Football
Exclusive: Dynamic Keagan Buchanan Fuses Football with Fashion
South African footballer Keagan Buchanan merges his passion for football with fashion, recently launching his own clothing brand, NINE ONE
Image Credits: Cape Town Spurs FC
Keagan Buchanan has made a name for himself in the South African football landscape and has played for some of the biggest names in the country. The 33-year-old baller’s Instagram platform shows what he’s all about, and his interests can easily be narrowed down to three things – football, family and fashion.
Buchanan has his own clothing brand called NINE ONE that he recently launched this month, something that was always in the pipeline for him as his career progressed. A creative who has never shied away from expressing himself through his choice of clothing, the Cape Town Spurs midfielder continues to inspire the youth to pursue their dreams.
Fashion meets football
“I’ve loved fashion since I was in high school,” Buchanan told SportsBoom.com.
“When I was still playing for Martizburg [United] in my last season, that’s when I started doing some designs and then I had an idea of what it is I wanted to do in fashion. I’ve now launched my brand and I’m excited.”
Being a professional football player is a very demanding job, there’s matchday, training, fitness routines and eating plans to follow to stay at your best. Having a “side hustle” isn’t always ideal for footballers, but Buchanan seems to have found a way to balance his two inspiring careers.
Image Credits: SNL24
“Football is my bread and butter, it’s my first love. So when it’s football time, there’s no distractions, it’s full focus on my job as a footballer,” he added.
Buchanan describes the time that he has outside of football as his moment to create fashion designs. When most of his colleagues use their leisure time to unwind by watching Netflix or hanging out with loved ones, he would rather lock in and focus on what the next steps are for his fashion brand.
Athlete to entrepreneur
A career in sports doesn’t last forever, and venturing into entrepreneurship isn’t easy for any individual. Buchanan gives a little bit of insight into how he handled the transition from football to entrepreneurship.
You need to manage your time and prioritise. Not give one less than the other
Keagan Buchanan
Well aware of the fact that he’s chosen an unconventional path as opposed to other South African footballers, who usually venture into construction or fields that are deemed to be more “serious”, Buchanan knows how to deal with the stigma that he might not be doing things the conventional way.
“I think the challenge there is making sure that I’m not distracted by people thinking that I’m not focused because I’m busy trying to run a clothing brand,” he stated firmly.
“I would like to grow my brand into one of the biggest brands. A staple brand in my avenue of fashion I’d say, which is luxury athleisure.”
Missions in football
Keagan Buchanan is still currently in the books of Cape Town Spurs, who were recently relegated to the Motsepe Foundation Championship after being in the DStv Premiership for one season.
He made 16 appearances across all competitions last season, and he aims to play more in the upcoming season.
Now at 33 years old, Buchanan is aware that he’s now reached the twilight years of his career and is prepared to take it all in his stride.
“I’d just like to play consistently and enjoy these finer years of my football career. And play with happiness and just try and help the team to win and succeed.”
“My experience in sports influenced my approach in the fashion industry because in football you learn a lot about life. You learn a lot about basically everything, it’s a very tough profession – mentally, physically, emotionally, so I think being a professional footballer has prepared me for all the challenges in business. Essentially football is a business as well.”
Thando Mpembe is a dynamic sports reporter, where the thrill of the game meets the art of storytelling. With over five years of experience in the journalism industry and an honours degree, Thando has successfully fused a passion for entertainment with an undying love for sports.