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Saturday 1st of April 2023

Nairobi, Kenya

Tag: African Fashion

African Fashion International (AFI) Returns With 15 Iconic Designers

Posted on by Ann Mumbi

After a two-year absence due to the Covid-19 outbreak, the African Fashion International (AFI) successfully returned to Cape Town last week.
Among the 15 legendary designers that participated in the three-day event were Gavin Rajah, Kluk CGdT, Taibo Bacar, Loin Cloth & Ashes, Habits, MaXhosa Africa, Craig Port, Matt Nolim, Stefania Morland, Shana Morland, Imprint ZA, Hugo Fleur, Kat van Duinen, David Tlale, and Scalo.

The fashion and retail exhibition gave visitors the chance to not only see the clothes that had just come off the catwalk but also to talk to the designers about them.

The Mother City’s legendary ensemble Temple Boys appeared in a variety of performances for the guests. DJ Zinhle and Young Stunna, two luminaries in the industry, also delighted the audience.

The founder and executive chair of AFI, Precious Moloi-Motsepe, stated that the CTFW (Cape Town Fashion Week) is AFI’s platform for presenting Africa’s creative works while also creating avenues of trade interchange that would increase the industry’s economic value.

“The CTFW provides a chance for African designers to network with people in the global market as well as to promote their work. This is viewed as a means of increasing the economic worth of the sector, according to Moloi-Motsepe.

The AFI also revealed the names of the AFI Fastrack 2023 finalists, who will spend a year being mentored and receiving instruction on how to make a difference in the African fashion sector and develop into astute businesspeople.

African Fashion International is happy to report that Cape Town Fashion Week was a huge success, in large part because of the incredible talent and ingenuity of the participating designers.

Over the course of three days, there were 18 shows by 9 designers, making it a true celebration of the best African design talent.

The fact that so many people showed up after a two-year break showed that Cape Town Fashion Week was missed. The addition of the CTFW Fashion & Retail Expo gave visitors the opportunity to connect with the designers and view the clothes as they were still being worn off the catwalk.

The CTFW also provided a venue for presenting African artists’ works while fostering commercial routes. The CTFW Fashion & Retail, Music, and Art Expo featured a variety of expo stallholders, all of which profited from participating.

According to businesswoman Dr. Precious Moloi-Motsepe, the executive chair and founder of AFI, “Cape Town Fashion Week is AFI’s platform for displaying Africa’s creative works while also developing corridors of trade interchange that will grow the industry’s economic worth.”

“CTFW provides a chance for African designers to network with people in the global market in addition to showcasing their work. This is thought to increase the economic value of the sector.

During CTFW, the Cape Town Temple Boys, DJ Zinhle, Young Stunna, and Scorpion Kings all gave fantastic performances for the audience.

A unique exhibition honoring 15 years of African Fashion International marked the conclusion of CTFW. 15 show-stopping outfits from 15 renowned designers who have been a part of the AFI platform since its start were included in this presentation. It was a celebration of both AFI’s work as a platform for outstanding Pan-African designers as well as its function as a catalyst in the global fashion industry.

Gavin Rajah, Kluk CGdT, Taibo Bacar, Habits, MaXhosa Africa, Craig Port, Matt Nolim, Stefania Morland, Shana Morland, Imprint ZA, Hugo Fleur, Kat van Duinen, David Tlale, and Scalo were among the performers on the program.

During CTFW, AFI also revealed the AFI Fastrack 2023, finalists. They will receive mentorship for a whole year, receiving instruction on how to become successful business people and designers who will have an impact on the African fashion sector.

Everything of the clothing displayed at CTFW is retail-ready and is offered at the House of Nala store in Sandton City as well as the AFI Online Store.

About African Fashion International (AFI)
In the past 15 years, AFI has been successful in bridging the gap between African fashion and international markets, launching and elevating designers to status on a global scale.
The goal of AFI is to create the finest business environment and platform for trade in African fashion and brands. Dr. Precious Moloi-Motsepe, an entrepreneur and philanthropist who started AFI, was inspired to work with various talents on the continent by her love of African ingenuity, craftsmanship, and culture.

AFI is regarded as a ground-breaking platform that develops, finances, and supports the best African creative talent. Customers that value custom African luxury and craftsmanship, both domestic and foreign, are the target market for our goods and services.

We help international customers find distinctive, top-notch African luxury goods from established and up-and-coming designers. The best place to find information and news about the fashion business is AFI.

We can provide Events as a Service in lovely physical and virtual places thanks to our extensive talent and expertise in producing stylish events and curated lifestyle experiences.

Content courtesy of  African Fashion International (AFI), Sunday World, MENAFN- EIN Presswire & NFH

 

 

A Landmark Exhibition Celebrating The Global Influence Of Modern And Contemporary African Fashions Is Being Presented By The Brooklyn Museum Under The Title Africa Fashion.

Posted on by Fashion Tribe Influencer

The show, which makes its North American debut in Brooklyn, includes over 180 pieces, including apparel and jewelry from the Museum’s Arts of Africa collection as well as works in music, film, visual art, and photography.

On view June 23–October 22, 2023
Africa Fashion is the largest-ever exposition on this topic in North America, honoring the exceptional originality, ingenuity, and worldwide impact of African clothing from the beginning of the independence era to the present. The exhibition highlights how fashion, along with the visual arts and music, played a crucial role in Africa’s cultural renaissance during its liberation years and how those elements laid the foundation for today’s fashion revolution through pieces by renowned designers and artists from the middle of the twentieth century to the present.

The show is run by the V&A, and Ernestine White-Mifetu, Sills Foundation Curator of African Art, and Annissa Malvoisin, Bard Graduate Center / Brooklyn Museum Postdoctoral Fellow in the Arts of Africa, have adapted it for the Brooklyn Museum.
Arts of Africa, Photography, Arts of the Islamic World, Modern Art, and Egyptian, Classical, and Ancient Near Eastern Art are a few of the Museum’s collections that are included in the Brooklyn exhibition.
Brooklyn offers the ideal setting for examining the diversity and depth of the different histories and cultures on the continent.
It is home to one of the nation’s most vibrant African diasporic groups.

“Fashion is a fantastic creative statement that is multi-dimensional. This is captured by African Fashion in stunningly vivid and intertwining ways. To create a rich sensory experience, music, art, cultural identity, and material culture are highlighted, according to Malvoisin.

The exhibition’s immersive exhibits of apparel, textiles, photos, writings, sketches, music, films, and catwalk footage are arranged thematically. Twenty different African countries are represented by more than forty designers and artisans, many of whose creations are on display for the first time in the country. The exhibition features clothing created by mid-twentieth-century designers as well as pieces created by a current generation of African fashion designers, collectives, and photographers.

Africa Fashion starts during the post-independence period, which lasted from the 1950s through the 1990s. At this time, the continent saw a significant political, social, and cultural shift. Pan-Africanism flourished, fostering a shared sense of identity that was centered on fashion and creative expression. In the Cultural Renaissance section, ephemera like protest signs, old magazine covers, and well-known album covers are used to illustrate this period of tremendous change.
Visitors can learn about how the creation and wearing of Indigenous fabric evolved into a calculated political act by visiting Politics and Poetics of Cloth.
Wax prints, commemorative cloth, àdr, kente cloth, and bglanfini are displayed among textiles from the Museum’s Arts of Africa collection.

The Vanguard section features the first generation of African designers to receive widespread recognition.
For the first time in the country, mid-to late-20th century works by Kofi Ansah (Ghana), Naima Bennis (Morocco), Shade Thomas-Fahm (Nigeria), Chris Seydou (Mali), and Alphadi (Niger) are exhibited combined with a vibrant display of fashion photographs from the time.

The images in Catching Change cover the years leading up to independence and show the emergence of a sense of action and African-American pride. Photographs shot in homes and studios increased in number as photography became more widely available.

Its expansion is demonstrated by studio portraits created by Mali artists Seydou Keta and Malick Sidibé, as well as by James Barnor’s (Ghana) fashion photography, family photos, and other works from the Museum’s collection.
Users are encouraged to interact with the content directly by contributing their own individual and family photos that reflect the fashions of pre-independence Africa. The diasporic community will become a crucial component of the presentation thanks to these contributions of self-fashioning.
Through samples of couture and ready-to-wear clothing, embellishment, and creative projects, the section Cutting Edge highlights a new generation of fashion designers and creatives.

Structured around concepts such as “Afrotopia,” “Artisanal,” “Co-creation,” “Provocation,” “Minimalist,” and “Mixologist,” this area shows designs by dozens of current artists and collectives whose trailblazing collections hark back to their rich and specific cultural history. For instance, the Alchemy collection by South African designer Thebe Magugu and stylist and healer Noentla Khumalo focuses on African spirituality and connections to ancestors. By incorporating “feminine” textiles and hues into menswear, Nigerian designer Adebayo Oke-Lawal and his label Orange Culture challenge conventional ideas of masculinity.

The self-portraits of Gouled Ahmed (Djibouti), a costume designer, stylist, and photographer, continue this discussion. Ahmed’s artistic expression also challenges conventional cultural gender conventions, particularly the underrepresentation of nonbinary Black Muslims.

Lafalaise Dion (Côte d’Ivoire) explores the cowrie shell’s history as a symbol of wealth, success, and fertility as well as its modern use as a piece of jewelry.
The artwork A Conversation between Cultures, created especially for Africa Fashion by Moroccan designer Maison ARTC, features the hand of Fatima (hamsa), a lucky symbol.

Through the Photographer’s Vision emphasizes how modern photography and cinema can support creative communities, provide unrepresented artists a platform, and investigate a new African identity. Contemporary photographers like Stephen Tayo (Nigeria), Sarah Waiswa (Uganda), and Victoire Douniama are collection pieces by South African photographers Zanele Muholi and Omar Victor Diop (Republic of the Congo).

Global Africa serves as the exhibition’s climax. This section highlights the global significance of African innovation by examining how the internet era has expedited the growth of Africa’s fashion sector and influence.

Exhibition Catalogue

A specific exhibition catalog produced by V&A Publishing is available to accompany the display. Omoyemi Akerele, Amine Bendriouich, Gus Casely-Hayford, Sunny Dolat, Bonnie Greer, Monica L. Miller, Elisabeth Murray, Njoki Ngumi, Hadeel Osman, and Roslyn A.
Walker contributed to the catalog, which was edited by Christine Checinska. Anne Pasternak, Shelby White, and Leon Levy Director, Brooklyn Museum wrote a new foreword.

Exposition Store

Africa Fashion will make advantage of a collaboration with ALRA, a premium lifestyle concept store located in Lagos, thanks to the efforts of Rachel Shechtman, the Brooklyn Museum’s Entrepreneur in Residence, to create a special exhibition shop experience. ALRA, which was established in 2015 by Reni Folawiyo and created by architect Sir David Adjaye, combines fashion, design, food, and culture.
ALRA, which was established in 2015 by Reni Folawiyo and created by architect Sir David Adjaye, combines fashion, design, food, and culture.
Folawiyo will select the designs for the exhibition shop for Africa Fashion, which will be ALRA’s first international outing.
Over the duration of the exhibition, special merchandise including products by designers featured in Africa Fashion as well as alternating trunk presentations and programs will enhance the shopping experience.

The Brooklyn Museum Store will sell products from Brooklyn, including but not limited to children’s toys, housewares, jewelry, and books, in addition to spotlighting brands and designers from Africa.

Ticketing Details
On April 18, 2023, timed tickets for Africa Fashion to go on sale. Starting on April 11, 2023, Museum Members can reserve their complimentary tickets.
Visit www.brooklynmuseum.org/join or send an email to membership@brooklynmuseum.org to join.

The cost of a ticket is as follows:

Adults pay $20 from Wednesday to Friday; seniors pay $13, students pay $13, visitors with disabilities pay $13, and kids pay $8.
Adults pay $25 on Saturday and Sunday, seniors pay $17, students pay $17, visitors with disabilities pay $17, and kids pay $10.

Exhibition Credit
The Sills Foundation Curator of African Art Ernestine White-Mifetu and Annissa Malvoisin, Bard Graduate Center / Brooklyn Museum Postdoctoral Fellow in the Arts of Africa, along with Catherine Futter, Director of Curatorial Affairs and Senior Curator of Decorative Arts, and Matthew Yokobosky, Senior Curator of Fashion and Material Culture, are responsible for organizing the Brooklyn Museum presentation of Africa Fashion.

Developed by the V&A and traveling the globe
Sponsor in chief: Bank of America.
Substantial assistance from AL-RA.

Content courtesy of The City Life Org & NFH

 

 

 

African Fashion Conquering The Us Market

Posted on by Fashion Tribe Influencer

When the covid-19 outbreak crippled the continent’s apparel industry in 2022, Africa is back in style.
The United States imported apparel from Africa worth $3.491 billion last year, according to trade statistics acquired by Fiber2Fashion’s market analysis program TexPro.

Moreover, pants and shorts made up a total of 45.20% of the market, accounting for $1.578 billion. The remaining five key items of imported clothing were undergarments, sweaters, shirts, and T-shirts.

In particular, US imports of pants and shorts have climbed by more than 55% in the last two years following a pandemic-related fall in 2020, when they declined 14.21% to $1.014 billion, before rising by 32.88% to $1.347 billion in 2021. The value of imports from African nations rose by another 17.09% in 2022, reaching $1.578 billion.

In the previous year, imports of jerseys totaled 529.307 million dollars or 15.16% of the total. Similarly, the imports of shirts, T-shirts, and underwear were $446.874 million (12.80%), $319.666 million (9.16%), and $134.645 million (3.86%). According to TexPro, these top five products made up more than 86 percent of the whole incoming garment shipment from Africa to the United States.

Suits (2.23%), jackets and blazers (2.07%), babywear (1.89%), coats (1.38%), and sportswear (1.26%) were the top five other apparel items imported from the United States in 2022.

From the InfoAfrica Redaction

Content courtesy of Breaking Latest & NFH

 

 

 

Fast-Fashion Giant Shein Is Under Investigation in South Africa for Import Procedures

Posted on by Fashion Police

Textile workers and business associations claim Shein sends items in small packets to avoid paying import taxes.
After allegations from the regional textile union and industry organization that the fast-fashion retailer Shein may be abusing tax breaks to obtain an unfair edge in Africa’s most advanced economy, the South African government announced on Monday that it is looking into the matter.

A representative for the Department of Trade, Industry, and Competition declined to offer information on the probe, but he said that it was begun in response to concerns voiced by labor and business groups.

The allegations made by the South African organizations are similar to those made by American unions and manufacturers who assert that Shein and other Chinese shops are abusing a provision in American customs law that exempts them from paying duties on imports.
The investigation into Shein’s import tactics hasn’t been officially confirmed by the government until the South African investigation.
tightly held Shein, which was established in China but is now headquartered in Singapore, has grown to be one of the biggest online fashion retailers in the world by sending ultra-cheap goods from China directly to customers in more than 150 different countries. On Shein’s website, you can buy some gowns for less than $5 and women’s tops for as little as $2.

The National Clothing Retail Federation of South Africa and the Southern African Clothing and Textile Workers’ Union assert that Shein purposefully distributes its items in small packages of lower value to avoid paying import tariffs.
These taxes are in place to aid local businesses in competing with low-cost imports.
According to import records, the corporation appears to be taking advantage of a gap that was actually designed for individual consumers, according to Etienne Vlok, national industrial policy officer for the union. You don’t have to pay the same taxes as someone importing tens of thousands of clothes if your import is below a particular value threshold.

According to Mr. Vlok, Shein may be paying as little as 10% to 20% in taxes, which the South African government typically levies on imported apparel.

If that’s the case, we should consider a solution to close that gap, he said. “Shein doesn’t seem to be playing by the rules others are playing by,” says the author.

A representative for Shein stated that the business is dedicated to abiding by local rules and regulations of the markets in which it operates.

Similar worries about a regulation known as the de minimis rule have been voiced by organizations in the US, such as the Alliance for a Prosperous America, which is made up of US manufacturers and labor organizations. Companies are currently using this rule, which permits American travelers to carry duty-free items back from abroad, to avoid paying billions of dollars in tariffs.

As long as products are packaged, targeted to specific purchasers, and cost less than $800, the rule permits American stores that sell Chinese imports and Chinese businesses that sell straight to American consumers to escape tariffs.

The fact that Shein has very, extremely aggressive low price points is somewhat of a global phenomenon, according to Michael Lawrence, executive director of the National Apparel Retail Federation of South Africa.
“My membership is not the only one attempting to figure out how much aggressively low pricing points are possible.”

Content courtesy of The Wall Street Journal & NFH 

 

Fashion Super Model: Naomi Campbell Knows What She Wants

Posted on by Fashion Police

The world has been attempting to describe her for three decades.
The supermodel and campaigner, though, would rather handle things on her own terms.
Naomi Campbell’s origin story plays a significant role in the mythos around her as a supermodel, activist, fashion star, and occasionally hothead.
I’ll reiterate what you likely already know: Campbell, a 15-year-old schoolgirl from the relatively nondescript streets of London’s Streatham area, was discovered by a model scout while window-shopping in the city’s West End.
It’s a very different narrative from how today’s most successful models appear to be found either via Instagram scouting or being thrust to the head of the line because of their well-known parents.

Together with Kate Moss, another ’90s icon (and close friend), Campbell is to blame for inspiring a generation of British teenage girls to try their hardest to appear “modely” as we browsed the expansive Topshop on Oxford Street in the hopes that we too might be “spotted” while out on a Saturday afternoon.

Campbell’s background gives the impression that a fortuitous encounter is what altered the course of her life as if hers is some type of “right place, right time” Cinderella tale. Then, however, as you’re seated next to her in a hotel suite in a secretive part of Europe, you realize that with a face like hers—those imposing cheekbones reaching upward as though in homage to the celestial entities that must have played a role—there must have been some sort of celestial influence.

Naomi Campbell was destined to become renowned because of how they were made and those full, proportionate lips.
“I’ve been requested to write a book by virtually everyone,” she tells me, sinking into a sofa.
The thought of a Campbell memoir is tantalizing one wonders what her perspective of the countless tabloid headlines that have been published about her would be but so far she’s held off. “It’s time-consuming,” she argues, and anyhow, she doesn’t want to use a ghostwriter. She prefers to tell her own story.

Campbell epitomizes Old Hollywood; she exudes the confidence of someone who has experienced pre-2000 stardom, or legitimate popularity.

She does not engage in the calculated humility or relatability politics that seem to be the norm among today’s rising stars. She constantly mentions the incredibly well-known celebrities and fashion designers she counts among her close pals, and her Instagram is covered in glitz and jet-setting.

She has managed to hang on to her position as the hot spot of fashion for more than three decades, and she will go down in the annals of the business. So of course I agree to quit everything the day after Christmas and board a plane in exchange for just one hour of her time.

Despite her haughtiness, Campbell can also be extremely girlish at times, such as when we sneak outside to her hotel room’s terrace so she may smoke a cigarette. She tells me in a slightly conspiratorial manner, “I’m going to resign on New Year’s Eve.”

Her recent travels included flights from Milan to Miami, Miami to London, London to Egypt (where she sat front row at a Dior menswear show), back to London for the British Fashion Awards, and then on to the Senegalese city of Dakar to see Chanel’s first-ever catwalk show in sub-Saharan Africa.

Saudi Arabia then travels to London. from London to New York. Get back to London.
She will soon travel to the Middle East once again before returning to Senegal for a vacation.

She still puts forth a lot of effort, I wonder why. Most of her countrymen had long since retired, occasionally resurfacing for a legacy campaign but, for the most part, appearing glad to slow down. Campbell, in comparison, is still as booked and active as she was during her heyday in the 1990s; just this past year, she fronted advertisements for Balmain, Hugo Boss, and Pat McGrath Labs. What possible new peaks could she possibly climb?

“I just like what I do,” Campbell claims. “I consider myself fortunate to have the freedom to decide what I do at this stage in my life. And it’s a blessing that I still have access to so many wonderful chances. Why not then?
She goes on to say, “I have nothing to prove. I enjoy doing it, so. Although my work is challenging, I enjoy it.
The fact that you enjoy what you do is crucial. I still find enjoyment in what I do.
For quite some time, that effort has not only involved modeling.

Now, a large portion of Campbell’s time is devoted to activism, philanthropy, and cultural ambassadorship, frequently through Fashion for Relief, the nonprofit organization she established in 2005 to support Hurricane Katrina victims and which has since raised more than $15 million charitable causes around the world.

She introduced Emerge in October with a star-studded gala and fashion show in Qatar, an effort aimed at finding and nurturing the following generation of creative talent from emerging communities around the world. In layman’s words, that refers to internships, coaching, and skill development in the creative industries, which include tech, art, entertainment, and fashion in addition to fashion.

The number of young models Campbell has taken under her wing is another indication of her commitment to supporting the next generation of fashion creatives.
Adut Akech, a doll-faced 23-year-old model from South Sudan who is currently one of the most in-demand faces in the business, is one of those people.

This is large because of Campbell’s backing for her career.

“You know how a mother takes care of her child? I always feel comfortable when I’m around her,” adds Akech. “She’s like a comforter. I feel like I have another mother figure who is raising me even though I’m so far away from my original mother. On the set of Tim Walker’s Alice in Wonderland-themed Pirelli Calendar photo shoot, which famously included an all-Black ensemble, Akech first met Campbell in 2017. That was a “fangirl moment,” according to Akech, “but I was like, ‘Don’t be strange.’ ” A few months later, when she moved to New York City by herself, she contacted Campbell because she had given her phone number. She treats me the same way she would treat her own daughter, says Akech

“She always makes sure I get into my car safely whenever I hang out with her. As soon as you get home, text me. If I don’t SMS her, she won’t go to sleep.
Mothering can be done in a variety of ways. When I bring up the subject, Campbell replies, “I mother a lot of people. She claims that her desire to be one has always been clear. “Always.”

Campbell announced the birth of her daughter in May 2021. It didn’t matter when she claims. “Everyone’s life develops in a unique way. And it’s about who, and it’s a crucial question because you need to be certain that you’re doing that with the appropriate person.

For the rest of your life, you are linked. She takes a momentary pause that seems to last much longer. “For that reason, I decided to go it alone.”
Yet starting out as a single parent at 50 is a big commitment. Was she not afraid of the possibility?
“No.”
In no way?
“No, no.” After some time, she changes her mind. “Yes, I suppose I might be anxious in the sense of wondering if I’m doing everything correctly. Yet, you follow the flow.
The actress Cameron Diaz (or “Cammie,” as Campbell calls her), who Campbell now consults for parenting guidance, was one of the few individuals Campbell told about her plans to have a kid.

She’s someone I’ve known for a very long time, and I genuinely respect and love her. When I told her, she just said, “Alright,” She’s just a solid, trustworthy friend.

Nevertheless, Campbell is hesitant to talk much about parenting because she doesn’t want it to become the focal point of her public persona—a sentiment that many women who become mothers would understand.

The sun is starting to set while we are still outside on the terrace, where we have moved permanently from the hotel room. It is an impossibly lovely scene, perched high on a hill and looking down at the dazzling lights of a nearby town. In light of this, Campbell relaxes.

Though Campbell frequently describes herself as a “global citizen,” it is obvious that this is the region of the world that genuinely has captured her heart. In the coming days, she will travel to Senegal for a holiday. “I immediately sense the absence of racism as soon as I land in Africa. So that’s a big tick off the box,” she says, noting the psychological weight that is lifted when one can simply blend in with their skin folk and not have to worry about the possibility of a racial microaggression (as much as someone as famous as her can ever truly blend in).

Campbell speaks wistfully of Kenya, her home country, and its breathtaking natural beauty.

She talks eloquently about Senegalese dishes like thieboudienne and yassa as she says, “I’m just happy that people are finally understanding how beautiful the African continent is.
(Sensing a chance, I attempt to prod her into choosing a side in the “jollof wars,” a jocular competition between diasporic Ghanaians and Nigerians over which country makes the best jollof rice, but she politely avoids my attempts to coax her to join Team Nigeria.
I won’t be participating.

Content courtesy of  Hapers Bazaar & NFH

 

 

 

 

African Fashion: In A Double Performance, Kaijuka Abbas Conquers West Africa.

Posted on by Oscar Alochi

In a double performance, Kaijuka Abbas conquers West Africa.

Without a doubt, it is his universe, and the rest of us are likely gliding through it in a fog. The Ugandan designer keeps expanding his empire internationally. His most recent achievement was in West Africa, where he presented a collection of distinctive items at the Nook International Fashion Weekend in Nigeria last month.

An all-female collection featuring vibrant colors and edgy silhouettes was displayed by the designer who is known for these distinctive and audacious items that push the limits of fashion.
The designer’s heart and work were evident throughout the feminine collection.

For day two, the award-winning designer showed yet another spectacular collection, a celebration of masculinity, with the designs being bold, edgy, and style approved.

The second stop on his West African showcase tour took him to Lome, Togo, where he unveiled a range of clothing with a flamingo-hued monotone at the FIMO228.
The goal with these collections, according to Abbas in a statement following the display, was to celebrate life and bring that atmosphere to the Nook International Fashion Weekend and FIMO228.

“I wanted to demonstrate to the world the boldness, originality, and bravery of Ugandan fashion. And I think that with this collection, we achieved that goal. I could not be more pleased with my team, and I am eager to see where the Kai’s Divo Collection Brand will go in the future,” he said.

Content courtesy of Kai’s Divo Collection, Haguma Gloria & NFH

 

 

Kenyan Fashion: Making Kenya’s Fashion Industry More Efficient

Posted on by Fashion Tribe Influencer

Kenya’s apparel sector needs to close the loop. Over 400,000 tons of cotton waste are produced annually in Kenya by the apparel industry.
Global climate targets may or may not be achieved due to the fashion sector. Being the second-largest consumer of water, the sector is responsible for 4 to 10 percent of world emissions.
Being the second-largest consumer of water, the sector is responsible for 4 to 10 percent of world emissions.
A persistent increase in the world’s gross domestic product (GDP) has raised incomes everywhere, encouraging customers to buy new clothes more frequently, which could make the situation worse.
To keep warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, the industry must cut emissions by 45 percent in absolute terms by 2030. Without quick action, emissions will yet increase to 1.588 gigatons by 2030.

To accomplish this reduction in emissions, the industry will need to address the substantial amount of garbage it generates. One factor is post-production textile waste, since up to 20% of the fabric used to make garments is lost. Via transportation to landfills or emissions emitted during the burning of textiles, this garbage generates its own emissions.

Waste management presents particular difficulties in East Africa. The area generates a sizable portion of the world’s textile manufacturing, which results in a sizable amount of post-production trash.
An estimated 400,000 tons of cotton waste are produced by the clothing industry each year in Kenya.

Despite having the ability to recycle materials, manufacturers do not have circular waste-to-value solutions that preserve the value of textiles. Because of this, textiles are frequently transformed into inferior materials with limited usefulness, such as floor mats, pillow filling, and insulation material.

Waste reduction strategies that are revolutionary are required for the apparel industry in East Africa and beyond.
Successful implementation of these solutions is being demonstrated by one partnership in Kenya.
As other nations transition their fashion businesses toward more sustainable practices, their work may offer important lessons for them.
As a result, both the global climate goals and economic growth will be aided by this change.

A New Alliance Is Altering The Fashion Industry.
A middleman who can transform trash into sustainable raw materials for the manufacture of new garments is necessary to reduce waste across the supply chain, from manufacturing to recycling.
Closing the Loop on Textile Waste in Kenya fills that need.
They make use of a cutting-edge chemical recycling process created by the American company PurFi, which turns textile waste into high-quality products that can be recycled again and again in fresh production.

To reduce waste, the fashion industry in East Africa and beyond needs innovative solutions.

Compared to conventional methods for recycling textile waste, this system utilizes 99 percent less water, up to 90 percent fewer greenhouse gas emissions, and 90 percent less energy.
More than 15,000 chemicals, some of which are toxic, are involved in the production of clothing, so chemical use itself is not environmentally friendly; however, PurFi’s cutting-edge rejuvenation technology maintains a closed process that absorbs the recycling chemicals back into the resulting fabric.

The collaboration not only has positive effects on the climate but also shows how social fairness and environmental impact are intertwined. They provide training to previously unemployed women in the neighborhood, assisting in securing fair and secure employment that enables them to support their families.

The 36,000 kg of rubbish that this all-female sorting staff processes each month is being increased to 100,000 kg each month.
The collaboration has thus far sold 100,000 kg of textile cotton waste collectively.

A successful 2018 project from India served as the foundation for this multistakeholder program, which is being managed by the nonprofit Enviu and includes PurFi and Upset Sourcing East Africa.
The absence of recycling options and rising textile manufacturing in Kenya provided the ideal setting for the cooperation to imitate India’s model.
The Global Goals 2030 (P4G) and Partnering for Green Growth (P4G) State-of-the-Art Partnership Awards honor the most significant collaborations worldwide that are advancing new business models each year.

For its efforts to revolutionize textile recycling throughout Africa, Closing the Loop on Textile Waste received the Partnership of the Year for 2021 award, which was presented at COP26.

The future of Kenya’s fashion industry and Closing the Loop
The work of Closing the Loop is taking place at a crucial juncture as Kenya’s significance in the fashion sector is rising quickly.
Kenya’s Big Four Strategy, which places an emphasis on job creation in the manufacturing sector and raised living conditions, lists the restoration of the local textile industry as one of the country’s top priorities.
The expansion of textile manufacturing for export has also been encouraged by recent trade agreements and the establishment of special economic zones.
As a result, it is anticipated that over the next five years, Kenya’s export of textiles and apparel will rise by 25% annually.

Even though Kenya’s textile sector will increase significantly, post-production waste is already amassing as a result.
With two crucial strategies, the collaboration is seeking to develop alongside the sector and include recycling methods in the supply chain:

1. Public-private Partnership
Closing the Loop has a unique potential to assist both government organizations and clothing manufacturers in addressing the problem of textile waste thanks to their waste-to-value solution.

The Ministry of Industrialization, Trade, and Enterprise Development in Kenya’s Export Processing Zone Authority (EPZA), which is in charge of fostering export-oriented business projects, has been enlisted by the collaboration.
To manage the enormous amounts of textile waste produced by large clothing manufacturers inside their agency, EPZA needs viable and circular solutions. 450 new production lines are being built simultaneously inside EPZA, which will increase the amount of waste generated after production.

Closing the Loop can help EPZA by working together to give the agency the circular solutions they now lack. As a result of the partnership’s access to the textile waste produced by both old and new production lines, they will be able to recycle even more materials.

Meanwhile, in Kenya, waste management firms and producers have entered sourcing agreements with the collaboration. The collaboration is able to accurately track waste across their supply chain by developing an extensive connection with vendors. Given the intricate network of middlemen that source and produces items, product traceability is frequently challenging. In order to better reduce and recycle garbage, the collaboration will be able to better identify the areas where it is produced by collaborating closely with a variety of firms.

2. Scale And Efficiency Improvements
Via its partnerships, Closing the Loop will be able to access and recycle more waste than ever before. On the other hand, the collaboration will need to operate more effectively and on a greater scale in order to be able to process such a large volume of waste. In light of this, Closing the Loop intends to grow by moving to a bigger location where it will have access to more tools, staff members, and post-production materials. The alliance will be able to sift the enormous volume of rubbish they will receive as a result.

Solving environmental difficulties in textile production will not only mitigate climate change but also give a $192 billion total boost to the world economy by 2030.

Extending their work will have financial advantages for the partnership and the areas they serve in addition to significant trash reduction. The price per sorted kilogram of waste will decrease as waste volume from suppliers is increased and sorter output is increased. Additionally, this will enable the collaboration to keep creating socially just jobs and support Kenya’s Big Four Agenda.

In the long run, Closing the Loop intends to spread its technology throughout Kenya and create a network of strong, neighborhood textile waste centers. Recycled post-production waste would be given back to the original producers by this network. They would then make it possible for waste to flow continuously for regeneration.

If the agreement is successful, it will significantly aid Kenya’s textile industry in making the shift from its current inefficient informal waste methods to a formal circular system.

Establishing A Globally Sustainable Fashion Business
The Closing the Loop on Textile Waste effort demonstrates that it is feasible to transition to circular textile waste management, promote social fairness, and generate employment in the areas where the sector has the most negative effects.
This all-encompassing model shows how local solutions can contribute more to the shift to sustainable practices. Moreover, some solutions may have significant advantages: By 2030, addressing environmental issues in the textile industry would help the world economy gain $192 billion in benefits in addition to reducing climate change.

P4G is creating a network of collaborations that, like Closing the Loop, turn trash into a resource for the textile, plastic, and food industries.

Completing the Loop builds on the synergies with P4Circular G’s Fashion Partnership, which brings brands, producers, and recyclers together to improve the value of trash by recycling it into new textile products in Bangladesh. These partnerships have the ability to increase their impact, increase transparency, and track waste throughout the global fashion chain by cooperating and exchanging lessons learned about textile reuse and recycling around the world.

The world needs more cutting-edge business models that can quickly change established processes. These models can be advanced through partnerships across the supply chain, but only with backing from financiers and participants in the fashion industry. They can attain the scale and collaboration required to develop a truly sustainable fashion sector if they take Closing the Loop’s lead.

Photos Credit Shop Zetu & African Yuva

Content courtesy of World Resources Institute, Green Biz & NFH

 

RHON: The Real Housewives Of Nairobi

Posted on by Oscar Alochi

Nairobi, Kenya will host the first season of the “Real Housewives” franchise, which will feature five of the richest women in the nation.
After successful runs in Durban, Johannesburg, Cape Town, Lagos, and Abuja, The Real Housewives will finally make its way to East Africa. The Real Housewives of Nairobi, which premieres on Showmax on February 23, may have struck reality TV gold by expanding the show to further African nations and ensuring continuity with more seasons.

Fans can anticipate a never-ending amount of drama every Thursday when Real Housewives of Nairobi premieres soon.

The reality television program will follow the opulent lives of five Kenyan women who work in the media, entertainment, and entrepreneurship, orchestrating their own dynamics while taking note of the thread and cues that have come to make the program a subject of obsessive viewing.

The Real Housewives franchise, which has been licensed as a format by NBCUniversal Formats, is represented by this East African edition, which is produced by D&R Studios. Find out which cast members will surely hold our interest for several weeks.

1. Susan Kaittany

Being no stranger to the spotlight, Kaittany originally gained notoriety as a teen model and was named Miss Earth Kenya in 2004. She was able to participate in the Miss Earth pageant in the Philippines with competitors from all over the world because of the title.

She gave up her legal career to pursue a career in hospitality due to her intense enthusiasm for fashion and beauty.

Kaittany has established herself as one of Kenya’s leading beauty entrepreneurs and a socialite by founding Posh Palace, a multimillion-dollar beauty empire including hair salons and spas in Nairobi. Her preference for bold haircuts makes Real Housewives of Nairobi’s arrival suggestive of rich visuals. She also keeps up with runway trends by strutting for Kenyan apparel label Aulgah Nato’s most recent collection.

2. Vera Sidika

Vera Sidika is unquestionably the person the Real Housewives of Nairobi need on the show. Sidika is one of Kenya’s most well-known celebrities, and she enjoys stirring up a ruckus with her viewpoints, which has gotten her included on gossip blogs and in entertainment publications. She gained notoriety the previous year when she had to have her butt implants removed owing to health issues, and she encouraged young girls to value their natural bodies.

The 33-year-old originally gained public attention as a video vixen, despite having a big social media following in Kenya. In 2015, she made her reality television debut when she appeared on the show Nairobi Diaries, which also included celebrities and socialites.

She started her herbal slimming tea Veetox in 2017 and opened a beauty salon in Mombasa the following year as a successful businesswoman.
Sidika, who is married to the singer Brown Mauzo, has a daughter and is expecting a second child.

3. Sonal Maherali

A mother of four, Sonal Mahreali has established herself as one of Kenya’s top luxury vloggers. In 2016, she started a YouTube channel where she posts films on shoes, luxury travel, lifestyle, fashion, and a variety of other topics.
Sonal has a fixation with designer, expensive shoes, as needs to be reiterated. Even though she is composed and soft-spoken, she has admitted that for Real Housewives of Nairobi, she is able to break character when necessary.
Maherali is wed to Aly Maherali, the president and chief executive officer of Executive Healthcare Solutions (EHS), the company that represents Aetna International in Africa.
Simba Maharani is a collection of designer shoes and clothing owned by Maherali.

4. Minne Kariuki

Minne Kariuki’s arrival on Real Housewives of Nairobi won’t come as a surprise to those who remember her as Mariah from the Single Kiasi episode on Showmax.
Her on-screen persona features every Real Housewives tonal beat, including residing in an upscale condo, enjoying champagne, and taking private jets to opulent locations. She will, most importantly, bring snark and sassiness to Kenya’s Real Housewives.

Kariuki, the youngest actor on the cast, is married to musician Charles Miugai, aka Lugz Kenya, and they have two daughters together.

5. Lisa Christoffersen

Lisa Christoffersen, a successful businesswoman from Denmark with ties to Tanzania, works at the nexus of selected luxury safari experiences and interior design.

Christoffersen is the creator of Lioness Rally, the first women-only rally team in Kenya, and Lifestyle Nairobi, an artisanal venue with an art gallery, restaurants, spa, organic stores, and fashion boutiques in Nairobi’s diplomatic district of Gigiri.

Content Courtesy of Showmax & NFH 

 

How Outterspace is Changing the Definition of Luxury for Black Owned Apparel Companies

Posted on by Fashion Tribe Influencer

Africa has a diverse population in terms of languages, histories, and styles.
Several African-owned fashion firms are adding their distinctiveness to the current metropolitan fashion landscapes, making African fashion in particular a spectacle in the global fashion industry. Outterspace Integrated Luxury is a representative of these brands.

Outterspace Integrated Luxury is positioned to become a worldwide voice that raises awareness of Africa’s growing luxury fashion industry while staying true to its passionate and unusual creative heritage. In the three years since the brand’s launch, some of our favorite celebrities and powerful people have grown to appreciate its originality and youthfulness, making magnificent collectibles from the brand a staple in their wardrobes.

Integration of outer space Indulgence, comfort, prestige, sophistication, and street cred all fall under the category of luxury.

Excellence controls its original thought.
Since fans of high-end premium style and comfort exist all over the world, the brand strives tirelessly and creatively to cater to these customers by producing luxury streetwear.
Presently, the brand’s strongholds are in Nigeria and the United Kingdom, and it is progressively expanding its branches throughout the rest of Africa, Europe, America, and Asia.
Unlike the vast majority of African-owned clothing companies, which are frequently considered quota purchases (purchases meant to show love and support for Blacks)

With a voice that screams class, @Outterspace Luxury is changing the game by putting its distinctive design and aesthetic aspirations to life on people’s bodies all around the world. By doing this, they are not only changing how Africans view luxury but also opening the road for future African-owned fashion firms to compete with other international brands in the fashion industry.

For people who aren’t scared to stand out and utilize their clothing as a form of self-expression, their stunning designs are statement items.

Through their fantastic creations, the brand’s designers hope to bring cosmogenic joy and unwavering quality into their customers’ wardrobes.

A glance through their inventory reveals pieces that ooze style and work for a variety of occasions, such as Sunday brunch, romantic nights, picnics, etc.
Outterspace Integrated Luxury (@Outterspace Luxury) touts itself as a fashion find in the modern urban scene, deserving of all attention and capable of competing with the top names in international fashion.
They remain a high-end, daring, yet adaptable addition to any wardrobe, appealing to fans of comfort and sophistication as well.

Content courtesy of Fashion United & NFH

 

 

African Fashion Designer Asya Khamsin, Who Lost Her Luggage At An Airport In 2018, Claims She Recognizes Her Clothes On Former Nuclear Waste Expert Biden.

Posted on by Oscar Alochi

Just this week, a Tanzanian fashion designer who misplaced her luggage at an airport in 2018 claimed on social media that Joe Biden’s former “nuclear waste guru” Sam Brinton had been photographed wearing one of her distinctive looks.

In December, Brinton was fired from the Department of Energy after being accused of taking women’s bags in two different states. In July 2022, Brinton is accused of stealing a $320 piece of luggage from Harry Reid International Airport, and in September 2022, she is accused of stealing a $2,325 Vera Bradley roller bag from the Minneapolis Airport’s luggage carousel.

In February 2022, Joe Biden appointed the open and unashamed pup fetishist to the position of deputy assistant secretary for spent fuel and waste disposition in the Energy Department’s Office of Nuclear Energy.
Despite the DOE’s repeated refusal to comment to the media on Brinton’s work situation following his run-ins with the law, it was reported that he was put on leave over the summer. On December 12, the Department formally announced Brinton’s termination.

Houston-based Asya Idarous Khamsin said she misplaced her luggage at the Washington D.C. airport in 2018. She later identified her clothing in pictures of the infamous “kink activist” online after reading about the Brinton case on Fox News.

On Twitter, Khamsin stated, “Surprisingly I found his images wearing my custom-created garments that were in the lost suitcase.” She posted an Instagram photo of herself wearing a garment that was missing from the bag along with a picture of Brinton who was ostensibly wearing the same dress.
Khamsin sent images of another of her creations that she had seen on Brinton.

On June 11, 2018, Brinton wore the vivid orange outfit at the Trevor Project’s annual TrevorLIVE LGBTQ Gala in New York City.
At The Beverly Hilton Hotel on December 02, 2018, in Beverly Hills, California, he was dressed just in the voluminous shawl.

On February 22, 2019, Brinton donned the red dress at the UN building in New York City. The Trevor Project’s Director of advocacy and government affairs, Brinton, participated in a panel discussion at the 2019 Global Engagement Conference for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Khamsin shared images of Briton supposedly wearing her orange dress in a much-overlooked Facebook post from December 26 when she originally made the discovery over the holiday season.

She commented, “Recently on Fox News, I discovered about Sam Brinton’s luggage problem and I saw the images he wore my custom-made designs that were in the missing suitcase in 2018.”

The designer posted images of Brinton and her model wearing “the same dress made and customized by myself.”
Khamsin made no mention of whether or not she wanted to file a complaint.

Sam Brinton arrives at The Trevor Project’s 2018 TrevorLIVE LA Gala on December 2 at The Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California (photo credit: The Trevor Project/Getty Images).
(Picture by WireImage user Amanda Edwards)

Content courtesy of Asya Khamsin, American Greatness & NFH

 

 

 

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