Black in Fashion

Written by: Alexanda Jerez | Illustration by: Aliya McDonald

In 2020, Black designers and creatives broke through and found their way into the spotlight. Below, we’ve highlighted a list of Black designers and Black-owned brands from every scope of the fashion industry.


Black fashion designers have been on the rise for decades. Black designers such as Willi Smith, Dapper Dan, and Ruby Bailey paved the way for Virgil Abloh, Sean Combs, Kimmora Lee Simmons, and Telfar Clemmons. In 2020, Black people and their culture began to make a bold statement in the fashion industry.

High End & Luxury

Kai Collective

Fisayo Longe, a London-based fashion blogger, founded KAI in 2016 to introduce Black Luxury. The brand offers everything from Swimwear to Tops and Dresses and Accessories, all ethically sourced. Fisayo writes that KAI seeks to create clothing for multi-dimensional women who embrace their femininity in various forms.

House of Aama

Mother-daughter duo Rebecca Henry and Akua Shabaka started House of Aama in 2015. According to their website, the brand — which sells silk halter tops, corduroy jackets, and off-the-shoulder tops — cites an emphasis on storytelling through design, exploring the Black experience, and mimicking that in their pieces.

LaQuan Smith

Queens-born designer LaQuan Smith started his namesake brand when he was 21 and, on his site, describes the aesthetic as “unapologetically glamorous.” Denied from FIT and Parsons, he fought to make his dream a reality. Using vibrant colors and bold cutouts, Smith has made a name for himself on the fashion market. Rihanna, Beyoncé, and Lady Gaga have all worn his designs.

Streetwear

BedStuyFly

BedStuyFly offers graphic tees, hats, jackets, accessories, and sweats for men, women, and children, with a good range of color and design options. Examples of phrases included on the merchandise are “Jay-Z, Biggie & Nas” and “We need more black billionaires.” The brand currently has storefronts in Bed-Stuy and Williamsburg.

BLK MKT Vintage

A Bed-Stuy based brand, BLK MKT Vintage is owned by Jannah Handy and Kiyanna Stewart. The couple combs flea markets and estate sales for Black ephemera (including 1970s Afro picks and 1970s anti-apartheid stickers), which you can find on their website alongside art and vintage pieces. They have worked to curate a one-of-a-kind brick-and-mortar inventory reflecting their online store.

The Sixes

Franci Girard was five-foot-ten by the time she hit fourth grade; naturally, she faced a struggle not many people acknowledge. Brooklyn-based, The Sixes is a streetwear and lifestyle brand born out of a genuine and longtime struggle to create stylish and flattering clothing for tall women (five-nine and over) — and she succeeded! Mainly offering a variety of pant styles and accessories, The Sixes found a way to include tall women in the streetwear scene without compromising style and finesse.

Baby Phat

Following their 1999 launch, Baby Phat took the fashion industry by storm, redefining what it meant to be sexy. In 2020, designer Kimora Lee Simmons relaunched Baby Phat, one of the first streetwear lines exclusively for women, now running it alongside her daughters, Ming Lee, and Aoki Lee. Baby Phat has seen a rebrand and resurgence in the past year. Now a family affair, these three women put forth pieces that emphasize femininity and comfortability while remaining fabulous.

Sustainable

Nia Thomas

Founded in 2018, Nia Thomas came into the fashion industry to emphasize slow fashion. The NYC-based apparel and accessories brand focuses on community and sustainability, offering responsibly sourced, recycled, reclaimed, and biodegradable goods like plant-dyed socks and recycled-silk scarves.

Handbags

BRANDON BLACKWOOD NEW YORK

Brandon Blackwood is creating luxury for the next generation. Founded in 2015, it seems like the brand Brandon Blackwood became every fashion-lover’s “it” bag overnight. Small enough to be a statement piece and practical enough in size to carry around from the morning’s errand run to the evening’s dinner with the girls. After his “End Systemic Racism” design hit social media, his brand virtually exploded, gaining traction and a following. Presently, his bags, offered in a range of styles, shapes, colors, and designs, are highly sought after within the fashion community.

CISE

Widely known for their “Protect Black People” bag, CISE is a Los Angeles-based Black-owned clothing and handbag line whose mantra is “Stronger Threads For A Stronger Community.” Founded in 2010, their goal was and continues to be to create apparel that gives a voice to those in society who are typically ignored. The Protect Black People line, specifically the handbags, have sold to thousands of consumers and provide a powerful message.

Telfar

After launching in 2005, Telfar Clemmons never thought that 15 years later, his handbag would break the internet. The New York Times named 2020 the Year of Telfar, citing that the bag that won’t stop selling out is one of the pandemic’s greatest success stories. Telfar bags are made of vegan leather and come in three sizes and varying designs and prints.

Flat Fifteen

Flat Fifteen is an up-and-coming handbag brand brought to you by South-Londoner Francesca Kappo. Coming in various sizes and made in silk and gingham styles, Kappo notes the bags are what “your aunty would probably wear to church on a Sunday.”

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The Nude Awakening