The Freedom Collection was a clothing collection that brought a piece of history back to life in the form of wearable T-Shirts. The campaign directed consumers to the e-com site and physical store where they could purchase a piece of history in the form of a clothing collection.

The Collection & Campaign directed consumers to get involved in positive change by signing up with the relevant social justice organisations that are fighting to protect our freedom. Proceeds of sales of The Freedom Collection went directly to these organisations to help fund the ongoing fight for a free and just society.

black South Africans and imprisoned political activist like Nelson Mandela for 27 years.

Freedom fighters dedicated their lives fighting for the human rights of all South Africans. These Freedom fighters finally achieved a free and democratic South Africa in 1994 and became icons of the struggle.

27 Years later, racial oppression has been replaced by economic oppression – with 62% of the nation unemployed and 46% of the country’s youth not registered to vote. The country has been named the most unequal country on earth by Time Magazine.

The youth are angry and disenfranchised, and the government is silencing them. Government censorship and new bills are infringing on the constitutional rights to be a free citizen.

We needed to mobilise a new generation of activists to fight for freedom once again.

So, we looked to the past.

We took iconic photos from historical freedom fighters and brought a little piece of history back to life. We remade the clothes from the photos to their exact original designs and created The Freedom Collection by Thesis – a clothing collection designed to inspire a new generation of activists

The iconic images got a new life – becoming the powerful imagery of the campaign that launched the collection.

The Freedom Collection launched on Freedom Day, for the 27th anniversary of the first democratic election in South Africa, and the 16th anniversary of Thesis - a fashion retailer, based in the heart of Soweto – a township in South Africa that was, and still is, home to some of the country’s most famous freedom fighters.

The campaign told people how to get involved and sales proceeds of the Freedom Collection went to the organisations fighting to protect our freedom.

We needed to connect to the rising African youth, now focused on using fashion to express their unique African identity. But this youth has become disenfranchised. Held back by economic oppression and uninspired to fight for it.

As a brand that stands for the empowerment of the South African youth, Thesis Lifestyle needed to find a way to drive a political freedom message through culture - showing how the fight for freedom is just as important as finding our unique identity through fashion. Using fashion, together with powerful archived photos of struggle veterans, allowed us to mobilise the youth and remind them to continue the fight for freedom.

The Freedom Collection actively contributed to the fight by giving sales proceeds to the organisations that protect our freedom.

The campaign consisted of…

• A clothing collection inspired by struggle icons to make our message wearable – we designed a clothing range exactly like the originals worn all those years ago. The range was launched on Freedom Day in South Africa – the anniversary of the first democratic elections in the country. The sales proceeds went to organisations continuously fighting for our freedom.

• Shoppable digital content that spread the word of the campaign, driving e-commerce and unpacking the important stories behind each photo and item.

• Poster, Print, Press and In-store Collateral launched the Freedom Collection. The ads featured the historical images, repurposed into a fashion campaign.

• A look book housed the complete Freedom Collection, giving a more in-depth dive into the stories behind the fashion items and people that fought for freedom in South Africa. The book also unpacked the organisations that people could get involved.

The campaign created a movement:

• Sign-ups to organisations increased.

• Donations to organisations increased.

The campaign helped a disenfranchised youth see how they could get involved with each item of clothing linking them to an organisation that is fighting to protect our freedoms.

Organisations that benefited from sales where:

• Powa

• Lawyers for Human Rights

• Democracy Speaks

• Foundation For Human Rights

• Electoral Commission of South Africa

• Gender Justice