Celebrated designer Shaldon Kopman is set to captivate the fashion world once again with his latest collection, Urban Camo, at South African Fashion Week (SAFW).
SAFW is scheduled for April 24 to 26, for the Spring/Summer 2025 collections. The event will be held at The Forum in Hyde Park.
Following the acclaim of his previous Afro Monks collection, Kopman's new offering promises to be an impactful meditation on the principles of slow fashion, reinforcing the ethos and narrative that have become hallmarks of his brand, Naked Ape......
Urban Camo is not camouflage in the military sense. It is something far more considered — a collection that asks its wearer to disappear into intention, to move through the city with the quiet authority of someone who knows exactly who they are and where they come from. Developed in collaboration with botanical artist Ira Bekker, the collection draws its palette from the earth itself: dusty ochres, muted olives, sand-washed neutrals that speak of terrain, of roots, of the African landscape rendered in cloth.
Each piece in Urban Camo is constructed from hand-dyed, biodegradable fibres — bamboo, hemp, linen, and organic cotton — chosen not for trend but for integrity. The silhouettes are generous and architectural, designed to move with the body rather than constrain it. Relaxed trousers that drape like desert robes. Jackets cut with the precision of a ceremonial blade. Garments that carry the slow fashion manifesto in every seam.
For Kopman, SAFW is not simply a showcase — it is a statement. A declaration that African luxury fashion can be ethical, ecological, and economical without sacrificing beauty or ambition. Urban Camo is his most articulate argument yet: that the most powerful thing a designer can do is slow down, look inward, and make something that will still matter twenty years from now.
Explore The Naked Ape Collection — handcrafted African luxury fashion by Shaldon Kopman.
About the Author
Shaldon Kopman — Founder & Creative Director, Naked Ape Official
Shaldon Kopman is the Founder and Creative Director of Naked Ape Official, a South African premium ethical fashion brand guided by the Ethi-Eco² philosophy. With over 15 years in African fashion design, Shaldon has showcased at South African Fashion Week and been featured in Rolling Stone Africa, Mail & Guardian and more.