Chinyemugo Obiekwugo-Charles: Uniquely Combining Fashion, Social Justice and Cultural Heritage

Chinyemugo Obiekwugo-Charles combines fashion, social justice, and cultural heritage in a unique way. With a strong educational background from Nigeria, England, and the US, she explores how the past affects our present. As a Christian and social justice advocate, she finds inspiration in the Catholic Church, African culture, and complex colonial histories. Her fashion brand, Mugo Mugo, showcases her creativity, blending structure, shapes, and military and antique influences. After graduating top of her class at Parsons School of Design and being featured in Vogue, Obiekwugo-Charles shares her story, passion, and future plans in this interview with MARY NNAH

What informed the brand, Mugo Mugo?

Plainly and simply, what informs my collections in general is my need to create a consciousness, to make sure that people are aware of these things. A lot of people stay away from political issues, social issues, just mainly because of the looming feeling that comes with it, and just the feeling of always being party to bad news. But I feel like with fashion, it almost kind of romanticises it a little bit, but still, while giving the information at the same time.

Aside from societal issues, the main focus for my brand is to empower women. And I know that sounds almost kind of cliché, because almost every brand nowadays wants to empower women, but when I talk about empowering women, I’m talking about the woman that feels like she has lost all hope and has lost all form of power – you have victims of sexual assaults, people that have been dragged through the mud, people that have gone from the top to the absolute bottom. These are the people that I’m most interested in, because their stories are often left untold. A lot of people are victims of their own circumstances, and we live in an unfair and unjust world.

My brand’s main ideology is that we want to portray, with my brand, that these people can feel even a little bit empowered by what we create, and the fantasy associated with it, and the fact that you can rise from the ashes like the phoenix.

I do also have a foundation under my name, that hopefully, when the money starts coming in really well, I’m going to be able to then focus on some certain issues surrounding women that are most important to me, like domestic violence, and also getting women off the streets.

A lot of times, when we talk about women that do street work, there’s always a negative conversation around them, which I do understand. However, it’s important for people to know that not everybody can be as privileged as me, and have parents that give them a good education, and put them in places where they feel like they can succeed. That’s exactly what I want to do with my brand. I want to be able to take women off the streets, and actually provide them with a decent education, that would make them feel like there’s a better life for them out there.

How does your diverse educational background influence your art and design?

Growing up in Nigeria, what initially sparked my interest in fashion was something very simple. And I think what people will consider the best Sunday look, dressing up and going to church and looking very colourful and bright, was kind of a ceremony. I think that dressing up, I think, the majority of the time, people don’t acknowledge the amount of fashion that happens in a place of worship. Even when you’re talking about Muslims, or when they celebrate Eid, or when they celebrate Salah, it’s so colorful, it’s so vibrant, and there are different silhouettes. So I think that was my understanding of fashion.

Then, when I moved to London, I was really able to get insights into what they call the London look. The London look, being the use of these very well-tailored pieces, suits, coats, trench coats, the use of these very well-knitted, cable-knit sweaters, and other things, was a different look that I wasn’t so used to. Even though I had obviously traveled out during summer vacation, I never really got to see the different sides of, like, winter and spring.

And then, when I moved to New York, New York was such a vibrant city of different individuals. You have so many people with so many different technologies. And because of the fact that New York is the place where anybody can make it, people come there and they feel the need to be their authentic 100%. And what happens is that you find them really expressing themselves through their clothing. And you see somebody on the train dressed to very dark, gothic makeup, and in all black with chains. And then you see another person dressed almost like a clown, and they have so many colors on, and they have so many bizarre accessories, bangles, jewelry, earrings. And then you have somebody that is leaning more towards the French Parisian aesthetic, that is very minimalist and chic, and using tailored pants, and a tailored shirt, and a simple blouse, maybe with some silk or satin.

I think this definitely created a very broad experience for me, a very broad understanding of what fashion should and can be. And then, from these experiences, I found myself designing, just one understanding from one place, but being able to fuse and incorporate them in different areas. And I think that’s what you really see in my new collection. I am able to take inspiration from certain females of power, like Queen Amina and Moremi from Nigeria, and I take it to New York, and I’m inspired by the Italian mob and New York black American gangsters, and the way they move. And then I take it to Europe, and I’m also inspired by the Vatican – the opulence surrounding the Catholic church. And I fuse all these ideas together, and then my collection is birthed.

For me, it’s very important that I remain on the cutting edge of fashion. And the only way to do that is to travel, make sure that you’re exposed, and to also draw inspiration from different cultures without cultural appropriation. So you see that even in the garments inspired by the Vatican, I try as much as possible to play very safe towards and respect that culture, but I still change it and make it the way it is.

As a Parsons School of Design graduate, what key lessons will distinguish you in the fashion industry and help you carve a unique niche?

Let me reference my valedictorian speech. I discussed the importance of working with yourself, not against yourself. I believe impostor syndrome is a real phenomenon. As a fashion designer, you often wonder if you’ve created something new or groundbreaking. However, I’ve come to realize that there’s nothing new under the sun. Nevertheless, you can always make something new again by changing it slightly, even by 1% or 2%. This mindset will help me avoid putting too much pressure on myself to create something revolutionary, which can make it less special and more difficult.

Through gradual changes, you can transform something entirely. For instance, taking inspiration from the past, like a Tudor-era dress, and tweaking it in various ways can result in something completely new. This is a key takeaway for me.

Aside from that, I learned two crucial lessons at Parsons: to have grit and to understand that your fears often hide your greatest achievements. Fear can stand between you and your goals, but overcoming it helps you develop new characteristics that will withstand time and brings you closer to achieving your objectives. Fear and goals are intertwined; overcoming fears moves you closer to achieving your goals.     

What challenges do you anticipate, particularly in the Nigerian context, and what strategies have you developed to overcome them in the future?

Nothing fully prepares you for running a business. While you can have certain tools and understanding, I don’t think anyone is fully prepared. However, I have developed some key assets that will make things easier for me. Firstly, my determination, drive, tenacity, and ability to be the change I want to see will help me overcome hurdles. My commitment to excellence will also drive me forward.

The economic crisis in Nigeria is a significant concern, but my brand addresses this by incorporating sustainable aspects, such as recycling fabrics and using dead stock materials, as seen in my previous collection. Fashion is constantly evolving, and as a designer, I must stay on the cutting edge of fashion design and learn new skills to streamline my process.

One tool I use is Cloth3D, which allows me to create and animate designs on my computer. This technology enables me to visualize designs on a 3D avatar before bringing them to life, reducing the sampling and production process. This significantly cuts down on production time and makes my design process more efficient.

How do you plan to share your lessons and experiences with the next generation of fashion designers and entrepreneurs?

On my own personal page on Instagram, I tend to go live sometimes and just, like, allow people – different people that I feel like are interested in going into fashion – to ask me some questions.

But I think, aside from that, I feel like even with everything I do, I always make it very clear that when you do something, it’s always worth doing very well, number one. And there’s nothing easy about designing. Being a designer for me, and going to a school like Parsons that’s number one in the world, was so extremely challenging, but you always have to be up to the challenge. Y

ou have to be able to see through to the end. So, by being able to lend, like, insights into my life and how I choose to go about things, I think people will see that it’s not just only about being able to design, but it’s also about being able to see things through to the end, to be able to overcome your own fears and challenges, and to continue to push yourself.

Because when you get comfortable, you see that growth becomes something that’s stagnant, and you find yourself in a place where you’re not very satisfied with life anymore, and you ask yourself, what is it that I can do now? But a lot of people understand that dissatisfaction with life comes with the question of, how can I grow now? How can I push myself further?

So, that’s something I always talk about, even on my own personal Instagram page. I’m always letting people know that it’s okay to actually fail now, but succeed tomorrow.

Because the moment you fail, you’re one step closer to succeeding again. I think a lot of people see failure as this thing that is almost like a full stop. Like, now you’ve failed, and there’s nothing you can do about it.

 But I think there’s always room for improvement. There’s always a way to kind of wiggle your way out of a scenario like this, and push yourself, and move forward.

How do you find newness in fashion when you believe there’s nothing new under the sun?

When I talk about a new way of thinking about fashion, many people forget that before designing, there’s a lengthy process of thinking. As creatives, we call it procrastination. During this period, you sit with your ideas, allow them to marinate, and that’s when the wheels of your creativity start turning. You begin to ask yourself how to approach a situation in a new way without removing its essential elements.

For me, I like to draw inspiration from the past, specifically antique clothing associated with European monarchs like the Medici, Tudors, and Spanish royalty. These influential people have charted the course of fashion history. While only the rich had access to good fashion in the past, today, people find inspiration in clothing from all classes.

My process involves taking an idea, identifying a specific detail, deconstructing it until it’s nothing, and then reassembling it in unconventional ways. This is what I mean by thinking about fashion in a new way.

Furthermore, when discussing fashion history, Africa is often forgotten and displaced. However, I’ve discovered that colonial times were crucial in pushing fashion forward, with many silhouettes inspired by African styles. I find archived pictures of native Africans, compare them to European versions, and merge them to create a fusion of cultures. This fusion represents a new way of thinking about fashion.

Africa is often excluded from fashion history, leaving a missing link. As a designer, my job is to create that connection.

Your designs are inspired by the colonial era, but who is your target audience? It seems like your designs might not be tailored to this generation.

I think it goes unsaid that I am a designer of this period, so whatever I design is meant to be for this period, because I also like to be able to see myself in my own designs. I do not design for an imaginary customer at all. When I talk about the colonial times, you have to understand that that is just inspiration; inspiration is just one part of being a designer.

Even when I design, I do a lot of analytical research on the markets and other things like that. It’s not just about having an inspiration or an idea that I want to put out; I’m also thinking about other ideas and the fact that this is also something that’s still meant to be sold at the end of the day. I’m still meant to have a type of customer that I’m targeting, and at the end of the day, I do feel like the brand is what I will call Haute Couture. It is a luxury brand; it is not for everyone.

I feel like saying that my brand would be for everyone in society would be to create a false notion. When you’re talking about luxury brands, more often than not, they cater to a specific niche market.

The majority of the collections that I have released now are only Haute Couture collections; we’ve never seen something from Mugo Mugo that is considered ready-to-wear, although that is coming. I feel like the past two years have been very important for me to just create a brand identity, and that’s why I focused solely on what you call Haute Couture.

Haute Couture is not meant to be sold; it’s meant to create an idea of escapism. It’s that moment where the designer has free rein to create their own world and allow you to step into their world and really dive into what makes the brand itself.

What drives your passion for social justice, and how do you hope to impact society through your work?

I’ll tell you a story. When I was younger, and when we first heard about Boko Haram and the Chibok girls, I think that was a devastating experience that I will carry with me for the rest of my life. To this day, every single time I see those Chibok girls around my vicinity, I always have this devastating feeling.

The fact that women are always at the center point of social justice, yet we’re often taken for granted, and we’re also the ones who bear the brunt of social punishment, I find very devastating. I feel like many people aren’t aware of it outside of Nigeria; many people aren’t aware of the struggles that women have to go through just to survive.

So, I think it’s very important for me to create that consciousness, to make sure these stories are being heard from across the world.

Even outside of my two collections that I have used for my brand, there have been previous collections that I had designed while in school, and I’ve always really focused on, for example, the idea of the sexualisation of the Black female, or the male gaze, and how this has distorted the idea of how Black women should carry their hair and how Black women should be perceived with hair.

I always talk about things like this because I think that when Black women feel the need to stand up for themselves, we’re often deemed too loud, too arrogant, too proud, or very aggressive.

But nobody can say you’re being aggressive when you’re creating beautiful clothes and still passing your message across. So, I think that’s a way for me to remain smart and still get my point across.

How does your brand plan to uplift and support women, and what message do you hope to convey through your fashion?

I believe that designing for women is one thing, but being a female designer in my industry is something very exciting and bold. Although there are many female designers in Nigeria, on the global stage, men often hold top positions at fashion brands. By being a recognised female designer globally, I’m paving the way for others like me to rise and pursue their design aspirations.

Coming from a privileged background makes it easier for me to create this path, but showing others that they can succeed too is a form of empowerment.

As I mentioned earlier, I have a foundation under my name that will soon be launched, focusing on issues like domestic violence that hinder women’s empowerment. As my brand grows, I plan to invest more in these initiatives, helping women break free from challenging situations and forge their own paths.

What next for your brand, Mogu Mogu? Are there upcoming projects or collaborations?

Definitely, I have a project in the works now. I’m developing my first ready-to-wear collection, which will be the first pieces available to the public for my brand. And that’s just the next step. After that, it’s the same thing again – making more designs, continuing our Haute Couture legacy that I’ve already established, and still being able to continue with the ready-to-wear collections as well. But even after that, maybe we’ll see me very soon at Paris Fashion Week, New York Fashion Week, and Lagos Fashion Week as well. So that’s something to look forward to.