Malamine Koné (December 21, 1971 in

Niéna Niéna is a small town and Communes of Mali, rural commune in the Sikasso Cercle, Cercle of Sikasso in the Sikasso Region of southern Mali. The commune covers an area of 1,040 square kilometers and includes the town and 42 villages.. In the 2009 c ...

Mali Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...

) is a

an and French entrepreneur. He is the founder of the sportswear brand

Airness Airness is a footwear trademark founded in 1999 in Saint-Denis, France, by Malamine Koné. The logo includes the image of a black panther. History Malamine Koné, a former boxer from the 1990s nicknamed 'the panther', founded the brand Airness ...

. Koné arrived in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

at the age of 10 and was raised in the northern

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

suburb of Saint-Denis. Koné became a boxer but his boxing career was cut short after a road accident in 1995. Koné then turned his attention to the fashion business.

External links

Interview on Afrik.com (2005)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kone, Malamine 1971 births Living people French fashion designers Malian fashion designers Malian emigrants to France People from Sikasso Region People from Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis