African Fashion Analysis

Many designers have had “African moments.” In 1968 Harper’s Bazaar described Algerian-born Yves Saint Laurent’s landmark collection as “a fantasy of primitive genius” (Jennings, 2011, p. 12). As in the Maasai example, other prominent designers use clear elements of African aesthetic, and this cultural commodification is usually described with terms like “borrowing” or “inspired by” (Chua, 2012). On the design front, the debate continues about whether this referencing of African aesthetics by non-African designers is exploitative given the lack of real connection to African culture or African people. The constant retelling of the story of African fashion also has a more subversive economic agenda, because “this recurrent pattern of discovery

In today’s highly globalized world, with new creative innovation sprouting up around the continent, African innovators must understand the value of their design and cultural ideas, and understand that by protecting and promoting their cultural intellectual property they can become narrators of the story of African fashion. Indigenous cultures throughout the world have fought to enshrine into law parameters to protect their cultural intellectual properties by patents or trademarks. The idea is not for African designers to fight the uphill battle of patenting traditional design, but to better establish and enhance their economic gain on the global design platform to help propel them as the industry’s leaders in African design content. Maybe more importantly, founder and creative director of online African fashion and lifestyle boutique Heritage 1960, Enyinne Owunwanne, suggests that “storytelling is one of the most meaningful methods of cultural proliferation. Fashion tells a visual story, oftentimes coupled with a story of history and tradition, and this is invaluable for promoting the sustainability of Africa culture” (Pool, n.d.). Local luxury brands that will be the most successful will be those determined to learn from established luxury brands by working to entrench into the minds of the potential

The Maasai Intellectual Property Initiative was established in 2009 by a group of elders and leaders who decided to build unity among the Maasai people to take power over the cultural brand. They were established with help from Light Years IP, a Washington, DC nonprofit that works on public interest intellectual property issues internationally. According to the organization, there are up to 80 companies currently using Maasai imagery and culture to promote their products because associating a consumer product with the Maasai increases sales (Livni, 2017). Monies earned by these global companies translates to $10 million dollars a year, at least, according to Ron Layton, the founder and head of Light Years IP; meanwhile, 80 percent of the Maasai live below the poverty line. “Most of the value of the Maasai brand is not in the handicrafts the tribe produces,” Layton says, “It’s in the cultural value of an iconic brand” (Faris, 2013). In business, corporations are quick to enforce their own trademarks and copyrights to ensure their famous brands are not diluted. “Burberry—like the Maasai—have a signature check, and a distinct name that has positive associations in consumers’ minds, connected with their brand. They defend their name and pattern with intellectual property