Lagos Fashion Week (LagosFW) is an annual multi-day clothing trade show that takes place in

Lagos, Nigeria Lagos (Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national capital of Nigeria until December 1991 fo ...

. It was founded in 2011 by

Omoyemi Akerele Omoyemi Akerele (born 13 May 1978 in Lagos) is a Nigerian executive, businesswoman and entrepreneur. Akerele is the founder and CEO of Lagos Fashion Week, Style House Files and special advisor to the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC). She ...

and it is Africa’s largest fashion event drawing considerable media attention, nationally and internationally. It showcases over 60 Nigerian and African fashion designers to a global audience of more than 40.000 retailers, media and consumers. It has helped propel African designers and fashion brands, such as Orange Culture, Lisa Folawiyo and Christie Brown to international recognition.

History

Lagos Fashion Week was founded in 2011 by

and is produced by fashion business

development agency An aid agency, also known as development charity, is an organization dedicated to distributing aid. Many professional aid organisations exist, both within government, between governments as multilateral donors and as private voluntary organization ...

Style House Files. The event aims to give the Nigerian and African fashion industry international recognition, by bringing together media, buyers, manufacturers and consumers. As a leading fashion event on the international fashion calendar, Lagos Fashion Week includes runway shows, showroom presentations and an online platform LagosFW Digital. Lagos Fashion Week also hosts a number of initiatives, talk series and competitions including Woven Threads, Fashion Focus Africa, Fashion Business Series, Green Access and the Visual Makers Fellowship. Lagos Fashion Week has worked with international fashion weeks to give African brands the opportunity to showcase, and collaborated with the

British Council The British Council is a British organisation specialising in international cultural and educational opportunities. It works in over 100 countries: promoting a wider knowledge of the United Kingdom and the English language (and the Welsh lan ...

London Fashion Week London Fashion Week (LFW) is a clothing trade show that takes place in London twice a year, in February and September. Showcasing over 250 designers to a global audience of influential media and retailers, it is one of the 'Big Four' fashion wee ...

, Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) and

Pitti Immagine Pitti Immagine is a collection of fashion industry events in Italy. Pitti Immagine Uomo Pitti Uomo (in English, "Pitti Men"), is one of the world's most important platforms for men's clothing and accessory collections, and for launching new projec ...

. The 2011 inaugural event was hosted in Lagos and presented more than 40 designers including Lisa Folawiyo, Nkwo, Maki Oh and Bridget Awosika. In the same year, The Fashion Focus Fund (formerly Young Designer of The Year) was established as an annual competition aimed at developing the next generation of emerging Nigerian fashion talent. The year-long incubator programme was created to assist designers in establishing the right structure and practices to facilitate scalability, sustainability and business growth. Past beneficiaries include Orange Culture, IAMISIGO, Kenneth Ize, Emmy Kasbit and Ejiro Amos Tafiri.

Heineken Heineken Lager Beer ( nl, Heineken Pilsener), or simply Heineken () is a pale lager beer with 5% alcohol by volume produced by the Dutch brewing company Heineken N.V. Heineken beer is sold in a green bottle with a red star. History On 15 Febr ...

Nigeria has since 2015 been the official title sponsor of Lagos Fashion Week. In the same year, the competition and runway show Green Access was established to raise awareness amongst Nigerian students of the need to make sustainable choices in the fashion industry. In 2017, founder

was on the advisory committee for exhibition Items: Is Fashion Modern? at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). The exhibition featured African designers including Loza Maleombho and African textiles including

Kente Kente ( ak, kente or ''nwetoma''; ee, kete; Dagbani: Chinchini) refers to a Ghanaian textile, made of handwoven cloth, strips of silk and cotton. Historically the fabric was worn in a toga-like fashion by royalty among ethnic groups such as the ...

, African inspired textiles like real Dutch wax, and

Dashiki The dashiki is a colorful garment that covers the top half of the body, worn mostly in West Africa. It is also known as a Kitenge in East Africa and is a common item of clothing in Tanzania and Kenya. It has formal and informal versions and var ...

from Lagos. Akerele also spoke about the global impact of African fashion at the accompanying MoMA Live conference. In 2019 the event received more than 30 designers from all over the world. In 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Woven Threads initiative was launched focusing on driving the industry towards a circular fashion economy in Africa. A talk series and physical showroom have addressed how the continent can embrace traditional textiles, waste management and the role technology plays in a new creative and sustainable fashion industry. Expert sessions have included Orsola De Castro, Bandana Tewari,

Dana Thomas Dana Thomas (born February 3, 1964 in Washington, D.C.) is a fashion and culture journalist and author based in Paris. Her books include '' Deluxe: How Luxury Lost Its Luster'', '' Gods and Kings: The Rise and Fall of Alexander McQueen and John G ...

, Jumoke Oduwole, Nike Ogunlesi, Sarah Diouf and Yegwa Ukpo. Sponsored by Heineken, a Design Challenge gave designers the opportunity to engage with the creative community from home, celebrating innovative and sustainable design in Africa. In 2021,

was named Zero Oil Ambassador for Nigeria by the CEO of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council & President ECOWAS TPO Network, Mr Olusegun Awolowo, and given a five hundred million Naira grant to support thirty Nigerian brands in the fashion industry. In 2022, runway footage from Lagos Fashion Week was featured in the

Victoria & Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

’s exhibition Africa Fashion and several African designers, photographers and creatives were exhibited. Akerele gave the keynote address at the private view and was an advisor to the curatorial team.

Designers

The runway show schedule has presented a number of designers including: * Andrea Iyamah * Anyango Mpinga * Assian * Awa Meite * Bloke * Bridget Awosika * Chiip O Neal * Christie Brown * CLAN * Cynthia Abila * Deola * DNA by Iconic Invanity * DZYN * Ejiro Amos Tafiri * Eki Silk * Elie Kuame * Emmy Kasbit * Fruche * Gozel Green * Haute Baso * House of Kaya * IAMISIGO * Idma Nof * Imad Eduso * Jermiane Bleu * JZO * Kelechi Odu * Kiki Kamanu * Kiko Romeo * Laduma by Maxhosa * Lagos Space Programme * Larry Jay * Lisa Folawiyo * Loza Maleombho * Mai Atafo * Maki Oh * Maxivive * Meena * Moofa Moshions * Nao.Li.La * Niuku * Nkwo * Odio Mimonet * Onalaja * Orange Culture * Post Imperial * Rich Mnisi * Rick Dusi * Selly Raby Kane * Sindiso Khumalo * Sisiano * Studio 189 * Style Temple * Sunny Rose * TJWHo * Tongoro * Tokyo James * Tsemaye Binitie * Ugo Monye * Washington Roberts

References

{{coord missing, Nigeria Fashion events in Nigeria Culture in Lagos Recurring events established in 2011 Nigerian fashion Annual events in Nigeria Tourist attractions in Lagos Annual events in Lagos 2011 establishments in Nigeria Fashion weeks

History

Designers

See also

References