THE fashion district in the Joburg CBD has a new tenant – the inner city campus of the Gordon Institute of Business Science, or Gibs.
The institute opened its doors for business in September, according to Anthony Prangley, the manager of Gibs Centre for Leadership and Dialogue.
Located at 130 Pritchard Street in the heart of the Fashion Kapitol, in downtown Joburg, the institute is an extension of Gibs’ Illovo Campus. It is meant to get students closer to real small business case studies and to learn from rising entrepreneurs and city leaders.
Prangley said: “We have decided to come to an area where we can make a difference. Although the campus is in a part of Johannesburg which hasn’t yet been completely rejuvenated, it already has a great energy about it.
“The fully functional campus [offers] students a stimulating learning environment and [gives them] access to living case studies, whether it is in finance, marketing, strategy or talent management. By exposing delegates to Johannesburg’s inner city and forging closer links to the content of emerging markets on the ground, we hope to help them become more effective and innovative managers in their own companies.”
About 35 000 people were employed in the fashion and garment industry surrounding Pritchard Street when it was in its prime in the 1930s, but by 1982, this had fallen to 6 000. Recently, many small fashion and design businesses have moved into the area and it has become a centre for innovation.
The open-air square on Fashion Kapitol is ideal for fashion showsThe open-air square on Fashion Kapitol is ideal for fashion shows
“Gibs hopes to make a significant impact on the fashion district through building the business management skills of entrepreneurs in the fashion, design and creative industries. In doing this, we will help to make Johannesburg a world-class African city,” said Prangley.
The fashion district, a project of the Johannesburg Development Agency in line with the City’s 2030 long-term economic development strategy, is on the eastern side of the inner city. It incorporates some 26 city blocks, bounded by Jeppe, End, Commissioner and Von Weilligh streets. It houses over a hundred fashion-related businesses.
Rees Mann, the executive director of the Fashion District Institute (FDI), said: “Gibs has shown a commitment to the fashion district and the inner city. Students will be based at the Fashion Kapitol and will able to interact with designers and fashion retailers in the district.
“The Fashion Kapitol is letting fast and over 10 stores have already opened. [Eventually] it will house over 30 unique stores, including local and African fashion designers, hairdressers, barbers and beauty salons. The memorandum of understanding between the FDI and Gibs will directly benefit the designers and retailers in the fashion district,” added Mann.
For over half a century, the fashion and garment industry has been located in the eastern part of the CBD, but in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the local industry went into decline. Many small fashion and design businesses have since moved back into the area, creating a vibrant, young and dynamic hub with a fusion of tourists, inner city residents and suburban shoppers.
Gibs was founded in 2000 and is an internationally accredited business school based in Joburg, South Africa’s economic hub. Its purpose is to improve significantly the competitive performance of individuals and organisations through business education, and it is consistently rated as one of the top business schools in South Africa.
In May 2010, Gibs was again ranked one of the top business schools globally by the prestigious Financial Times; it was the only African business school to be placed in the top 50 business schools worldwide for executive education programmes. This is the seventh year running that Gibs has achieved this status.
It offers two internationally accredited masters in business administration (MBA) programmes, including a full-time entrepreneurship MBA; a doctorate in business administration; a postgraduate diploma in business administration; a certificate programme for management development; a number of executive development courses, including the premier Global Executive Development Programme; and in-house, company-specific programmes designed to meet the client’s needs.
Gibs also has the Centre for Leadership and Dialogue, a series of programmes aimed at bringing together the emerging and current leadership of South Africa to create a shared vision necessary for the building of a successful nation.