Rich Mnisi's Debut Adidas Collaboration Is a Love Letter to Community and Heritage

If you aren’t already familiar with the name Rich Mnisi you should be.

The Johannesburg-born contemporary designer has fused his love for the world of pop culture with his passion for his Tsonga tribe to take the fashion industry by storm. And with his debut collaboration with Adidas—comprised of vibrant colors and exaggerated silhouettes that seamlessly combine style, color, and function—set to fly off the shelves upon its release in February, the brilliant creator spoke with The Root about how his forthcoming line is not only a celebration of Black identity, but that it incorporates his signature prints to support a range of sports that include running, cycling, swimming, and training.

“I’m from the Tsonga tribe and we’re known for texture,” he said of the collection serving as a tribute to community and heritage. “We’re known for having a sense of pride in who you are. And that’s what I wanted to bring forward in this collection. It celebrates and embodies all those elements as well. And it’s done in a very bright and chaotic way in a sense because we have such an eye for color. It might look chaotic to someone else, but there’s so much harmony when you actually engage with the property. So that’s what I wanted to bring forward with the print work that goes into the collection.”

To that end, each piece in the collection blends fearless animal prints, loud abstract patterns, and vibrant clashing colors that converge to give us a glimpse into his humble origins. Of additional note, every piece has been designed to be worn either as a standalone or layered and accessorized in order to maximize your fresh with a more audacious and expressive look—which, of course, comes from Mnisi’s desire to continue to put on for his tribe through his work.

“It just happens because I represent my tribe so much,” he said. “To be honest, my main thing is my tribe and my people, and speaking for the people around me because I grew up around such strong women.”

He continued, “That’s why I even stuck to the [name of my] brand. The reason why it’s named after me was a bold decision to always position it like any other European brand. [It] speaks for my family and my kids. And [my] family heritage, which is like an old school way of creating luxury. That was the direction of the brand. And that’s why I like speaking my family name continuously. Placing it on different broader and global platforms has done exactly what I wanted it to do.”

As for his decision to partner with Adidas, Mnisi insists that the company’s track record speaks for itself as a home for other transcendent Black creatives.

“I’ve always looked at Adidas as a trailblazer,” he said. “Look at all the collabs they did with Missy [Elliot] or Pharrell [Williams] and all of those cultural cues. Those three stripes have been ingrained in my head growing up, and it was always like the go-to brand. […] Even currently, when you think of the people that they partner with, they’re all really the people that are pushing really interesting conversations and they’re bringing people of color to the forefront.”

Mnisi also hopes that once everyone gets their hands on his latest creation, they’ll appreciate his commitment to balancing style with functional performance.

“It spans from lifestyle to tennis to swimwear. I like how vast it is,” he said. “I just want people to also have a sense of pride when wearing this collection. The approach to color, texture, and patterns is something that almost forces you to become confident and just embrace who you are. That’s what I want people to take from this.”

He also had one final request: “Buy the whole damn thing,” he joked.

The Adidas x Rich Mnisi collection will be available in February.