MEDIA RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
28 JULY 2026
Presidential Shirt, the brand that launched the “Madiba Shirt,” opens its new flagship emporium at Sandton Square, a few steps from the iconic Nelson Mandela statue.
Dr. Naledi Pandor addresses guests on behalf of the Nelson Mandela Foundation; Dr. John Kani marks the evening with impromptu reflections on “what it means to dress like a free man”, with music from Vusi Mahlasela and Ernie Smith.
SANDTON, SOUTH AFRICA. 28 July 2026. Presidential Shirt opened the doors of its new Emporium at Mandela Square, a few steps from the iconic Nelson Mandela statue, before a gathering of VIPs, ambassadors, diplomatic corps and chief executives, including Justice Albie Sachs, Dr. Naledi Pandor, the chairperson of the Nelson Mandela Foundation board of trustees, Dr. John Kani, musicians Vusi Mahlasela and Ernie Smith, and Trustees of the Nelson Mandela Foundation, in an evening framed to close of Mandela Month. Proceedings kicked off in earnest when multi-award-winning actress and MC, Sthandiwe Kgoroge, put a provocative question to Dr. John Kani: “What does it mean to dress like a free man?”
Calmly responding, Dr. Kani spoke for some minutes on dress and freedom, from the uniforms of the years before 1994 to the suit and tie once mistaken for respectability, and on to Mobutu Sese Seko’s rejection of Western dress and Kenneth Kaunda’s quiet adoption of the Kaunda suit. He closed by concluding that “to dress like a free man” means being free to choose one’s cloth and carry one’s culture. When he finished, ten models, each in a different Presidential shirt, paraded the length of the venue to the sound of penny whistlers, in a moment that rhymed with the guests’ own arrival earlier in the evening.
Dr. Pandor, chairperson of the Nelson Mandela Foundation board of trustees, addressed guests on behalf of the Foundation, reflecting on Presidential Shirts long standing relationship with the Nelson Mandela Foundation and shared values of service, courage, resilience and integrity.
Presidential Shirt was founded in 1994 when Cape Town designer Desré Buirski gifted Nelson Mandela a Presidential Shirt two days before his inauguration; he went on to wear it and many other shirts that followed at several defining moments of his
presidency and beyond, among them South Africa’s welcoming of the FIFA World Cup, meeting with Queen Elizabeth II during a state visit to the United Kingdom and the signing of the democratic South Africa’s Constitution in 1996.
Rob Sim, CEO of Presidential Group, welcomed guests and related the brand’s history from that first shirt through to the opening of a store at OR Tambo International Airport in 2010. He recounted a suppliers factory liquidation that led to Presidential Shirt investing in the facility and preserving jobs; growing the factory to over 100 employees at present and a 2018 renewal of its relationship with the Nelson Mandela Foundation around the centenary of Mandela’s birth.
Music serenaded through the evening courtesy of Ernie Smith, whose ambient sets underscored the arrivals and Dr. Kani’s remarks, and the legendary Vusi Mahlasela, who sang at Mandela’s 1994 inauguration and is simply known as The Voice, performed a full set ahead of the store’s official opening
Mandela Square located Cilantros Restaurant served the canapes and drinks were provided by Graham Beck Brut, affectionately known as The President’s Choice, which was served at Nelson Mandela’s inauguration in 1994.
Closing remarks were delivered by Geoff Mabote, Executive Director of Presidential Group, who was later joined Dr. Pandor and Dr. John Kani, to officially open the new Presidential Shirt emporium.
In addition to Presidential Shirts standing commitment to the Nelson Mandela Foundation, for the next thirty-two days from launch, representing the 32 years since Freedom Day and the establishment of the brand, 50% of the proceeds from the sale of iconic replica Madiba silk shirts sold, will go directly to the Nelson Mandela Foundation.
About Presidential Shirt
Positioned as the brand ‘for those who carry Africa forward’, Presidential Shirt was born in South Africa in 1994 and became the brand of choice for Nelson Mandela and for decision-makers across the continent. It has since grown into a full range of Afro-centric menswear, with Nelson Mandela as its first ambassador and the Nelson Mandela Foundation among its longest-standing partners. The brand is made in South Africa, with more than 90 percent of shirt production based in Cape Town. For more information, visit www.presidentialshirt.com
**Available for Interview **
Rob Sim, Group Executive, Presidential Group
Geoff Mabote, Executive Director, Presidential Group
Media Contact
Ms Lerato Mogoatlhe
+27 83 553 4623
media@brandleadership.com
