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AMANDA LAIRD CHERRY MAY HAVE REACHED THE PINNACLE OF HER CAREER, BUT SHE’S NOT DONE REACHING FOR THE STARS, WRITES DEBBIE REYNOLDS

Pinning Amanda down between her trip to London to accept her Fashion Designer of the Year award, her businesses in the USA and South Africa and the birth of her second grandchild is no easy task.

When we do talk, she gives me her full attention, which is exactly what makes this exceptional fashion designer and businesswoman so extremely successful. Amanda immerses herself totally in everything she does, be it making sandwiches for her husband Glen’s work lunch, creating an inspired runway collection or launching a new brand across the world.

With her roots firmly entrenched in her beloved Durban, Amanda managed to branch out to USA’s Charlotte, North Carolina, where she has lived for the last 11 years.

“We still have our home in Kloof, and I come back to SA four to five times a year for various shows or work commitments,” she says. “Each time I see my country with a great perspective and a fresh eye.”

Moving away from South Africa was never on Amanda’s agenda, but when Glen suggested going on an adventure, Amanda said “why not!”

“It was hard at first, but I have such a wonderful team beside me that it works really well,” she says.

In her acceptance speech at the 2019 World Fashion Awards in London, which she was “flabbergasted and thrilled to win”, she paid tribute to “all the people I have worked with and who have supported me over the years”.

“From my husband to my seamstresses, patternmakers and partners, it’s a team, not just me!”

Amanda has always had an inclusive mindset, a passion for culture, social responsibility and mentorship and an insatiable thirst for knowledge and understanding.

It is these qualities she brings to her design ethos and brands, which include Amanda Laird Cherry Apparel, ALC Menswear and The Space in SA, and Ivy Citizens “athleisure” in the USA.

“Collaboration within the local industry and supporting local for strategic sustainability has always been my business model,” says Amanda.

It’s a commitment which also won her the Changemaker Award at the inaugural Twyg Sustainability in Fashion Awards 2019.

I first met Amanda in the 90s when she headed the rampant Durban Designer Collection fashion pack. The girl who wanted to be an actress turned into a confident, passionate, humble, adventurous and classically elegant woman with an edgy twist.

“I think my style comes from my mom who has a great eye for decor and clothing,” she says. “With my dad being a racehorse trainer, she had to dress up a lot and was always beautifully appointed. I ended up with a lot of her clothes which ignited my love for the soul of second-hand things.”

Her unique collaboration with Gumtree to create a collection from restyled second-hand clothing for SA Fashion Week 2019 was a sensation. For Amanda it was fulfilling to create awareness of our unsustainable “throwaway” culture.

Particularly telling is her “most memorable” career moment. “I always think of the 1999 Durban Designer Collection where my collection was inspired by traditional African umBlaselo pants.

“I’d been intrigued by them from the days when we would drive from Durban to Cape Town for the horseracing season in the December holidays and I’d see men wearing them along the way.

“Wanting to use them as an inspiration for my range that year my research took me on a wonderful journey of meeting people, from professors at UKZN to Warwick Avenue workers and an amazingly proud man who created them from a tiny room in a KwaMashu hostel.”

It was “goose bump” collection, which Amanda remembers more for how well it was received for its cultural heritage and sensitivity than for winning the Best Designer award.

If forced to find a reason for staying relevant in such a fickle world as fashion, Amanda reckons it could be down to her tenacity.

“I’ve had my ups and downs, but I don’t like giving up and I don’t let go easily,” she laughs. “I’m also insanely curious and blessed to work with my great loves … art, drama, community and people.”

Being a mom to Raqel (28) and Ethan (23) and now grandmother to Josi and Deyla, Amanda has considered slowing down.

“But, when I chat about it to Glen, I know that I don’t want to stop. There’s so much more to learn and discover and new goals to reach. I’ve not achieved my 100% yet!” *

story robin lamplough

Seventy years ago, the village of Hill Crest had a human population of 1 135. Almost half this number was white, while the other 585 were those who served them. How is it possible at this distance in time to be so precise? These details were recorded in a report by a government inspector, preserved by that tireless chronicler of Hillcrest, Elizabeth Camp. The report, like a photo album, captures through the written word glimpses of the village as it was then.

But why was the inspector there? In the previous year, 1943, the central government had ruled that local government – through elected health committees – could be installed in Natal. The informal leaders of Hill Crest immediately applied to be included in the process. At that time, the village covered 830 acres (just over 300 hectares) of privately owned properties averaging about two acres in area. Some of these properties were still on leases dating back to the original settlement of 1895. The others were freehold, purchased since 1924 when one of the Gillitt sons sold his land to a syndicate of residents known as Hill Crest Properties.

A large proportion of the town’s population, however, was classified as