No surprise then that the fitted bodices and A-line skirts made famous by the Stoned Cherrie label -- and other, distinctively African designs -- have become a common sight on local streets: a far cry from the situation a decade ago, when the fashions on display in South Africa were often indistinguishable from those in Europe.
Acknowledging the success of this new wave of designs, a major retail chain has marketed the clothes of Stoned Cherrie and other talents -- such as Craig Native. The U.S. magazine 'Newsweek' has also singled out South Africa's fashion expertise.
But, can the country's celebrated designers make the leap to the international stage, to take advantage of the huge pool of well-heeled consumers in Europe, the United States -- and wealthy parts of the Far East? Could the A-line skirt become fashion shorthand along the lines of the Chanel suit -- and be similarly reinvented, season after season?
There are signs that the South African "look" appeals to a foreign market.
A Spanish retailer, El Corte Inglés, hosted a South African promotional month at the beginning of the European summer. Within an hour of the opening in the Paseo de la Castellana, a boulevard in Spain's capital, Madrid, only one skirt was left on the rails.
"Things went so quickly, it was incredible to see. There were chains of people going into the storerooms and taking back more items to put on the stands," says Ellwyn Beck, counselor at the South African embassy in Spain.
T-shirts featuring the covers of 'Drum' magazine also proved popular: "People were ripping them from the stands," says Beck.
Drum was the first South African magazine that aimed to portray the situation of blacks in the country in depth, for black readers. The publication achieved renown during the 1950s for its investigations of racial discrimination in the early years of apartheid -- and, perhaps even more notably, for its vibrant photographs. The signature black and white images of Drum documented the jazz singers, political figures and sportsmen -- even the criminals -- who defined the era.
Stoned Cherrie has also sold T-shirts displaying the image of activist Steve Biko, a leader of the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa who died in police custody in 1977.
The use of such images has played a key role in the rise of new South African fashion styles, says Dion Chang, programme director of the annual South African Fashion Week.
After the first democratic election in 1994, invitations for formal events would stipulate a "black tie or traditional" dress code, he told IPS. Chang believes younger South Africans were alienated by the concept of traditional dress as it was interpreted then.
"Pale-skinned women would arrive at functions in full African regalia," he says. "The youth market didn't buy that. They liked (Argentine revolutionary) Che Guevara and Steve Biko -- political icons of our time. That grabbed their imagination."
However, Chang is concerned that the success of South African fashion could be a passing fad, and warns that local designers must avoid what he terms "curio couture".
"We know we can do curio couture in brown with beads. Corsets and A-line skirts were the beginning, but a label has to evolve all the time."
Interestingly, Vanya Mangaliso -- who started Sun Goddess with her husband, Phando -- says Japanese nationals who buy her designs prefer clothes that are far more traditional than those she markets in South Africa. Sun Goddess has been on the racks in Japan for the past three years.
The brains behind Stoned Cherrie, Nkhesani Nkosi, has in turn been criticised for producing designs that are supposedly becoming less and less African: a complaint she dismisses.
"We should have the freedom to define what it is to be African -- otherwise people simply put you in a category. Then it is easy just to become a trend."
The lifting of global textile quotas at the start of January poses a challenge of a different sort to the industry. South Africa's textile and clothing factories have sustained body blows from a flood of imports from China, which has lower production costs. The strengthening of the rand has worsened matters -- and caused the industry to shed thousands of jobs.
The inability of local textile factories to match the performance of their Chinese counterparts could limit the ability of South African designers to compete internationally, says Chang: "Structures hemorrhaging jobs because of China will be our major stumbling block."
South Africa's Department of Trade and Industry estimates the annual value of the South African clothing industry to be about two billion dollars.
Chang believes that a luxury label, which does not depend on volume of sales for its success, stands a better chance on the international market than the casual designs which are currently South Africa's strong point.
"We do street wear well, but we don't have what I would like to call 'Afro-Gucci' -- a luxury brand," he notes.
But Reg Lascaris -- founder of the influential advertising agency Hunt Lascaris -- says South African fashion of any description, be it street wear or luxury clothing, is unlikely to succeed internationally without strong marketing.
"The fashion industry can have lots of luck and one designer can break through -- or they can come together and market properly," he told IPS.
Nkhesani Nkosi is already rolling up her sleeves to stake a claim in territory that has been mostly the domain of European and American designers until now.
"It is about perception...the bit extra that creates the idea of superiority...I want to build a global super-brand that is South African," she says.