J’Adore and GLAMOUR: A Toast to South African Fashion

Fashion is about more than what we wear, it’s about confidence, creativity and celebrating the moments that define us. This year, J’Adore joins GLAMOUR’s Most GLAMOURous (GMG) Fashion Awards, bringing together French-inspired luxury and South Africa’s most stylish celebration of fashion, culture and self-expression.

Ahead of this year’s awards, we spoke to the J’Adore team about why partnering with GLAMOUR was the perfect fit, the evolution of South African fashion and how the brand plans to elevate the evening’s celebrations.

Q&A with J'Adore

GLAMOUR: Why was it important for J’Adore to collaborate with GLAMOUR on this year’s GMG Awards?

J'Adore: For us, luxury has never been about a product. It’s about a feeling — the moment you walk into a room and know you belong there. That’s the exact feeling the GMG Awards create, and it’s the feeling we pour into every bottle of J’Adore.

GLAMOUR has spent years setting the tone for fashion and culture in South Africa, championing the voices that define the moment. We didn’t see this as sponsoring an event; we saw it as two brands who love the same audience finally sharing a room. J’Adore is French luxury in a bottle, and great fashion deserves an equally beautiful toast — that’s what we’re here to raise.

GLAMOUR: How has South African fashion evolved over the past year, and what shifts excite you most?

J'Adore: South African fashion has grown up without losing its soul and that’s the most thrilling thing to witness.

What moves us is the confidence. Designers have stopped looking outward for permission. When David Tlale staged a show inside a Gautrain station this year under the theme “I Am Africa, Not African,” that wasn’t a gimmick, it was a statement of ownership, right down to a collection made entirely in Johannesburg. And when MaXhosa takes its place on the official Paris Fashion Week calendar, season after season, Laduma Ngxokolo proves that heritage isn’t history it’s living art the world is hungry for.

The other shift we love is how the lines are dissolving fashion, music, art and lifestyle now flow into one another. A collection isn’t a collection anymore; it’s a world. That’s precisely where J’Adore belongs. We’re not a wine brand parked beside a fashion evening. We stand for the same thing these designers do: choosing to celebrate boldly, and turning self-expression into something you can see, wear or raise a glass to.

GLAMOUR: Beyond celebrating fashion, what impact do you hope these awards have on the local creative industry?

J'Adore: Recognition changes lives and we mean that literally, not as a nice line.

Think about the arc of a career like David Tlale’s, from Vosloorus to runways in New York and Paris, and now a Lifetime Achievement Award and a whole generation of designers who followed the door he opened. Or MaXhosa, which began with Xhosa beadwork reimagined in knitwear and now dresses icons across the globe while still producing at home. Those journeys started with someone choosing to see the talent early.

That’s what awards like these do. When you put a designer, a stylist, a photographer or a content creator in the spotlight, you hand them credibility, visibility, and the next commission. Recognition creates opportunity, opportunity creates growth, and growth builds an entire creative economy that keeps talent on this continent instead of exporting it. When South African creativity wins, everyone building something here wins — and as a brand that believes in this market, we see it as our responsibility to be part of that journey, not just the celebration at the finish line.

GLAMOUR: What can guests and readers expect from J’Adore at this year’s GMG Awards?

J'Adore: As a proud partner of the evening, J’Adore is woven through the celebration from the very first moment. Guests are welcomed with a chilled glass of J’Adore, and the sparkle carries right through to the toasts honouring the winners — because every milestone deserves to be marked boldly.

We’ve designed our presence to feel like part of the occasion, not a logo on the wall. Our signature bottle, French luxury crafted from 100% natural fruit graces every table, its soft, elegant design becoming a moment worth photographing in its own right. And the celebration doesn’t end when the night does, winners will find a bottle of J’Adore waiting in their goody bags, a little piece of the evening to take home.

Because that’s really what J’Adore is about: choose love, celebrate boldly. We want every guest to leave feeling the way a perfect outfit makes you feel, seen, and unforgettable.

As GLAMOUR’s Most GLAMOURous Fashion Awards continues to celebrate the people, brands and creative visionaries shaping South African fashion, partnerships like this reflect the power of bringing together luxury, culture and meaningful storytelling. Together, they create experiences that extend beyond the runway, celebrating style as a reflection of confidence and individuality.

For J’Adore, the evening is about more than raising a glass, it’s about celebrating the creatives, milestones and moments that define the industry’s future. With every toast, the brand reinforces its philosophy to choose love, celebrate boldly, ensuring every guest leaves with a lasting memory of a night dedicated to fashion at its most unforgettable.