Normally, people gravitate towards brands that manifest ingenuity and creativity in their designs, especially when those qualities are elevated with intentionality towards customer satisfaction. These values are a few of the reasons KoutureByAjike (formerly Styled by Ajike) takes today’s headline of our special feature in the fashion industry. Like most brands, KoutureByAjike is determined to make its mark in the fashion world, however, what has our attention is the way the creative director of the brand is going about it. She has made sure the brand is not just churning out designs to amass a huge product presence in the fashion marketplace, but that every design created aligns with a customer’s identity and is an artistic expression of a compelling imagination. Their range of ready-to-wear and measured-to-fit outfits are uniquely crafted to be the centre of attraction to the eyes and elevate the personality of each client with a manifestation of elegance, simplicity, and glamour.
Their outing at the Epic Show of the Fashion Finest Africa show has garnered positive feedback and reviews from industry experts, some of whom have used words like ‘Excellence’ and ‘Distinct’ to describe the array of designs they put on display. For us, their Mahogany Collection remains an exclusive. The idea of creating exotic wrappers from cotton, velvet, silk, and chiffon fabrics as part of a two-piece gives a wow effect. It is a fusion of the African fashion heritage and a remix of the classic Western fashion style. It does not only enunciate cultural interaction, but it also caters to the African woman who wants to retain her motherland identity and still appeal to a sense of diversity that makes her fit into the fashion world of other countries.
The Creative Director and Head Designer – Mariam Oladipupo Ajayi, while hosting an Instagram live discussed the need to reinvent old African fashion styles and designs to preserve our history and creative continuity. She said,
“Every design we see now is either a reinvention of existing design or an attempt at changing the stereotype. In whichever way we decide to categorize it, it mostly falls into three groups: tops, dresses, and skirts/trousers. Now, every culture has a unique way they make and wear designs in these categories. Take the Scots, for instance, men wearing skirts is pronounced in their culture, but the designs of skirts keep evolving. What we are trying to achieve at KoutureByAjike is to redesign classic African styles for modern consumption. I can assure you that there are myriads of ways to do that, and we are just getting started.”
Kouture by Ajike is a daring fashion brand, and it is safe to infer that they are on a path that would help them build relevance for fashion creativity like brands like Mai Atafo.
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