, Endeavor screens thousands of emerging-market entrepreneurs annually to identify the best talent in a country. Candidates with the most innovative, high-growth ventures and greatest promise to become future leaders are selected as Endeavor entrepreneurs” – Linda Rottenberg (co-founder and CEO Endeavor Global)
The programme spans throughout Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Uruguay, Turkey and Argentina.
Her Awards include:
South African Film and Television Awards (SAFTA) Best Talk Show - Mojo (2006)
People’s Awards Best Talk Show Host - Mojo (2006)
Endeavor Entrepreneur Selected as one of six winners of U.S based Endeavor Mentorship Programme
L’Oreal / Fairlady Catherine Awards Lifetime Achievement Award (2005)
L’Oreal / Fairlady Catherine Awards Best Brand (2003)
Young Business Achiever’s Awards Black Business Quarterly (2003)
Tribute Achievers Awards Women of the Year (2003)
Best Dressed Designer Style Awards (2002)
Best Ladies wear SA Fashion Awards (2002)
Best Dressed Couple Style Awards (2000)
Entertainer of the Year International Crystal Awards (1998)
PAWE Young Artist Award (1998)
Nominated Best Actress Vita Awards - The Coloured Museum (1997)
Nominated Best Actress Vita Awards - Marabi (1996)
Best Actress Vita Awards - Sophiatown (1995)
As founder and creative director of Stoned Cherrie, Nkhensani saw a gap in the fashion market – the urban energy that exists on the continent was not being branded and packaged into products. From streetwear to couture the label has incorporated their design aesthetic with Venda prints and Shangaan inspired beadwork. Stoned Cherrie has become renown for creating timeless textiles by weaving and printing their own iconic fabrics.© The Entrepreneur Newspaper 2009. All Rights Reserved
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