Ethnik by Tunde Owolabi is a respectable brand that has distinct itself with its infusion of tradition to achieve a modern touch relevant to today’s fashion. The photographer con designer loves every bit of the journey so far and had some to share with EM:
HOW DID THE JOURNEY BEGIN?
I am a photographer/designer; I had started some research work on head ties (gele) in 2012 for an exhibition and aso oke struck a chord. I did an extensive research on the fabric aso oke and I had an exhibition of the photographs and paintings I created which I showed in 2014, titled The Woven Beauty. During the course of the research I discovered the real beauty of asooke and in understanding its features, roots and people I knew that I would do more with asooke. I researched more and started sketching out my designs, rolled out some samples and started the tests. We fine tuned and production started in January 2015, since then we have increased the styles of shoes, increased accessories to bags and belts, and we are working on other products, and expansion.
WHATS YOUR SIGNATURE STYLE?
The use of uniquely designed colourful asooke to produce trendy accessories.
WHATS BEEN YOUR BEST MOMENTS AS A DESIGNER?
Listening to really good feedback from people who have tried our products and were not disappointed.
WHATS BEEN YOUR WORST MOMENTS AS A DESIGNER?
I can’t say I have had a worst moment yet, I hope I don’t but yes, I have had some hard times from the lack of the right infrastructure for production to having your best hand become clueless at peak
