The Standard Bank Luju Food & Lifestyle Festival will be back for its 7th edition of #EatSwayLove from Friday 1st to Saturday 2nd of August, 2025, at House On Fire in Eswatini.
As one of the leading food and fashion events in Southern Africa, the 2025 Luju Festival will be yet another wholesome celebration of the sophistication and elegance of African style, cultures, creative design and delicacies. This year, the Standard Bank Luju Food & Lifestyle Festival saw over 10,000 attendees from 23 countries, enjoying 47 acts on five stages, 6 culinary showcases and a regional fashion show with 10 designers from Eswatini, South Africa, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Lesotho.
In 2025, festivalgoers can expect to relish the festival’s tastefully curated programme of culinary demonstrations by celebrity chefs, connoisseur-led premium wine and whiskey showcases, a world-class regional fashion show and fine Pan-African music.
House On Fire and Standard Bank Eswatini’s shared mandate of developing the creative economy, promoting sustainability and supporting small-business growth will come alive in the range of local and regional artists and artisans who showcase their talents and products annually to the festival’s regional audience. In 2024, over 600 jobs were created by the festival, while E2.5 million was generated in sales by the festival’s 91 traders, 90% of whom were from Eswatini.
Guiding the festival’s experiential offerings and impact is the Luju Festival ethos, “A Return to the African Future”, which pays homage to Africa’s rich history of creative inspiration by revisiting vibrant trend eras and bringing back concepts to influence current and future styles.
The festival’s commitment to advancing sustainability will be reinforced in the 2nd edition of the Luju Food & Fashion Indaba which will be held on the 2 days preceding the festival weekend. This industry conference brings together a wide range of industry practitioners and stakeholders from the local and regional culinary and fashion industries for two days of knowledge sharing through insightful panel discussions, masterclasses and demonstrations that explore sustainability themes and industry best practices. Luju will invite entrepreneurs and experts in the food and fashion experts in an open call.
