Erin Dobson walked away from a basket bag at a Christmas market and regretted it for months. That’s how Wicker & Wit began. She couldn’t find anything similar in the shops, so she made her own. Eight months after launching, the brand is on shelves in six Cape Town boutiques, which is an impressive run for a label that started with a single basket she walked away from… and then wished she’d bought.
We went behnd the scenes to discover the most delightful bags Wicker & Wit produces and where you can pick them up around Cape Town. With Christmas a little over six weeks away, we suspect that you’ll be seeing many more of these colourful bags when you’re out and about.
The Basket That Started It All
The original market basket stayed on Erin’s mind, and she went looking for something just like it. But nothing quite matched, so she made one herself.
Then friends asked where it came from.
And their friends asked.
Before long she had a first order for 12 baskets, which she hadn’t planned for. By her own account, she wasn’t looking to start another business.
But one thing led to another, and she ended up launching Wicker & Wit in February 2026. Erin is a Cape Town mom of two with a day job in sales and marketing, so the brand grew in the gaps around that. In October 2026, it was the subject of a profile in Startup Magazine, which is a fair amount of attention for something that’s still in its first year.
What Wicker & Wit Actually Makes
The core of the range is the statement basket bag. These are woven baskets turned into proper handbags, and they’re loud on purpose. Erin describes the brand as “my personality in bag form”, which tells you most of what you need to know. If you like beige and restraint, this isn’t your label.
Accompanying the baskets are woven clutches, a selection of which include fruit clutches, fringe clutches and purses for phones, lip gloss etc. The clutches suit anyone who likes the look but doesn’t want to carry a basket to dinner.
The detail is where the pieces differ from the usual market basket. With the range offering colour-blocked weaves, with bands of contrasting colour running through the basket instead of one flat shade. Some pieces are finished with clusters of embellished gems. Others carry evil eye and hamsa hand motifs, both traditionally protective symbols, which makes the bags a little cheeky and a little talismanic. Add the dad jokes Erin promises are woven into the brand’s personality, and you have an accessory that is meant to start a conversation.
Colours, sizes and designs change from shop to shop and season to season, so we haven’t listed specific pieces or prices. The shop or the brand’s Instagram page will show you what’s currently available.
Where To Find Wicker & Wit in Cape Town
Six Cape Town shops stock the brand, spread across the City Bowl, the southern suburbs, the False Bay coast, Hout Bay and Milnerton. Some pair naturally on a single outing, so I’ve grouped them that way.
Kloof Street, Gardens
PRESENTspace is on the first floor of Lifestyle on Kloof, at 50 Kloof Street. Kloof Street is the most obvious place to start. For tourists unfamiliar with the area, K;oof Street is located below the slopes of Table Mountain in Gardens and is lined with restaurants, cafés and design shops. Because PRESENTspace is upstairs, it’s easy to walk past if you’re looking at the ground-floor windows. Look for the entrance to Lifestyle on Kloof and head inside and up.
Claremont and Constantia
Two shops provide southern suburbs coverage, and they’re close enough to visit in one trip.
16 Rails has a branch in Claremont, at Belvedere Square on Belvedere Road. Claremont is the southern suburbs’ everyday shopping hub, so you can combine this stop with errands. It is also the first of two 16 Rails branches stocking Wicker & Wit.
Present Time is in the Courtyard at Constantia Village off Constantia Main Road. The centre is one of the established shopping stops on the Constantia side of the mountain. Both shops stock the brand, and both are well placed if you are already in the area for lunch or wine-farm plans.
Hout Bay
The second 16 Rails branch is in Hout Bay, in Shop E1, Block E, Mainstream Mall. Hout Bay is a drive over the mountain from Constantia, via Constantia Nek, which makes a Constantia and Hout Bay combination a reasonable half-day plan. If you only want to visit one 16 Rails, choose whichever is closer to where you’re staying. The two branches carry the same brand but not necessarily the same stock, so check before you go if you have a particular piece in mind.
Kalk Bay
The Kalk Bay Co-op is at 100 Main Road, Kalk Bay. Main Road runs along the False Bay coast, following the train line past the harbour, and the village strip is made up almost entirely of independent shops, galleries, cafés and second-hand finds. It is a good place to browse without a plan. Parking along Main Road is tight, especially on weekends, so allow a few extra minutes if you are driving. The train from the city is a pleasant, air-conditioned alternative and provides fantastic views over False Bay, meandering along the coast to Simonstown.
Milnerton
Cocoli is in Shop 37, The Paddocks, Racecourse Road, Milnerton. Milnerton is on the north-western side of the city, and The Paddocks is a popular local shopping centre rather than a tourist stop.
Useful for readers living in the northern suburbs, who otherwise have to cross town to see the brand in person.
Addresses at a Glance
- PRESENTspace: first floor, Lifestyle on Kloof, 50 Kloof Street, Gardens
- 16 Rails Claremont: Belvedere Square, Belvedere Road, Claremont
- 16 Rails Hout Bay: Shop E1, Block E, Mainstream Mall, Hout Bay
- Present Time: Constantia Village Courtyard, Constantia
- The Kalk Bay Co-op: 100 Main Road, Kalk Bay
- Cocoli: Shop 37, The Paddocks, Racecourse Road, Milnerton
Stock rotates between shops and sells through at its own pace. Before you make a special trip, particularly for a specific colour or design, phone the shop or check the stockist page on the brand’s website to see what is currently in.
Basket Bags Further Afield
Wicker & Wit is not only a Cape Town story. Outside the city, the brand is stocked at three other shops:
- Luna: Shop 19, Knysna Waterfront, Knysna
- Spence & Mae: Shop 20, Fields Hill Shopping Centre, 13 Old Main Road, Kloof, KwaZulu-Natal
- Something Special @ GardenFresh: 167 Jan Smuts Avenue, Parktown North, Johannesburg
The full and most current list is on the stockist page at wickerandwit.co.za/stockist, which is the best first stop if you are travelling on the Garden Route or visiting Gauteng or KwaZulu-Natal and want to see a bag in person before buying.
For international visitors, a couple of practical points. Woven baskets hold their shape, so they don’t squash flat like a fabric tote, and it is worth thinking about suitcase space before you buy. Foreign tourists can usually claim back VAT on goods they take out of South Africa, so keep your tax invoice and ask the shop how the process works.
The Woman Behind the Baskets
Erin has done this before, in a different field. She previously founded and sold My Pretty Pamper Party, a children’s pamper party business that is still running. So, Wicker & Wit isn’t her first attempt at building something, even if it is the first that began with a bag she wanted for herself.
The practical side of the brand is less glamorous than the product. Erin works full time and is raising two young children. Her nanny helps pack and dispatch orders while she is at work. That is how a part-time brand with a few boutique stockists gets product out of the door.
She also says supporting other women in business matters to her, and that includes women working in a similar creative space. She’s started reaching out to local female artisans about possible collaborations. Nothing’s been announced, so it is something to watch out for.
Her stated goal is simple; to make Wicker & Wit her full-time career and have more time with her children. At eight months old, that is an ambition rather than a result, and it is a more modest and more honest way to describe a young brand than most.
What Comes Next for Wicker & Wit
The brand is still young, and its range will probably keep changing. That is part of the appeal of buying now. Stock moves, designs rotate, and the artisan collaborations Erin has mentioned could take the range in directions nobody can yet predict.
For shoppers, the practical advice is the same as for any small label. Follow Wicker & Wit on Instagram to see what’s new, check the stockist page before you travel, and ring the shop if you have your heart set on a particular colour or design. If you’re buying for Christmas, give yourself some margin, because small-batch stock does not restock overnight.
And if you are in Kloof Street, Kalk Bay or Constantia with a spare hour, go and look at one in person. A basket bag with a gem cluster and an evil eye on it is easier to judge once you have it in your hand. Erin’s original basket got away. Yours doesn’t have to.
Website: wickerandwit.co.za
Stockist locator: wickerandwit.co.za/stockist