Adetola Kunle-Hassan, known as Ade Hassan,

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

, (born April 1984) is a British businesswoman who founded Nubian Skin in 2014.

Early life

Hassan was born in April 1984. She was raised partly in Nigeria and speaks

Yoruba The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute ...

. Both of her parents are in business. She received her advanced education at Duke University in the United States where she studied English and economics, after which she completed a master's degree at the

School of Oriental and African Studies SOAS University of London (; the School of Oriental and African Studies) is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London. Founded in 1916, SOAS is located in the Bloomsbury a ...

in London.

Career

Her early career was in the

private-equity In the field of finance, the term private equity (PE) refers to investment funds, usually limited partnerships (LP), which buy and restructure financially weak companies that produce goods and provide services. A private-equity fund is both a ty ...

business but she took a break from that for a year to take sewing and

pattern cutting In sewing and fashion design, a pattern is the template from which the parts of a garment Clothing (also known as clothes, apparel, and attire) are items worn on the body. Typically, clothing is made of fabrics or textiles, but over tim ...

classes. She founded Nubian Skin, which makes underwear in dark tones for

women of colour The term "person of color" ( : people of color or persons of color; abbreviated POC) is primarily used to describe any person who is not considered "white". In its current meaning, the term originated in, and is primarily associated with, the U ...

, in 2014 after she was unable to purchase clothing for herself in her preferred colours. In 2014 she was named Fashion Entrepreneur of the Year at the Great British Entrepreneur Awards. In October 2015 Ade's brand, Nubian Skin, was nominated for Hosiery Brand of the Year at the UK Lingerie Awards and won UK's Favourite British Designer of the Year. She was appointed a Member of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in the 2017 Queen's Birthday Honours for services to fashion.

References

1984 births Living people Women business executives Members of the Order of the British Empire Lingerie British businesspeople in retailing English people of Nigerian descent English people of Yoruba descent Duke University Trinity College of Arts and Sciences alumni Alumni of SOAS University of London Yoruba women in business Yoruba fashion designers British fashion designers British women fashion designers {{UK-business-bio-1980s-stub