What if your clothes stood for something?
What if your clothes made a difference?
New men’s apparel fashion label Bora Wear, founded by James
Muna, is a socially conscious brand for more reasons than one. Not only are
traditional African textiles used to make all of the HOT DAMN-SHAZAAAM pieces,
but Bora Wear also gives a significant portion of its profits to an orphanage (TheToto Love Children’s Home) for HIV-positive children in James’s mother’s
hometown - "Shuttling back and
forth between Kenya and the United States made me increasingly aware of the
inequities that existed in Kenya, placing a drive in me to make a change. Bora
Wear is my way of making Kenya—and eventually
Africa—a better place" he says.
Just in case you were wondering – ‘bora’ means best or ultimate in Kishwahili; and it is their sole mission to be just
that.
All of Bora Wear’s vibrant statement-making printed shirts (they
remind me very much of Will Smith as a young Fresh Prince) are stitched by
HIV-positive women in Embu (where James’s mother grew up). “We focus on employing women because it has very positive impacts not
only on the employee but on her family, as well,” James explains. ”The goal here is to empower the entire
community while also solving social and economic issues in a sustainable
manner: employment.”
Bora Wear hopes to strongly empower through apparel.
The samples that are currently being showcased on the
website are FIT. The shirts are really bright and quirky – for the guy who
likes to own something a bit different, and doesn’t give a shit what anybody
else thinks. I’m expecting great things from this little label. Nothing is
available to buy just yet, but Bora Wear has promised they will be taking
orders very very soon, so you can sign up on their website to stay in the loop
via email! You can also check out more about the label on their Facebook Page
'In the end, nothing we do or say in this lifetime will
matter as much as the way we have loved one another.' Daphne Rose Kingma
