The Judges

Sonia Raciti-Oshry - Principal Judge

Sonia Raciti-Oshry is a former Miss South Africa (1998) who was crowned 2nd runner up at the Miss World Pageant and also achieved a top 5 placement at the Miss Universe pageant.  After her year of reign, Sonia presented several T.V shows, continued to work with her favorite charities, started and ran a specialized deportment school and also completed her studies in Education. 

Having obtained her honours degree in education (Learning support), Sonia has been involved in various educational initiatives over the years.  For the past 6 years, Sonia has been involved with the Miss South Africa and Miss South Africa - Teen pageants, helping to contribute in some part towards the tradition and development of the pageants. 

Today Sonia is married and a proud mom of 3 beautiful and busy children, and spends her time balancing work and family life.

Paledi Segapo

Paledi Segapo is the founder of PALSE brand and co-owner of KS Model Management. Segapo holds a Master of Business in Leadership (MBL) qualification with a special focus on Growth Strategies for a fashion design-intensive enterprise in South African. His brand PALSE, consults for various local designers including Bryant’s Moore (of Rhythm City), Gert-Johan Coetzee, GG Boutique, RUBICON and Stain Boutique to name a few. His services have also extends to corporate, television productions and fashion styling for various magazines.

As a fashion industry expert, Paledi assists emerging and established fashion designers to better position and activate their brand footprint.

Segapo has been working with the Sun International Miss SA office since 2009 dressing and styling the crowned beauties. Currently he is working with Bokang Montjane, Miss SA 2010. His other noticeable accolades include being nominated as 2010 GQ magazine best-dressed man, fashion editor for Jozi Beat magazine (official publication for City of Jo ’burg) and contributing fashion columnist for True Love magazine.  PALSE has also established a men’s line - PALSE Homme which has dressed some of the country’s leading soccer stars; Matthew Booth, Ryan Botha, Itumeleng Khune as well as Idols presenter Proverb and sports presenter Andile Ncube.  You can follow Paledi on Twitter @paledis

Sonia Bootha

Sonia Bonneventia Booth started her working career as a professional fashion model in 1998. She was a finalist in the M-Net Face Of Africa competition in 2000 and this lead to her decision to reside in New York for 3 months. Upon her return she was chosen as 2nd runner-up in the Miss SA 2001 pageant. In 2006 she graduated with a BCOMM Marketing & Business Management Degree from Damelin and in between her studies she lived in Russia for 6 yrs and returned to Mzansi permanently in 2008.
 
She is the Co-founder/Trustee/Director of The Booth Education & Sports Trust with the main focus being on Book Clubs, Spelling Bee Tournaments, Football Coaching Clinics and Mentorship Programmes & Initiatives. She owns Booth Sports (a manual & digital silkscreening t-shirt printing & sales company that also does embroidery for corporate gifts and clothing). Her other company, Bonneventia S (a footwear manufacturing company) was selected as one of only 10 manufacturers/suppliers in Mzansi to partake in SAITEX(Southern African International Trade Exhibition) in Gallagher Estate.
 
She is married to Matthew and has two sons, Nathan and Noah

Gert-Johan Coetzee

Gert-Johan is one of South Africa’s most loved, well known and respected fashion designers. He is known for his red carpet wear which could be seen at major events, such as the SA Music Awards, SA Film And Television Awards, the J&B Met, You Spectacular, Huisgenoot Skouspel, The Tempo Awards and Miss SA to name a few.

His love for fashion began at a young age. He recalls once dressing his pencils with tissue paper in school, and his sisters’ dolls at home. At a tender age of 8, Gert attempted to make his first dress when his father gave him R30 for material. This was the perfect motivation for the young designer that saw him enroll in fashion school from the age of 16. While studying fashion he won numerous awards, including SA’s most promising young designer in 2006. Since then Gert’s star hasn’t stopped shining, he later went on to win the High Fashion Award at the Vukani Fashion Awards in 2009

Gert-Johan has created some of our country’s most memorable dresses making him a highly respected designer and public figure. He has dressed many of the countrys most famous personalities such as Cindy Nell, Liezel Van Der Westhuizen, Lira, Bonang Matheba, and Miss SA Bokang Montjane to name but a few.

In 2011, he made history by being the first SA Designer to have his dresses worn by A list celebrities-Khloe & Kourtney Kardashian on the Hollywood red carpet.

Kieno Kammies

At 37, Kieno Kammies has spent 22 years in the commercial media industry, having started making coffee at Reuters International in Cape Town, to eventually becoming a sound man and cameraman.  Today Kieno is a multiple-award winning talk show host working for Talk Radio 702 and 567 Cape Talk, discussing everything from general lifestyle issues to politics in his signature say it as it is manner.

Kieno has also re-entered the international television space as a consultant correspondent for NBC Television New York, and London, where he advises and assists NBC when it comes to covering South Africa.  Kieno is also on the brink of launching The Kienote Group, which will focus on media consulting and television content production in Africa, and division dealing with reputation management through effective people management, as well as Emergency Medical Service management consulting, a division he is starting with the former Deputy Medical Director of New York City, Dr Neal Richmond.

Last and certainly not least, Kieno thoroughly enjoys being a dad, to Cameron and Tyler. 

Joan Ramagoshi 

Reaching any Dream. Achieving any Goal. Anything and everything is possible says Joan Ramagoshi, co-founder and executive director of RBJ Marketing Solutions and former Marketing Manager of Mamelodi Sundowns Football Club.
 
It is a simple philosophy that Joan has used in building her own hi-profile career in marketing and corporate communications and in turn ensured the success of the many branding campaigns, events, and social awareness projects, both locally and internationally.  Diplomas in Public Relations, Business Communication and Brand Development have allowed Joan to capitalise on her responsibilities and esteemed celebrity status as Miss City Press (2002) and Miss South Africa (2003 – 2004) and South Africa’s representative at Miss Universe in Ecuador and Miss World in China. She still maintains wide ranging associations in government, the private sector, media and non-governmental institutions around the globe.
 
As a result she has become an inspirational role model sought after in a variety of capacities: motivational speaker, fundraiser, a spear header of worthy causes, a judge of competitions, television presenter, celebrity host and master of ceremonies at top level events and functions in Africa and other parts of the world including the launch of the Grand Prix in India.
 
Joan actively supports campaigns around Breast Cancer Awareness and regularly undertakes school tours where she speaks passionately about the possibility for each and every person to follow their dreams and achieve any goal they wish.