With over 20 years' experience in the fashion industry, Amanda started her buying career in the UK, working for big department stores eg: House of Fraser & TK Maxx, in the 2 years before moving back to SA she changed her path to start a licensed intimates collection for Lipsy Clothing and Help for Heroes, charity. Once arriving back in SA in 2011, she joined Zando and to this day is the longest employer for Jumia. She has built the brand portfolio, working with both local and international brands throughout the 11years, being an integral part of the ecommerce market growth in SA.

Annelize Scheepers started with LISOF (now STADIO School of Fashion) in 2008 as a lecturer at second- and third-year level. Prior to joining LISOF, Annelize acquired design and technical experience though practicing as a commercial designer showcasing her work at various fashion weeks and industry platforms. She later created high-end formal and evening wear pieces for individual clients. In 2021, she published a paper titled, Exploring Manual and Digital pattern design methodologies towards the development of the design education offering, for the 16th DEFSA Conference Proceedings. She was also elected to create an Open Range for the STADIO Fashion Masters project during 2021. The creation of something exceptional, requires uncompromising focus on the smallest detail. This makes Pattern Design a slow process, but for Annelize this process of Pattern Design is at the core of any successful designer product.

Hanim Jain’s formidable leadership and voice of authority in the global fashion industry is not only informed by the remarkable professional stripes she has earned throughout the years, it is also informed by her standing as a global brand and citizen. Having lived in more than ten countries across the globe, Hanim’s fashion expertise has been influenced by all the different cultures she has experienced and appreciated, and in turn, she has influenced the globe with her fashion aptitude and gifting.

A serial entrepreneur who founded three successful multimillion-dollar businesses, Hanim boasts of over twenty-five years international experience in the IT & Fashion Industry, including executive roles in buying, sourcing, product development, marketing and e-commerce, having started her first company in IT Software at the age of twenty-five. A passion for fashion and retail, combined with astounding entrepreneurial skills, catapulted her into leading highly distinguished fashion brands such as Karl Lagerfeld in Paris, C&A in Belgium and Polo in South Africa.. She also founded Styleluxx.com, an e-commerce business in Fashion and Cosmetics.

"DL HOD of Fashion Dynamics for the School of Fashion. As a fashion retail expert, with over fifteen years of experience, I have specialized in the future of fashion retail and my focus areas include trend forecasting, experiential design, creative problem solving, brand strategy, and consumer science. I am a member of the Trend Atelier and have developed and lectured trend analysis and forecasting, styling and visual merchandising at the STADIO School of Fashion."

House of Janine is headed up by Janine Starkey, who studied fashion design at the London International School of Fashion, qualifying with an International Higher Diploma in Fashion Design and Technology. Janine spent the first five years of her career working at the popular South African soap opera Egoli as Head of the Wardrobe Department. Having learned valuable experience in the art of styling and how it can create and shape a character, Janine decided to shift her focus to help real men and women looking to find their own image and feel comfortable in their own style. House of Janine opened its doors in 2004 and developed into Tweak ‘n Style.

Sennait is a highly professional and motivated member of the Higher Education and UK fashion business community – possessing a wide range of communication, marketing and team building skills. Known to be forward thinking and creative among her peers, she possesses excellent presentation skills and is eager to develop new projects.

With 12 years of experience within the fashion industry in buying and wholesaling with Burberry, Matthew Williamson, Pringle and Joseph, she moved into teaching in 2015. As the Academic Course Leader of the BA Business, BA Buying and BA Communication courses, creating a culture of innovation is a key pillar on her business courses that she runs and manages.

In June 2021, Sennait won the award of the Talented Italians under 40 in the UK, by the Italian Embassy and Italian Chamber of commerce for the UK.

In September 2022, Sennait is having her first TED X talk on SDG n.5 by UN ( topic of gender equality) in Fiesole, in Italy.

Sennait firmly believes innovation comes out from teamwork and encourages her team to share different ideas and perspectives. The business courses have a large focus on innovation and encourage students to include it in their coursework and apply it to real industry problems.

She constantly challenges the perception of the fashion industry among her students, through up-to-date materials and research, which involves key figures – all of whom stand at the forefront of the ‘new normal’ to share their vision on innovation, digital acceleration, blockchain, sustainability and the circular economy. Some of the industry leaders actively involved into the curriculum of her business courses are: McKinsey, BCG, Eco Age, Financial Times, Depop, Vestiaire Collective, Gucci, Stella McCartney, Bottega Veneta, Adidas, Balenciaga, Dior, Positive Luxury, Ellen McArthur, Marni, The Business of Fashion, Rinascente, Al Duca D’Aosta, Antonioli and many more.

Since 2019, Sennait has been Mentor and Sustainability Ambassador at Startupbootcamp Fashion Tech. Some of the key startps that she mentored are: Tengiva and Cyreal www.tengiva.com and www.cyreal.com

She has been also Mentor for the project “Stay EXPORT” of the Italian Chamber of Commerce in London, since 2018.

Massimo was a designer for Versace (Versus menswear, Versace Sport, and Versace Jeans) and then launched his own label (MCG Massimo Casagrande) in 2012. His collections have been shown in Paris and London as part of the Fashion East Menswear: Installations. Massimo has been an official partner of the London Design Festival, and has collaborated on projects with companies such as English National Ballet, Laura Biagiotti, WGSN, Erdem, and Burberry on design and research skills as well as developing graphic and branding expertise.

"Module coordinator and facilitator at STADIO School of Fashion with a BA Honors Degree in Fashion with a special focus on innovation and sustainable supply chain within the fashion industry. I have experience in various departments within the fashion industry including retail and merchandising, report analysis, styling, and makeup. Previous employers include TWM, Forever New and Timberland. With a background on the operations of the fashion industry I approached the dimension of fashion education as a Trend Analysis facilitator at STADIO School of Fashion.

Nandi Molefe is an entrepreneur, social media marketing and branding specialist, speaker and author. She is a Wits graduate with a Bachelor of Arts in Linguistics and French. In 2015 she founded Dominion Vantage - a social media marketing consulting agency servicing clients locally and in Los Angeles, Dubai, London and Amsterdam. Some of her South African clients include Multichoice, ABinBev, Steyn City and Audi. In 2020, Nandi served as the Chair of the Gauteng Women Excellence Awards Adjudication Board on behalf of the Gauteng Office of the Premier.

Twenty-nine years ago Nelia Annandale, a creative thinker and passionate entrepreneur, founded the high-end, designer children’s clothing business, Keedo. She sees life as an exciting adventure, rather than a humdrum experience. As such she is driven to live a full, happy, and purposeful life.

As a true South African, Nelia is dedicated to aid in building a country that can be lived in and loved by generations to come. Resultantly, and through her business, she has continuously endeavored to bring about social and environmental change, focusing on the empowerment and upliftment of the women of South Africa. Over the last two decades she has received various prestigious awards, including National Entrepreneurial Woman of the Year, Top Gender Empowerment Company, Exporter of the Year (Design category), Black Business Quarterly Business Woman of the Year Award with special recognition for transformation, IWEC (International Women’s Entrepreneurial Challenge SA Representative) , to name a few.

Nokwazi Mzobe is passionate about developing businesses and business leaders in Africa. Her work allows her to develop aspiring business leaders; cultivate entrepreneurial thinking; develop and empower individuals and promote a culture of intrapreneurial, innovative and creative thinking. She is an entrepreneur, adjunct-lecturer, podcaster and the author of the Small Business Handbook. She is always looking for areas to create, inspire and empower.

Shane Biegnaar has spent the past 10 years working with startup and retail ecommerce brands in South Africa. Shane Biegnaar has spent multiple years working on the retail buying and merchandise aspects working with brands such as Edgars, Sportscene and Stuttafords across Footwear, Apparel and Accessories. In the last few years the focus and passion has been on building, launching and scaling ecommerce brands in which he assists in customer acquisition, customer conversion and customer retention strategies using paid media across Facebook, Instagram and Google. Recently he has worked with local brands such as CODE, Walk Fresh SA and also Skinny Sbu Socks.

Zimbabwean-born fashion creative currently studying for a BA Honours Degree and doing an Academic Tutor internship. I love nature, history, musical theatre, arts and craft. Creatively I have a dash of chaos, magic and poetry. I love the complex and the multi-layered, the irregular and the contrasting, the outside and the in between. If it seems too much, then let's add a bit more! My creative style is dense-in-details, dramatic, technically eclectic and inspired by the idea of a fictional tribe of Chai-latte drinking urban nomads. I'm my own small way I would like to contribute to the broader work of artistic subversion and transcendence of boundaries.

With a decade of experience lecturing in fashion education at various institutions, a Masters Degree in Fashion Design and currently working as the Discipline Leader for Design at the STADIO School of Fashion, Terese Potgieter has extensive experience and knowledge in the field of fashion design. She started her career after being invited to showcase her graduate collection at the Audi Joburg Fashion Week as part of the New Generation competition in 2010. Based on the exposure gained from the competition, Terese then launched her own clothing label Nooi which she ran for a few years. But it was in education that she discovered her true passion as she has a love for knowledge and creative problem solving and thoroughly enjoy working with people.