‘African fashion designers must cooperate’
In the view of fashion designer and public relations practitioner, Makeba Boateng, the above situation can be made better when fashion designers across the continent come together regularly to strategise on how to capture markets on the global scene.
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She said this to The Mirror at the end of a panel discussion organised recently by Fashion Forum Ghana (FFG) at the British Council Auditorium in Accra. The discussion centred on how Ghanaian fashion could make better commercial inroads on the international market.
FFG was founded by Ms Boateng as an outlet for intelligent discourse on ways to move Ghana’s fashion industry to new heights.
“We need to build relationships with each other in neighbouring countries to help strengthen our fashion industries and find new markets,” the FFG founder said.
According to her, the FFG discussion series is just a precursor to similar events to be eventually rolled out in the sub-region. The first one, held on the topic: “The Legal Usage of the name ‘Ghana’ in Fashion Identities and Branding,” came off at the National Theatre last March.
The topic for discussion at the British Council forum was ‘Globalising Ghanaian Fashion: The Importance of Global Branding and Self-Identifying as a Ghanaian or African Designer in a Globalised Fashion Industry.’
Fashion and textile students alongside other stakeholders in the fashion and culture business were there to participate in the discussion moderated by the Director of EA Media Productions, Esther Armah.
The panel that led the discussion comprised Aisha Ayensu (Creative Director and CEO of Christie Brown), Abrima Erwiah (Founder of Studio One Eighty Nine), Mrs Yvonne Ntiamoah (Head of the Fashion Design Department at Radford University College) and Aretha Amma Sarfo-Kantanka (Founder of Global Fusion Productions Inc.).
Amma Sarfo-Kantanka defined ‘globalisation’ in the context of the forum as “how we tell our unique Ghanaian fashion story to the world in its historic context, by including icons such as Chez Julie from the 1950s and 1960s and Kofi Ansah from our more recent history.”
Aisha Ayensu also said excellence was possible in the Ghanaian fashion business because she was an example of a first-rate designer who neither studied nor lived abroad.
The panellists agreed on the need for the various fashion-related associations in the country to come under a unified umbrella to ensure the growth of the fashion industry.