Real Leather Stay Different Africa competition launched

________________

The fourth edition of the Real Leather. Stay Different. Africa (RLSD Africa) Talent Leather Design Showcase has officially been launched, marking a significant milestone in Africa’s growing influence within the global conversation on responsible, design-led and sustainable fashion.

Uganda’s continued presence highlights the role of RLSD Africa in nurturing designers whose work combines emotional narrative, material intelligence and durability, reinforcing the country’s growing voice in continental leather design.

Anchored within the international Real Leather. Stay Different. campaign, the 2026 edition builds on six years of global engagement that has reached thousands of designers and students across dozens of countries.

In Africa, the initiative has evolved from a regional competition into a continental platform, one that increasingly positions African designers as contributors shaping global standards rather than participants seeking validation.

Speaking at the launch of the 2026 edition, Kerry Brozyna, President of the Leather and Hide Council of America, underscored Africa’s evolving role within the sustainability discourse.

He noted that as RLSD Africa enters its fourth year on the continent, Africa is no longer engaging from the margins but actively helping to define the conversation.

“Leather demonstrates responsibility and longevity in practice, a renewable raw material from the food industry, transformed through skill and craftsmanship into products made to last, and RLSD Africa exists to elevate this truth through design.

Nicholas Mudungwe, the Executive Director of the Africa Leather and Leather Products Institute, emphasised the platform’s structural importance.

He observed that RLSD Africa has matured into a continental mechanism linking design, industry and policy, playing a catalytic role as Africa advances its leather value chains.

“By translating raw potential into globally competitive, sustainable products, the initiative anchors value creation firmly in African talent.”

The RLSD Africa Talent Leather Design Showcase 2026 is open to designers aged 18 and above across three categories: Apparel, Accessories and Footwear.

The credibility of RLSD Africa is reinforced by its recent track record. Over the past three years, the platform has produced Most Commendable Designers whose work has gained international recognition.

Ethiopia’s Ruth Girmay, awarded Most Commendable Designer in both 2023 and 2024, and Farida Eid, awarded in 2025.

As RLSD Africa enters its fourth edition, the initiative stands as a clear statement of intent. It is no longer solely about identifying talent, but about building systems that connect creativity to industry, sustainability to economic opportunity, and African design to global relevance.