Fortune Magazine has a great feature on African refugees who have fled their homeland and have started businesses in America. This feature highlights one of the undeniable strengths of the USA. While the country has enough problems to put it on many people’s hate lists, I doubt anyone can deny that this country is at the top of the list for business opportunity. While there is no level playing field for people of color, there are more than enough opportunities to make a living and chase your dreams. America is one of the few places that determination is rewarded, however strange the reward may be (queue “Star Spangled Banner”). Especially in todays world adopting a long tail mentality is the way to go.
Making a model living
Back in my fashion week round-up post, I mentioned the lack of black/african models on the runways this season. While it was a passing comment the topic holds great weight with many Africans trying to build a career in the modeling industry. While many of us take them for granted and often trivialize the idea of someone making money on their looks, the fact remains that models are an important part of selling a product in any industry. Many years ago, I went with a friend to a casting call. Let me tell you, you have to have serious determination, passion, and focus to go to those “cattle calls”. As I sat in a room of about 100 people vying for only one spot for a simple shoot, I realized that putting yourself out there to be judged by your looks alone is a harrowing experience. You are often at the whim of whomever is in charge and whatever their hang-up is that day or even that minute; and not taking it personally is easier said than done. My friend didn’t get the gig but she continued to pursue modeling until she finally gave up. Working on the “other side of the camera”, I’ve been witness to quite a few instances where models have had to tolerate everything from physical to verbal abuse just to get ahead; and if you feel that they get paid well enough to bear it you’re wrong. Just this past fashion week, I had to literally choke a model to get her shirt buttoned to complete the look the designer wanted; and my model just stood there and took it. Each season African models compete in a world where even when the product is being sold to people who look like them, they can easily be replaced by someone who doesn’t. Particularly in the fashion world there is a growing cap on how many African or black models can work each season or even per show. And I mean worldwide. Many designers make the excuse that African models don’t fit the look they’re going for, but the fact is it’s just an excuse not to make the effort. There are tons of qualified models like Noella, Honorine, Ajuma, Oluchi, and Atong working their way through the industry with varied enough looks for any shoot or runway. And they all represent the varied consumers who spend money on the fashion. If fashion week is all about creating excitement, then what is more captivating than an African model putting some flavor in an otherwise vanilla fashion show. So the next time you open a magazine, watch a video, or buy a product think about all those models who are putting themselves out there so that your image is represented and give them some credit. (photo: Style.com)
African designers gamble at Magic Las Vegas
Last August while in Las Vegas for a mini vacation with the family, being the workaholic I am, I squeezed in a visit to to Magic and it’s satellite tradeshows, Project and Pool. For those who have never attended the Magic event, basically it’s a few days of high octane buying and selling of apparel of all levels. The tradeshow is possibly the biggest and most known in the world and attracts everyone involved in the apparel industry. Though Magic is primarily organized as a meeting place for apparel companies and buyers, it has become a place for everyone to flex their brand muscle and get attention by outdoing each other. Magic is the main show held at the Las Vegas Convention center while the two smaller more specialized shows, Project and Pool take place at different venues in the surrounding area. I can’t describe the hustling that takes place at Magic. Because Magic attracts EVERYONE from celebrities, who are usually endorsing a clothing line, to magazine publishers and editors, for that week Las Vegas becomes a hustler’s heaven. And African companies are getting hip to the opportunities at Magic. In the short time I had to see all the exhibitors, I made sure to go over to the DESIGN South Africa area, a first-time collection of 10 South African fashion houses who, sponsored by the South African government, had been chosen to make the trip to exhibit their offerings to the international buyers. I got into a good conversation with Themba Mngomezulu of the Darkie label about design, African identity and breaking into the US market. Darkie is a popular label in South Africa and Themba has been doing his thing on the fashion scene for a while. I was happy to talk to him and see that African designers are making an organized effort to compete outside of their borders.
The Fall 2007 season of Magic started yesterday in Las Vegas and this season there’s an African Pavilion organized by Eastern and Central Africa Trade Hub and West Africa Trade Hubs. The area will be featuring various African companies “with the relevant strategies and insights” who have been chosen to get assistance in penetrating the American market. Unfortunately I will not be on the scene to report about their efforts for two reasons. The first reason is Las Vegas will be overrun with posers and groupies this week with Magic and NBA All Star Week taking place at the same time; I can’t take it! The second reason is, while the few days can gain a clothing line like mine unparalleled exposure, Magic is a budget buster which doesn’t fit my current business strategy. With costs ranging from $2500+ just to rent a booth space, it can be a costly lesson to learn if your company is not structured to capitalize on the exposure. Magic brings buyers from all over the world who are always eager to stock new brands. The reason for going to Magic from a designers perspective is to get orders and you are almost guaranteed to get some good ones. But I learned from attending a smaller tradeshow in Miami last year that getting sizable orders can actually kill your business. As a good friend of mine said “if you are building a house and you want it to last, you need to start with a solid foundation and use the right materials” (translation: longevity is based on patience and strategy). The apparel industry is an especially difficult one to succeed in. People go out of business everyday, and one of the main reasons is they grow too fast. Many people get into business for the fame and notoriety and fail to pay attention to the business part. Yes, the fashion business has some nice perks, but if you get caught up in the hype it’ll die just as fast as it lived. Lack of proper financing, partner disagreements, and absence of adequate apparel business knowledge constantly cause apparel companies to go out of business; and many times it can be avoided. When a company like Cloak has to close down, then you know there’s more to fashion than champagne and models. With that being said, I hope the African companies taking part in this season’s Magic tradeshow have the structure in place to deal with the possible instant success. While we must start competing at some point we should also try to set our own pace for growth. The American market has eluded numerous foreign brands. I’m lucky to have started here, but I think I’ll take my time and grow.
More about the African Pavilion and African Sourcing at Magic:
Discover the Magic of Africa
Following from a Hub sponsored workshop to provide Kenyan apparel firms with the relevant strategies and insights for exhibiting their wares at the Sourcing at MAGIC apparel trade show and that will assist them in penetrating the lucrative $180 Billion U.S apparel market, it was highlighted that for maximum impact at MAGIC, it would be important for participants from the region work together. In view of this, the ECA and West Africa Trade Hubs are working together to set up an ‘African Pavilion’ at the show. The Pavilion will showcase over 30 companies from 10 countries in Africa. The ECA Hub is sponsoring 9 companies from Kenya, Uganda, Madagascar and Ethiopia to the show which will be held in Las Vegas, Nevada in February 2007.
SEMINAR
Africa Sourcing Opportunities and Challenges
Date: Thursday February 15, 2007
Start Time: 4:00 PM
End Time: 5:00 PM
Location: South Hall, First Level, Room MS116
Panelist
Julie Hughes , Sr. Vice-President of International Trade, USA-ITA
Steve Jesseph , President/CEO, Worldwide Responsible Apparel Production
Belinda Edmonds , Cool Ideas, EDUN
Florie Liser , Assistant US Trade Representative for Africa
Info: Africa represents new opportunities for sourcing directors in light of the various free trade agreements currently in place and allowing for duty and quota free access. The continent also represents challenges to those who source in the region. Join our panel of experts and discover the possibilities.
Last week in African Style 2/3 – 2/9/07
• From child soldier to rock star.
• West African ‘Idol’ holds auditions.
• Business schools put Africa on the curriculum.
• ‘AFRICA UNITE’ to debut at New York African Film Festival
• Black History Month in Europe.
• The Impact of Immigrant Entrepreneurs.
• Whoopi Golberg, please come home to West Africa.
• Oprah’s 1-hour special about South Africa girls school experience.
• Mia Farrow travels to Africa for UNICEF
This week in African Style 1/27 – 2/2/07
• Africa’s tourism booms
• Bollywood at South Africa Fashion Week
• China’s new ‘win-win’ strategy in Africa
• The African Union’s ‘United States of Africa’ Project
• Ghana’s new way to stop it’s Brain Drain
African blogger issues
Recently, I received a nice message from fellow blogger Maryam in Morocco and ventured over to her site. She has a great blog through which she shares with readers the beauty of her experiences in Morocco. For those who aren’t aware, Maryam is nominated in the 7th Annual Bloggies, and deservedly so. The problem though, as White African mentioned, is that both Maryam and Dotty Rhino are nominated in a category for “Best African or Middle Eastern Weblogâ€. Since when could the whole of Africa be lumped in with the Middle East. Stuff like this is quite depressing. I know African bloggers are not so high profile but anyone who reads Global Voices knows there are enough of us to warrant our own category. I guess we still have a lot of work to do. Go and vote for the African bloggers. Hopefully we’ll get our own category next year.
Vh1, Spike Lee, Oprah find African ancestry
Today is February 1st and the beginning of Black History month here in the US. In the past I haven’t really followed the events which take place for Black History month because it had turned into just a part of big business’ marketing calendar. But this year Black History Month might turn out to be worth noting for both Africans and African-Americans. Vh1 is leading the pack with it’s debut of a 30-seond spot directed by director Spike Lee encouraging African-Americans to scientifically determine their African lineage.
The spot which debuts today (February 1st) on the VH1 soul channel will feature several African-Americans initially mentioning the American cities that they are from. The people are then featured again, holding swabs and naming the African region that their ancestors are from. The spot then encourages viewers to “take pride in their original homes during Black History Month”. The campaign feature DNA-based ancestry tests performed by African Ancestry, Inc., a company that uses swabbed DNA to genetically determine where in Africa a person’s African ancestors came from. DNA ancestry tests have gained mainstream popularity particularly through the efforts of Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr’s four-part PBS series “African American Lives,†which used DNA to trace the roots of Oprah Winfrey, Chris Tucker and other prominent African Americans all the way from slave plantations to the shores of Africa. Dr. Gates, a professor who heads Harvard’s Afro-American Studies program, also hosted another recent PBS special centered around tracing Oprah Winfrey’s genealogy and is releasing a book and DVD “Finding Oprah’s Roots — Finding Your Own”.
VH1 will also be launching a new music video show “One Planet. One Soul” beginning Sunday, February 4 showcasing soul artists from the U.K., Africa, Canada, Australia, including Akon, K’Naan, and Rhian Benson. “One Planet. One Soul” will air every Sunday at 10:00 am, 6:00 pm and 2:00 am.
Trace: 10 years and Iman’s “I Am African” campaign
I recently picked up the 10-year anniversary issue for one of the most consistently inspiring magazines, Trace Magazine. For as long as I can remember, the editors at Trace have been putting out quality , insightful product, while reporting on unconventional people and places. One of Trace’s strongest points is in it’s ability to highlight style as it exists in different parts of the world. The magazine was one of the first publications which I found that represented Africa in a modern, stylish manner. It might have to do with the founder/editor Claude Grunitzky’s Togolese background or his understanding of what he calls “transculturalism”. He says, “Modern transculturalists are people who can move and learn and function by discovering and influencing cultures that are not their own”, and that has been the focus which has enamored the magazine to progressive people all over the world. They’ve been able to stay relevant for 10 years now and still keep their edge. In the publishing industry, that’s an enormous feat. The 10-year anniversary issue includes an interview with supermodel/entrepreneur Iman where she expands on her feelings about the “I Am African” campaign controversey. Congratulations guys on another inspiring issue.
Africa’s Second Life
On Friday I picked up the February 2007 issue of Inc. Magazine and began reading the cover article on Philip Rosendale, CEO of Linden Lab and creator of Second Life. Though my initial experience with Second Life some months ago was not the best, I have been quite intrigued by it’s possibilities as a business platform. Reading stories about American Apparels successful store opening and concerts and chats by artists such as Talib Kweli, all in taking place in Second Life, has had me trying to get my head around this virtual world. I must admit that one of the reasons I abandoned my Second Life persona was I (the second life me that is) ran into a brick wall, literally, and couldn’t get around it. Funny as it may sound, that’s exactly what happened. Reading Mr. Rosendale’s explanation of Second Life the ability it gives you to create a whole new identity and/or brand extension, has got me thinking about getting over that wall.
What does this have to do with Africa you ask? Well one of the things that drew me to Second Life in the first place, besides the business opportunities, was the ability to create your perfect world as an extension of your real world. From a development perspective I see Second Life as a tool which can allow African’s to extend and re-invent ourselves in a world where anything goes. I know that sounds all Matrix-like but bear with me for a second. If Second Life can allow you to create an ideal personality, visit anywhere, and communicate with anyone without the restrictions of geography, government, or language, then it can certainly level the playing field for re-branding Africa. This is not a far fetched notion as Sweden has already announced it’s opening of a Second Life embassy. In a recent article, Mutumwa Mawere, a Zimbabwean born South African businessman, wrote “I am acutely aware that it is difficult to take nationalism out of many Africans but the Second Life offers us an opportunity to go beyond the confines of where one is born to the reality that through others a better Africa is a not a pipe dream.” This statement I guess is key in exploring the possibilities of Second Life. While I’m not one to take on a non-African personality, I think that involvement in Second Life could possibly allow Africans to realistically compete with anyone else without the limitations of the real world, and ,as Mr. Mawere, notes, possibly create a new African identity. Of course I’m saying all this from an office space in NY City with a T-1 connection, but as the global tide changes I think we all need to think outside the box and look to new ways of creating a second reality.
This week in African Style 1/20 – 1/26/07
• Oprah Winfrey defends her South African school in open letter.
• Dakar Rally takes drivers through Portugal, Morocco, Mauritania, Mali and ends in Dakar, Senegal.
• Bill Gates and Africa’s green revolution.
• Fashion Television reports fromCape Town Fashion Week Spring 2007
• The World Economic Forum is under way in Davos, Switzerlad and the World Social Forum gets under way in Nairobi Kenya.
• China’s President on tour to teach Africa how to fish.