Not long ago, the only fashion labels Rwandans associated with were foreign but the tide is changing as more people, especially the youth, get into the fashion industry.

The youthful entrepreneurs have mastered the principles of demand and supply in the trade, consequently building an ecosystem that also creates employment for thousands across the country. Rwanda’s fashion industry is on the rise and these 20-something’s are laying a solid foundation for an exciting and thriving fashion sector in the country.

26-year-old Mathew Rugamba, popularly referred to as 'Tayo', is the brains behind ‘House of Tayo’, a Mens’wear label and accessory line. His clothing line is an emblem of African sophistication show-casing style and flavor through locally made clothing and accessories.

House of Tayo is famous for bold African patterns with a modern twist to produce colorful wax-print bowties, unisex infinity scarves, elegant pockets squares and custom suites. Meeting Rugamba, one will easily notice that he practices what he preaches, donning African print themed outfits exuding confidence and elegant innate fashion psych.

Rugamba utilises African textiles and fabrics produced by Rwandan tailors and artisans in Kigali. He works with several workshops and local cooperatives which bring his designs to life.

Their inspiration

Also boldly walking the talk is 25-year-old Sonia Mugabo who broke down traditional and social barriers to become an acclaimed fashion designer. The owner of a self titled fashion Label ‘SM’, Mugabo says she discovered her talent for creative designing at a tender age but she didn’t think she would start a career out of it.

"It was not until I interned at Vogue in New York that I really got immersed into fashion as a business. When I came back to the country in 2013 there was Kigali Fashion Week in which I participated as designer. From there I received media attention and it validated my position in the fashion industry,” says Mugabo who also works with several local cooperatives.

On the other hand, Rugamba’s fashion journey was driven by his frustration that all he was ever identified with abroad was the fact that he came from a post Genocide country. But a blog post showing his designs and the drive behind them went so viral that it engineered his rise in the fashion industry.

"The creative arts are powerful in a sense that they can change opinions and perceptions about any issue. I wanted to create something that would stimulate that kind of change and associate my country with something more than just the Genocide.

The inspiration for my work lays in various life experiences, I envision the activities the wearer of my designs is engaged in and I narrow that down to a product.” he adds

Production process challenges

Mugabo started her business with her own savings of Rwf 0.5m which mostly went into rent and a few raw materials.

"Every profit I have made since then I re-invest into the business to grow it. At the start, I used local raw materials from the market but later I realised they lacked variety and those which were around were too common, so now I import from Dubai,” she says.

"My target market currently is mostly women but I am launching a male clothing line soon. My designs are mainly very bohemian and I want people who wear them to feel free, comfortable and stylish. I also do bespoke production where I design exactly what a client wants.”

Rugamba’s initial startup capital was $300 from his personal savings obtained from a summer job he had. He also imports most of the raw materials to make his designs.

"Most of the prints are obtained within the country but I import materials to make shirts and suites. There is a lot of scarcity in the textile industry in the country and little variety yet I seek to offer my clients a broad range to choose from.”

Mugabo identifies some of the challenges she faces in the fashion industry as high costs of production and insufficient skilled labour.

"The obvious struggle is that there is never enough money in business. I wish I had more capital. I am still unable to engage in mass production simply because I don’t have that kind of capacity yet,” she says.

Also facing similar challenges, Rugamba says people don’t realise how much is spent on product development and how much detailgoes into producing quality. He adds that one of the biggest problems designers in the country face is an insufficiency of skills in the production area.

"Some of the training programmes that have been done in the past have been superficial in a way because they teach people simply how to sow yet the process of making clothing is so much more than that. To mass produce and maintain consistency needs a pattern to be formulated which then becomes a foundation for the rest of the pieces. We have very few quality pattern-makers in the country,” Rugamba adds.

Mugabo goes on to encourage young designers that despite the challenges, the business eco system in the country is favourable and fairly easy to manage.

"They should be persistent enough to pursue their passions and turn them into profitable business enterprise. It’s important to work hard so that you don’t waste time and money,” she urges.

Rugamba also points to the fact that most people still don’t regard ventures in the creative industry as serious businesses and hence that should motivate them to work twice as hard.

"I went to one of the local banks over five times seeking P.O.S and they said they could only give it to me if I paid a monthly rent of about Rwf30,000 on top of 3.5% charge on each purchase, which is unheard of. The fact that one is young may have people doubt their ability to deliver or manage funds,” he cautions.

Their vision

Mugabo says she intends to have her designs in various stores across the East African region over the next two years, and in five years she wants to have them in New York , London and other fashion capitals of the world.

"I want to tell young entrepreneurs that Africa is not a problem to solve but an opportunity to seize. Take these opportunities, dream big, follow your dreams and work hard to achieve them,” says the SM label owner.

Rugamba wants to establish a proper online store, have a presence in many countries, build a bigger design team and start his own production in the near future.

"There are many facets to the fashion industry, so if someone is interested in fashion, it doesn’t mean they have to be designers. They could be fashion bloggers, textile manufacturers and graphic designers, among others. There are many opportunities in the industry to explore,” he says.

Mugabo also urges the Rwandan community to embrace ‘Made in Rwanda’ products.

"People have a perception that products made in Rwanda are not quality enough and that’s a mindset that needs to be addressed because we are producing unique designs which are affordable and of great quality,” she assures.

The House of Tayo owner agrees, adding that there is a stigma surrounding locally made products.

"The community needs to know that we, as designers, will give them good reasons to buy Made in Rwanda. We don’t encourage them to buy Made in Rwanda simply to be patriotic but because what we make is of good quality, comfortable and was designed to make them feel good. We want them to find their identity and express themselves in the best possible ways by wearing our designs,” Rugamba concluded.