Wear Nigeria Hits the Runway

Vanessa Obioha

Eight years after launching the Wear Nigeria campaign to promote locally made Nigerian fabrics, Austin Aimankhu, CEO of the men’s fashion brand Luzol, is bringing the initiative to the runway.

While Wear Nigeria has been a recurring theme at Aimankhu’s flagship fashion show, Fashion Art Fusion (FAF), since 2016, this year marks its debut as a standalone project aimed at addressing the urgency of reviving Nigeria’s textile traditions.

“People tend to say the Nigerian textile industry is dead but there’s an aspect of the textile industry that is not dead, that is vibrant, and that’s our local textiles,” he said at a press briefing.

Aimankhu highlighted the unique opportunity presented by Nigeria’s high-quality local fabrics, such as aso-oke, adire, igbulu, and akwete, which are hand-woven and hand-processed. “These fabrics are aesthetically distinctive, but they need the regulatory framework and policies as well as investment to upgrade artisanal production capacity so that craft producers can produce in greater quantities and more reliable quality.”

He further emphasized that a vibrant, reliable, and cost-effective textile production system would make Nigerian-made textiles more affordable, stimulating economic growth, creating decent jobs, supporting sustainable fashion, and promoting gender equality. “That’s why we are calling for a national policy on the Nigerian textile tradition,” he concluded.

Soji Odedina, Group Managing Director of First Katalyst Marketing and a partner of the Wear Nigeria project, added: “We are sitting on a product that can change the fortunes of Nigeria and Nigerians.” According to him, by promoting Nigerian textiles, the country can build a national identity and recover from economic downturns.

Culture custodian Jahman Oladejo Aníkulapo also called for government intervention, stressing the importance of supporting practical programmes like Wear Nigeria, which would empower textile producers, enhance accessibility, and promote national identity.

Under the theme ‘Textile as a Tool for Empowerment and Sustainability,’ Wear Nigeria will be a three-day event running from November 8 to 10 across two venues: Alliance Française in Ikoyi and Lagos Oriental Hotel in Victoria Island. The event will feature a symposium, an exhibition, and a fashion show—all aimed at raising awareness of the importance of Nigerian fabrics.