Merchants’ Fifteen Collection Celebrates 15 Years of African Design

To mark 15 years of highlighting contemporary design from across the African diaspora, Merchants introduces Fifteen – a capsule collection celebrating the quiet landscapes of Southern Africa.

WORDS Gina Dionisio PHOTOS Supplied

Merchants on Long has evolved inthas evolved into simply Merchants – a more gallery-led, contemporary space that champions installation-based storytelling through African design. Reflecting this evolution, the launch of Fifteen signals a broader vision while remaining rooted in craft and design discovery.

“Merchants has always been about presenting design that feels authentic and thoughtful,” says Jeanine Benjamin, COO of Merchants. “Fifteen felt like a natural way to mark this milestone, a collection that reflects the sensibility we have cultivated over the past fifteen years.”

Designed by Merchants’ new creative director, Tiaan Nagel, the collection features directional proportions and thoughtful construction.

“Fifteen reflects the kind of clothing we believe in, pieces that feel considered in proportion and materiality,” says Tiaan. “We wanted garments that move naturally between different environments while maintaining a strong sense of form and ease.”

The capsule collection draws on Southern African landscapes – sculptural silhouettes, natural fibres, and a restrained palette shaped by places like the Chilojo Cliffs, the Karoo, and Vingerklip.

“I began with photographs of these organic forms and reduced them to basic geometric shapes,” says Tiaan. “Through that process of reduction, three silhouettes emerged and repeated. Vingerklip’s reverse triangular form shaped the kaftan silhouette – broader at the shoulder and narrowing to an engineered, tapered hemline. The top silhouette collapses at the shoulder and tapers to the hem.”

For the trousers, Tiaan applied the same logic to the inside seam, creating a subtle arch. “I was also interested in how vast plains can condense into contained volume.” Looking at the fractured forms of the Chilojo range, he developed a shirt and a shirt dress with enough inherent volume to stand alone, but which can fold and be controlled with a belt, creating a silhouette similar to the mountain range.

All of this is considered in relation to movement and space. No item is engineered to cling to or fit too closely to the body, allowing room for different shapes. “Smaller details like drawstrings and shaped construction lines create a more ergonomic approach to the body, accommodating different proportions within a single silhouette and size,” he says. “We have also deliberately renamed the size curve to I, II, and III to move away from conventional perceptions around size and body.”

Subtle construction details create quiet confidence. “The silhouettes are sculptural, strong, and graphic. In natural linen, those same forms soften, relax, and become human,” says Tiaan. “It’s in that tension between hard and soft that quiet confidence lives.”

Fifteen is available for purchase in-store and online. | merchantsonlong.co.za.

Don’t forget to sign up to our weekly newsletter for the latest architecture and design news.