Husband-and-wife stylish duo, Bianca and Khaya own a heavy printed brand of prominent cool called Punk and Ivy. I had a brief chat with them to find out more about their exciting concept and fresh approach to local fashion.
Give us an elevator speech on who Punk and Ivy is and how it all started.
In July last year we (Bianca Miles & Khaya Bhubesii Sibiya) were sitting on a sidewalk in Bangkok, amazed by the effortless mobility the city has adopted. It runs beyond the 9-5 routine and we thought it would make perfect sense for Mzansi. We took the principle and applied it to what both of us are champions of: fashion, styling, consulting and creating bespoke solutions for all our clients. The rest was planning and lots of fundraising, and thankfully it’s working out.Our clothing is best described as African street wear meets urban tailoring and is sold out of our soon to be customised Punk & Ivy mobile boutique called the Punk & Ivy Motique.
In July last year we (Bianca Miles & Khaya Bhubesii Sibiya) were sitting on a sidewalk in Bangkok, amazed by the effortless mobility the city has adopted. It runs beyond the 9-5 routine and we thought it would make perfect sense for Mzansi. We took the principle and applied it to what both of us are champions of: fashion, styling, consulting and creating bespoke solutions for all our clients. The rest was planning and lots of fundraising, and thankfully it’s working out.Our clothing is best described as African street wear meets urban tailoring and is sold out of our soon to be customised Punk & Ivy mobile boutique called the Punk & Ivy Motique.
How relevant is creativity to the way the fashion industry functions today?
I cant speak for the industry at large, but as a business in our own right, understanding WHO your market is and HOW you will reach them to convert to sales is key. Creativity is merely a way to package your idea, but without careful execution and a strong business head, its but a mere idea in your head. 
Does your work end once a Punk and Ivy item has been purchased - or do you stay involved somehow? We pride ourselves on BESPOKE- which means every client we have had to date, has inevitably come back for repeat business because we delve into a number of aspects of each client. Becoming that one stop destination for someones wardrobe needs to key for us, as a business which is service driven.
We are all connected in more astounding ways and more than we ever thought; new ideas can restore and re – create our ever changing world. Fashion is influenced by technology, deco, and the ever changing things around us & it has also been bringing extensive influence in return. Is the future of true innovation within fashion headed on a decline or betterment? Everything we engage in the creative world goes through evolutions of change and influence. I think the retrospect if ideas, coupled with the new visions that help shape lessons from the past are always a great way to refresh our future. Fashion, Film, Design, Architecture and so many other platforms of expression are testament to this, so its always a good idea to synergise where possible and find new ways expression. I'm all for the convergence...
Today the world imposes a new way of thinking, what creates a quality article of clothing for you? And how far does the media influence and disrupt your choices when designing?Quality is absolutely key- using as much of our local fabrics, tailors, seamstresses and suppliers is part of the value chain, and we are very conscious of that. Second to that, producing everything in Mzansi means we are 100% accountable for the quality of product we put out. I would say the media influences us to continually define our sense of "Africaness", in all that we do because the world has a microscope on Africa to be the change agents of our time in various industries. Its up to us as a nation and continent to harness that and blow up!
How would you describe the style that your line exemplifies?
Our clothing is best described as Androgynous African street wear meets urban tailoring. 
If failure was not an option what would you love to see happen amongst local designers? How would you like things to change? Moving from small ideas that pop with creativity to translating that into a viable business, that can exist as a form of living in SA, and hopefully to the rest of the world. The Youth have so many opportunities now more than ever before to think and operate globally, in a business arena, and own a space in the world of Fashion.
What will people still be wearing ten years from now?
Hopefully far more African designer wear!
LOVE THEM!!!!!!!!! AAAAAH
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