Embrace each other
and colour the world
with smiles
Afriek
Ongoing side project
It all started when Sivan - the founder of Afriek - went to Rwanda for her graduation. There she saw that ideas about Africa have been biased for too long.
She decided to change those prevailing perspectives through equal collaboration with all partners, creating colourful, high-end fashion. We were happy to help her with this beautiful initiative.
When Sivan came to me, I dedicated myself to make Afriek a success. Together with designer Maarten Geurink we created the brand positioning, strategy and identity.
In the past years, Afriek has grown into a brand with a menswear and womenswear collection and an own atelier with fourteen employees. And it has been featured in national and international fashion magazines.
Afriek is about connecting cultures and change.
With a white founder mistakes are easily made so we've to look at ourselves.
That's why Afriek organised a talk about ethical challenges.
Striving for an equal world? An honest conversation at Pakhuis De Zwijger about ethical challenges,
with Tony's Chocolonely, Stephan Alspeer & Zinzi de Brouwer.
A story that suits
Working with African prints instantly shows the origin of the product.
The recognisability of the fabric has proven to provoke conversations.
And with Afriek you have a story to tell. A story about equality, cooperation,
how we can learn from each other. That is a story that suits.
Wearing Afriek is more than just being fashionable. Every piece is a conversation starter. That’s why we made sure that everyone who buys Afriek has something to tell. We created story labels with the name of the maker, hang-tag filled with Piri Pir – a key ingredient of the Rwandan kitchen – and we hid Polaroids from the maker in each garment. In everything Afriek does, the branding is a tool emphasizing Afriek’s mission: Connecting Cultures.
Afriek believes that long-term change begins with exchanging. Through exchanging thoughts we can grow our understanding of each other and begin to learn, changing the persisting status quo. In this way Afriek aims to create a colourful and equal world where there is no longer any unnecessary suffering. Obviously Afriek can’t solve this problem alone, we have to do this together.
Afriek is now on the edge of a rebranding.
I am still involved as a creative consultant.