Monochrome magazine is on the rise

THEY’VE spent months getting their increasingly popular online magazine onto its own web page and on Saturday, the women behind Monochrome magazine unveiled its new website complete with fresh new content.

Hosted at Crescent café in Eros, Windhoek, the launch of the online magazine’s new website was a celebration of the hard work that both Betty Sibeso and Disney Andreas have been putting into their baby – which is arguably Namibia’s most popular online magazine.

Both Sibeso and Andreas went down memory lane in narrating the difficulties they experienced in establishing the magazine. “We tried everywhere, investors, banks and they all shut it down,” Sibeso related. It was only when someone suggested they opt to go online instead that they shelved their dream of having a physical print of the magazine. “We decided to go on social media and put up our pages in April 2015. But even then, we were not getting the following that we wanted,” Sibeso said.

Their blog, which garnered them a big following from readers across the world, became the first of great things to come. Their teasers, which were mini versions of an actual magazine, also received a good response from the public. But the Monochrome magazine team still has hopes of releasing their first printed magazine.

“We still want that print magazine, we still want to feel and touch it and know it’s Namibian,” Sibeso told guests at the website launch.

Also speaking at the launch of the website were Lungowé Zeko and Leah Misika. Zeko, who is the digital manager at Kaleidoscope Public Relations and Marketing, spoke on the need for self care on social media and the digital space. She stressed the need for Namibian creatives and hopeful social media influencers to have a solid online presence and to tap into the growing market that is accessible online. “As much as it pains us to beg you to be online, you do need to be online. You can’t be upset that no one is supporting your stuff just because it’s nowhere to be found,” she said.

Fashion designer, blogger and columnist Misika spoke about the need for Namibians to integrate and support one another for the fashion industry to succeed. She also cautioned fashionistas to be careful what they do online as it becomes a reflection of the industry as a whole.

“If you’re going to be the face of the Namibian fashion industry, you need to be very responsible,” she said.

Various key players on the Namibian fashion and lifestyle scene were in attendance of the website launch, including bloggers, television personalities and fashion designers.

Monochrome magazine can be found on their new site at monochrome.net.na .

– rukee@namibian.com.na; @rukeeveni on Twitter

In an age of information overload, Sunrise is The Namibian’s morning briefing, delivered at 6h00 from Monday to Friday. It offers a curated rundown of the most important stories from the past 24 hours – occasionally with a light, witty touch. It’s an essential way to stay informed. Subscribe and join our newsletter community.