THE LIFESTYLE SPREAD: BRANDS

, by Olav Arthur

100 DAYS OF AFRICAN FASHION WITH DIANA OPOTI.

, by Olav Arthur

Empowering Women in Style, Designer Aliakim to Showcase at Africa Fashion Week New York July 2013

Aliakim is starting a revolution with a unique brand devoted to bringing awareness to child soldiers and families torn by war while combining women empowerment with femininity. The label is next showing during Africa Fashion Week New York beginning mid-July, 2013.

“It’s hard to be a wallflower or a pushover while wearing an AK-47”

This is the capturing message of designer label Aliakim. A brand that blends fashion with activism, Aliakim not only offers ready-to-wear clothing and accessories, but provides women with an armour that is strong, modern, and chic. “The major motivation behind completely reinventing my life was a calling to make clothing and accessories for women like myself: cosmopolitan women who want the opportunity to express their political opinions as sophisticatedly as they express their femininity,” says designer Mikaila Brown.

Each piece uniquely melds cultural images with high-end fashion elements to artistically raise awareness to current world affairs. The mission of this fashion line is to provide cultivated women everywhere with clothing and accessories that express their advocacy as sophisticatedly as their femininity. Giving meaning to the term “revolutionary chic”, it is the intention of this line to put the “wear” in “awareness” and, as a result, inspire change.

The revolution Aliakim is currently fighting for is the awareness of child soldiers and families torn from war and without a voice. The proceeds from the Enlisted collection benefit SOS Village in Southern Sudan, an organization that takes in child soldiers that have lost their families in civil war between Northern and Southern Sudan while also providing education and counselling so they can reintegrate into society.

The Enlisted Collection is a combination of ready-to-wear day-to-evening clothing and accessories, custom fabrics, flip counter-cultural pieces. The designs are discernible and dynamic and inspire women to see value and power in themselves. “My primary inspiration and thus motivation with this collection is to provide women with an armour that is strong, discernible, and commanding,” Mikaila details. With the Enlisted Collection, Aliakim is building a fashion army of empowered women and the rebellion starts with the runway.

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Aliakim will be showing next on the runway during Africa Fashion Week New York (www.afwny.com) this July. Mikaila shares her message of Africa Fashion, “African culture is constructed around community. We need to take advantage of this instinct and share awarenesses and build community. Together we can have a broader platform to promote our brands.” www.aliakim.com
via Shadders Africa.

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, by Olav Arthur

Africa

Kenya's "KikoRomeo" Goes To Milan

After completing fashion design studies in Rome, followed by years working as a designer in Barcelona, Scottish born Ann McCreath took a three-month break doing aid work in Kenya. Finding it fascinating, she stayed on for 3 years, before deciding to go back to her profession and do trade instead of aid

So in 1996 With a desire to help create jobs in rural areas and make unique, high quality products for retail Ann launched her own fashion house under the name “KikoRomeo”, which means “Adam’s apple” in Kiswahili.. Hoping Kenyans would take pride in African-inspired contemporary fashion, and promote their economy through buying locally made fashion, she set about making ethically sound products with inputs from community artisans and women’s groups, which she retailed through her own shop.

Since then KikoRomeo has continued to offer ready-made garments, cut to international fashion trends, using African made fabrics, often with handcrafted details.

In April, Italian shoppers will be able to buy Kenyan designs from the Kiko Romeo fashion house at a top department store in Milan called La Rinascente.
Kiko Romeo founder, Ann McCreath told Word Is that she has shipped off some designs that will be sold in Italy.
"This is a major break not only for me but for the whole industry," Ann said, "The department store owners got to know about us when Vogue Italia came to Kenya and featured Kiko Romeo designs in a two page spread. The process of shipping off the merchandise involves bar coding the pieces, packaging them and "being consistent" in the whole process."
Some of the designed shipped off include kitenge skirts, dresses and blouses. La Rinascente means "rebirth" in Italian. It is a Thai owned Italian retailer operating upscale department stores in the area of clothing, household and beauty products. La Rinascente was the first department store to open in Rome in 1887. Currently La Rinascente owns a chain of 11 department stores located in Italian major cities: two in Rome and one in Milan, Genoa, Turin, Florence, Palermo, Catania, Cagliari, Padova and Monza.

She says instilling "not only employment but also pride" into local cultures allows her to have a successful team around her.

Taking inspiration from Africa constantly, Romeo purchases the majority of her textiles in Rwanda, Tanzania and Ethiopia. Moreover, she brings the majority of her cotton from West Africa.

It is her dream to open "an all African brand that can be franchised  around the world". If your in Nairobi, you can find KikoRomeo in Yaya  Centre. For those on the net, check out www.kikoromeo.com 