In furtherance of its empowerment activities to ensure youths from the South-Western part of Nigeria attain economic independence, one of the foremost Pan-Yoruba Professional Group Yoruba Professionals Foundation (YPF) has unveiled the first batch of its indigenous clothing brands and products through SOGE Designs, a fashion initiative of the organisation designed to reinvent and sustain the cultural legacies of Yoruba race using fashion as a vehicle.
SOGE Designs is an offshoot of a series of technological empowerment and skill acquisition training that had been held by the YPF across southwest states in a bid not only to empower youths but also reawaken the rich cultural heritage of the Yoruba people.
Speaking on the products which are primarily meant for exportation, the Group’s Director of Communications and Investment Promotions, Comrade Sola Fayemi, stated that the organisation decided to toe the path of cultural reawakening as part of its commitment towards promoting the heritage of the rich Yoruba culture within and beyond the shores of the continent.
According to Fayemi, the first batch of SOGE Designs brands which are tailored to blend with contemporary fashion comes in different designs such as midi dress, kimono jacket, jumpsuit, maxi dress, maxi elegance, palazzo pants and top, knickers, wrap skirt and top as well as track pants and top were produced using adire and ankara fabric prints. The first set, according to him, had been exported to the United States of America on Wednesday, August 4, 2021.
Also speaking, the founder and president of the YPF, Mr. Maxwell Adeyemi Adeleye, affirmed that the initiative and brand design was stimulated to reinvent and sustain the Yoruba cultural legacies, adding that this formed the core of the activities of the group.
“It is our core mandate as a responsible and responsive organisation of Yoruba professionals to be strongly committed to initiatives aimed at promoting our culture and empowering Yoruba Descendants through innovative solutions, and SOGE Design is one of the gateways,” Adeleye said.
He explained further that “the cardinal objective of our fashion brand, SOGE Designs, is to use and engage made-in -Yoruba Adire, Ankara and Aso Oke to produce smart wears in various forms for exportation to Europe, America and other continents of the world with the aim of promoting Yoruba cultural heritage in the same manner, the colonial masters have dominated African markets with their brands by propagating their culture.
“Yoruba is richly blessed culturally and the enviable legacies particularly in the area of fashion must be showcased and propagated to other continents of the world. We have cultural and special fashion instincts which are our pride and such should be demonstrated through a decisive and deliberate approach.
“We are determined to use SOGE Designs as a tool for not only the appropriation of Yoruba designs but to globally integrate our culture into modern and global fashion initiatives by partnering with popular foreign and global fashion brands.
“Yoruba Fashion through our initiative revolves around identity, self-love, dignity, attitude and ownership to preserve its culture, heritage and connection to the international community,” YPF said.
YPF’s activities which focuses on youth empowerment and promotion of cultural heritage have led to the training and empowerment of hundreds of Yoruba youths in courses like paint making, customer service management and marketing, cinematography, drone piloting, mobile application development, solar generation and business development, among others through its Entrepreneurial Development Training Series with focus on promoting knowledge-based entrepreneurship opportunities in Yoruba land.
Its latest efforts, the SOGE Designs is set to open the frontiers of marketing for Yoruba youths outside the shores of the country.
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