The Fashion Collective Naija

The Fashion collective Naija (tfc9ja), is a a platform for African, particularly Nigerian fashion creatives, created for members to collaborate and connect with people and opportunities that will helpthem succeed. Founded in 2020 by Omonigho Aito-Imonah, herself an accomplished illustrator and designer, initially as a platform for fashion illustrators to collaborate and improve their skills, it morphed overtime to a group consisting of pattern-makers, designers, models photographers, make-up artists, fabric vendors, 3D and graphic artists. Initiatives to improve thelives of members include THE INDUSTRY GIANTS TALK series where Fashion Industry giants are invited to speak to group memberson different topics as they relate to fashion. Some of our estemed guests have included Sara Maino, International fashion talent scout?curator and Simon Cipriani, Head, ethical Fashion Initiative. Our most recent initiative, The design project Naija, a design contest that saw over a 100 entries battle it out for four weeks for the conveted title of Most talented designer, was held in April 2022. Design tasks involved recycling archive looks from great fashion houses such as Balmain, Balenciaga, Gucci and Bottega Veneta and combining them with traditional African elements such as coral beads, cowries and indeginous African wax prints and woven cloth to create cutting-edge pieces. Contestants were finally cut-down to finalists, from which the chief judge in the person of Sara Maino picked her top 6.