A SA designer made R2,000 Swarovski-embellished masks – and they sold out

Bombi Mavundza , Business Insider SA

Jun 11, 2020, 06:40 AM

JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA - OCTOBER 17: Rich Mnis

Rich Mnisi during the 2019 Feather Awards held at Fox Junction on October 17, 2019 in Johannesburg, South Africa. (Photo by Oupa Bopape/Gallo Images via Getty Images)

High-end fashion designer Rich Mnisi's R1,999 face masks featuring Swarovski crystals have sold out.
Other designer opted to make "affordable" masks.
Mnisi's publicist says the designer was shocked the public's negative reaction to his prices.
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South African fashion designer Rich Mnisi's R1,999 face masks have sold out, despite a social media outcry about the price tag.

The fashionable masks fall under Mnisi's ALKEBULAN collection, and there is a cheaper, R399 version.

The collection also includes a 5-pack of filters that are available at an extra R199. The price excludes shipping and VAT.

A portion of the proceeds from the cloth face masks will go to support local charities affected by the pandemic.

Several other South African high-end designers opted to make their masks "affordable"; a MaXhosa face mask by designer, Laduma Ngxokolo will set you back R600, while Gert-Johan Coetzee's masks cost between R180 and R380 each.

Mnisi's rather different price point attracted some attention – and criticism.

I believe in buying black and supporting smmes. But #richmnisi is setting me up for failure on my cause. pic.twitter.com/Ym3XZKp87t
— TK (@TKMediaSA) June 9, 2020

I like how people are reacting to #richmnisi products, slowly we're acknowledging there's a market for everone pic.twitter.com/yOVrLKbKKN
— Bèn (@benbest_plk) June 9, 2020

It is unclear how many masks were made. It is also unclear how much the designer had donated to charity.

Mnisi's publicist told Business Insider South Africa only that Mnisi was unsettled by how people on social media had reacted to his masks, and refused to comment further.