The Zulucow Story: Ethical Cowhide, Handmade with Purpose
Zulucow’s limited-edition cowhide bags, rugs and accessories give you standout style you can actually live in; cowhide pieces which turn heads, last for years and instantly lift any outfit or room. Each one-of-a-kind design is handcrafted by Zulu artisans in rural South Africa from by-product hides, so you enjoy effortless, low-maintenance luxury while supporting the women who make it.
Everything we produce is a by-product of the food industry, ensuring nothing goes to waste.
Sustainable, ethical, and beautiful… This is slow fashion at its finest!
Meet Lucy, Founder of Zulucow
Born in Zimbabwe and raised in South Africa, I’ve always been captivated by the colour, energy, and resilience of Southern Africa. The people, the landscapes, the traditions; it’s a place that’s shaped me.
I spent 14 years working as a TV producer for BBC Sport in London and as a freelance camerawoman for Racing Post TV, following my passion for horses. But life changes when you have a young family, and I found myself rethinking what truly mattered to me.
And so, Zulucow was born.
It all started with a family trip back home to South Africa. I spotted the most incredible Nguni cowhides for sale on the roadside, their unique markings unlike anything I’d seen before. I brought a cowhide rug, a bag, and a belt back to the UK… and people kept on asking me about them.
That was my lightbulb moment.
For the past 13 years, I’ve worked alongside an incredible team of Zulu artisans – Ma Beatrice, Ma Thandi, Gcinile, Neli, Nomzamo, and Khethiwe – collaborating with my South African business partners, Linell and Carina, to design and refine Zulucow’s collection of cowhide bags, belts, cushions, and home accessories.
Every year, I travel back to South Africa to visit the talented, female artisans who bring Zulucow’s cowhide pieces to life; meeting their families, exchanging ideas, and bringing essentials like second-hand clothes, shoes, and football kits for their children. Together with my loyal customers and followers, I also raise funds via Zulucow’s ‘Just Giving’ page (which have gone towards Neli’s building materials, Nonwabo’s speech therapy, Kwandile’s router, Gcinile’s school fees fund and more… Zulucow is more than a brand, it’s a community.)
Beautiful, Ethical, and Sustainable: How Our Cowhide Bags Are Made
Zulucow is a socially conscious brand, producing exquisite, ethically-made products from natural leather and high-quality Nguni cowhide. The Nguni hides we use are a byproduct of the meat industry and thus are adding to the circular economic cycle. We carefully select the individual Nguni hides from tanneries which are strictly controlled by government regulations and regular inspections to ensure that the chemicals used do not contaminate the surrounding environment and the water cycle.
We’re proud to create sustainable employment and skills development for women in rural South Africa, where unemployment is well over 50%. Our fabulous team of expert craftswomen are the lifeblood of the Zulucow brand – many have been with us for almost a decade. We, of course, believe in compensating them fairly for their incredible work.
By buying a Zulucow product, you are helping to make a difference not only to the lives of Ma Thandi, Gcinile, Khethiwe, Nellie, Bheki and Nomzamo, but in the lives of their extended families and communities, too. You are, in a nutshell, helping to fight poverty and creating HOPE. Thank you.
Creating Jobs, Changing Lives: How Zulucow Supports Women in South Africa
Zulucow wouldn’t exist without the talented women who craft every product. All of our unique cowhide pieces are designed and handmade in collaboration with a talented team of Zulu women. They cut, stitch, and hand-finish every piece. It takes at least six hours to make one bag.
When you buy a Zulucow product, you are not only purchasing a beautiful, unique, lovingly handmade item. You are also helping to create desperately needed, sustainable jobs. You are helping Zulu women to survive.
Gcinile and Nomzamo are both single parents and sole providers. Their employment with Zulucow helps them put food on the table and pay the bills. Then there’s Ma Thandi, who not only supports her family, but her community too. Two of Gcinile’s five daughters now happily work at the workshop alongside her, learning sewing and office management skills.
From Cattle to Craft: The Story Behind Our Ethical Nguni Cowhide Rugs
Zulucow’s high-quality, cowhide rugs come from South Africa’s Nguni cattle.
Bred by the Zulus for their stunning colouring and distinctive markings, Nguni cattle hold cultural significance in the Zulu community, being used for ceremonial clothing, among other things. Each hide is meticulously chosen for its beauty and quality, with any off-cuts repurposed into smaller items like doorstops, key rings, and purses.
The Nguni cattle embody the rich cultural heritage of the Zulu people. Their hides, integral to traditional Zulu practices for centuries, to this day have an economic and social significance to the Zulu ladies who make Zulucow’s cowhide bags and accessories.
The Zulu people have such deep love and appreciation for the unique appearance of Nguni cattle that they’ve developed evocative names for them based on their markings, adding to their cultural significance. For example, they name a hide which is mainly white with black flecks: ‘Inasenezimbukane’ (flies in butter). Another hide resembling skylark eggs, they call: ‘imaqandakahuye’ “The eggs of the sky lark”.
Today the Zulus are deriving skills and a sustainable income from the Nguni. This is as a result of jobs created not only in crafting Zulucow’s sustainable cowhide bags, belts, cushions, but also in tanning.
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