Initially the prospect of developing a handbag line in Africa seemed daunting, but that became Afomia Tesfaye’s motivation in creating FOMI. In early 2011, she made the decision to leave Los Angeles to travel back to her native homeland of Ethiopia with the intention of designing a collection of accessories. After researching the country’s indigenous resources, she discovered a little known fact, that Ethiopia produces some of the world’s finest quality leather. Undeterred by the fact that she had no formal design training, she soon completed a collection of colorful yet sophisticated leather handbags.

Oliberté is a sustainable brand supporting workers’ rights in sub-Saharan Africa. They believe in empowerment, transparency, and doing right by all. This means making premium quality products with a lifetime warranty, and it means treating every employee, everywhere in the world, with respect.

“MAXHOSA BY LADUMA knitwear started in 2010 with Laduma Ngxokolo’s desire to explore knitwear design solutions that would be suitable for amakrwala (Xhosa initiates). His vision was to create a modern Xhosa-inspired knitwear collection that would be suitable for amakrwala, who are prescribed by tradition to dress up in new dignified formal clothing for six months after their manhood initiation. As a person who has undergone the process, Laduma felt that he had to develop premium knitwear that celebrates traditional Xhosa aesthetics. Along his journey into exploring astonishing traditional Xhosa beadwork patterns, symbolism and colours, he discovered that they would be the best source of inspiration for the knitwear, which he then reinterpreted into modern knitwear.”