“We must do better. We must do so much better, starting today.”
This year has been as challenging as it has been hopeful. From the never-ending Corona crisis to the perpetual injustices of systematic racism, the world is standing on the crossroads of humanity. Looking back, the well-meaning symbols and nice gestures like the already forgotten Blackout Tuesday no longer cut it; a lasting change comes through tangible, outspoken, and consistent actions that unapologetically celebrate the beautiful diversity that the world’s got to offer.
The initial hype might be over, yet the systemic injustices are still happening every single day. That is why now it’s more essential than ever to keep standing up until the reality truly changes. We must do better. We must do so much better, starting today. Every step is not too small, every day is not too ordinary, to keep the needle moving. And that’s what this issue of the Show Solidarity magazine is about: everyday activism. No matter where you’re at, what you’ve got, or who you know, we all can make a difference every day.
“Supporting diverse conscious fashion is now more relevant than ever”
As a conscious fashion agency, we decided to do our part and use this creative platform to shine the spotlight on inspiring brands and initiatives that show how truly diverse the sustainable fashion is and why it matters.
From stunning black-owned fashion brands to remarkable ethical projects changing the way fashion is made in South-East Asia, MUMSTER has brought together an exclusive selection of the most vibrant and diverse conscious initiatives to show solidarity with one another and celebrate the full spectrum of color behind the fashion labels.
The second issue of the Show Solidarity magazine features game-changing sustainable fashion brands such as Ketura, THE DO NATION, GOOD KRAMA, AKWAMAN, Raff, as well as BMUSE and Rogue. This continuously evolving magazine will be weekly updated throughout August and September with detailed profiles of these fashion projects, including captivating videos and extraordinary visuals.
Exclusively for this campaign, THE DO NATION, in collaboration with a rising artist Michelle Amo, has designed an ‘I have a dream’ t-shirt that you’ll be able to preorder next week and tangibly show solidarity this way. Additionally, the portion of proceeds will go to several foundations fighting racism, including The Black Lives Matter fund.
THE DO NATION or THE DONATION? Don’t let your autocorrect fool you – THE DO NATION is a fashion project with a clever play on words whose name blends in two distinct ideas together.
This Amsterdam-based brand is inspired by a life story of its founder Anna Nagy whose mom died of breast cancer when she was young. Back then, she decided that she would do something good for the world, turning a heartbreaking loss into a powerful vision for a better tomorrow.
THE DO NATION is using simple yet powerful illustrations to support life-changing charities that are fighting for a better world every single day.
Donating to a good cause with each purchase, THE DO NATION is using simple yet powerful illustrations to support life-changing charities that are fighting for a better world every single day. From alleviating Indian girls and women out of poverty to cleaning up the ocean of man-made debris, you can choose from several pre-screened and trust-worthy foundations to send a portion of proceeds from your purchase – whatever cause speaks to your heart.
As a proud ethical brand, THE DO NATION makes sure all its designs are crafted in fair conditions, cementing this vision by collaborating with Fair Wear Foundation. When it comes to materials, all the t-shirts are made of plant-based fabrics, avoiding options such as wool or silk, and if it’s cotton, then it will be the best of the best 100% organic cotton with the GOTS certification. On top of that, the packaging is designed to be as small as possible to minimize its footprint and made from paper, thus fully recyclable.
THE DO NATION
‘I HAVE A DREAM’ T-SHIRT
Exclusively for the Show Solidarity campaign, THE DO NATION, in collaboration with MUMSTER and a rising artist Michelle Amo, has launched an ‘I HAVE A DREAM’ t-shirt that you are now able to preorder on THE DO NATION website and show solidarity in such a tangible way. The portion of proceeds is going to several foundations fighting racism, including the original Black Lives Matter fund and charities supporting Black children’s education.
Collectively, we have a dream to see the world wholly embrace the full spectrum of color. Until then, we will fight for a change in all ways possible. THE DO NATION has dedicated one powerful t-shirt to do just that. Join them by getting the ‘I HAVE A DREAM’ t-shirt yourself.
'I HAVE A DREAM T-SHIRT
€27,99
Famous for its signature bomber jackets, the fair streetwear brand Ketura based in Antwerp pays homage to the African roots of the founder Jennique Ketura by embracing traditional colorful prints from this continent and beyond. With the flagship store in Lil’ Amsterdam, Ketura connects the dots by putting a modern twist on its original designs inspired by the diverse cultural heritage of the world.
Ketura connects the dots by putting a modern twist on its original designs inspired by the diverse cultural heritage of the world.
Founded in 2018, Jennique Ketura dreamt of starting her own brand ever since she began her fashion designer studies. Yet it wasn’t until a heartbreaking tragedy in her life when her brother passed away that made her realize that there is no time to waste to pursue her lifelong dream. “Do what you love, you never know if you have the time to do it later,” were the words that accompanied Jennique at the beginning of her streetwear brand named after her: Ketura.
Motivated by showcasing beautiful colorful fabrics connected to her African roots and making it more accessible to everyone, she designed her now-signature unisex bomber jackets and opened a pop-up store in Antwerp. Fast forward, Ketura has established itself as a leading fashion brand by opening its first permanent store in the up-and-coming Lil’ Amsterdam shopping area, representing the sustainable choice when it comes to innovative streetwear apparel. On top of that, Ketura has introduced design matching scarfs and mouth caps as an immediate response to the new normal during the Corona times. Coming soon, Ketura will be also launching the very first sneaker collection to bring its collection to another level.
Producing the clothes in a fair and honest way is one of the Ketura’s unshakable pillars.
This streetwear brand is known for its colorful prints and authentic patterns coming from several continents. In the beginning, Ketura used only African fabrics, mostly from Western Africa – such as Nigerian and Ghanian prints. As the founder Jennique’s family originally comes from Suriname, she then incorporated traditional Surinamese fabrics in the Ketura pieces. Living in the Netherlands and Belgium, she also noticed the connection between the African, Surinamese, and Indonesian culture stemming from painful history, and that is why she decided to include original Indonesian prints in her collections as well. The next step for Jennique is to design its own prints and patterns which she’s been relentlessly working on this year and is planning on releasing this unique collection in the near future.
Producing the clothes in a fair and honest way is one of the Ketura’s unshakable pillars. For that very reason, Ketura has turned into an impeccable family business from designing to sewing to selling. Nowadays, Jennique together with her husband Said designs the collections while they and other family members sew the clothes throughout two different continents.
Full of life and color, Ketura stands for a fair streetwear brand that celebrates authentic prints from all over the world. Check out Ketura’s original designs for yourself at its flagship store in Lil’ Amsterdam and connect with them on Instagram.
GOOD KRAMA
Inspired by the Cambodian traditional textile, GOOD KRAMA is a slow fashion label that produces high quality, versatile, and trans-seasonal pieces. This upcycling label blends cultural tradition with innovation by mixing handwoven fabrics with original designs.
“You meant good karma, right?” Nope, it’s krama.
With good karma as a reference, a slow fashion brand GOOD KRAMA was founded seven years ago by French native Katia Nicolas and inspired by Cambodia’s most versatile textile: the krama. The krama is a traditional silk or cotton scarf made of thousands of tiny squares that reflect the tumultuous history of Cambodia: a patchwork of contrasting hues, of darkness and light. Used in hundreds of different ways by people of all socio-economic backgrounds, the krama materializes the balance between function and aesthetics.
One of the core values of Good Krama is impeccable quality with a minimal footprint on the environment. That is why their clothes are made from two different types of materials. First, we create its original luxurious hand-woven fabrics on a traditional Cambodian wooden loom. Second, they source upcycled materials from fabric remnants and deadstock of local garment factories. In Cambodia alone, there are over 500 garment factories, which leads to a massive amount of unused stock. Good Krama turns this issue into an opportunity and reuses leftover fabrics in their limited collections. That makes each style unique and never mass-produced. What’s more, Good Krama integrates biodegradable and recyclable materials in all aspects of the production line. From tags to packaging to shipping materials, they always opt for the greener solution.
Thanks to its sustainable choices, Good Krama avoided 66 193 km of driving emissions, saved 893 558 days of drinking water, and diverted 5773 t-shirts worth of cloth from landfills.
What is groundbreaking about this up-and-coming circular fashion initiative is that Good Krama measures its total social impact and environmental footprint. From the energy consumed in the atelier to the life cycle of each garment, Good Krama has data to back up the claim of being sustainable. So far, thanks to its sustainable choices compared to industry standards, Good Krama avoided 66 193 km of driving emissions, saved 893 558 days of drinking water, and diverted 5773 t-shirts worth of cloth from landfills. On top of that, they work with various organizations based in Cambodia to deliver truly fair clothing. One of them is Color Silk, a social enterprise that aims to prevent the ancient Cambodian weaving tradition from vanishing while empowering over 400 women living in rural areas to gain financial independence.
With minimal and versatile aesthetics, Good Krama stands for timeless fashion and a creative celebration of the remarkable traditional craftsmanship of Cambodia. There are not that many other fashion brands that truly embed upcycling and zero waste techniques with the commitment to become as circular as possible in the shortest amount of time while having data proving the positive impact they’ve already achieved. Join them in their sustainable endeavor and shop at the Good Krama website.
AKWAMAN
Standing out in a crowd for its bright colors & impeccable quality, AKWAMAN is a fair Dutch streetwear label whose muse is the streets of Ghana blended with the influences of the Western world. The primary drive behind this extraordinary project is not only to create original designs but to ultimately make this world more equal by standing up for what’s right.
With AKWAMAN, transparency of its production process is on another level.
AKWAMAN started by Jetske and Ekwele in 2017. As a truly diverse team, they combine their unique experience and talents with the unifying passion for fashion, ethical principles, and human rights.
As the name suggests, Jetske comes from the Netherlands, and Ekwele is originally from Southern Cameroon and currently living in the capital of Ghana, Accra. That’s also where the beautiful designs are ethically made by local artisans that you can also get to know on the website. With AKWAMAN, transparency of its production process is on another level.
Touched by the inspiring soul of Ghana, the AKWAMAN bespoke designs embody bright colors of the carefully chosen fabrics with original Kente prints from the Akan Tribe in South Ghana. Made of 100% cotton and wax printed, the exquisite quality of each garment is not only visible at first sight but also felt while you wear it.
One of the bold missions of AKWAMAN is to make the world more equal by standing up for people facing injustice. At the moment, Jetske and Ekwele want to shine more light on the underreported humanitarian crisis in Southern Cameroon. Since 2017 more than 700.000 people have been displaced, and around 60.000 have fled the country due to the vile abuse of human rights and extreme violence initiated by the French Cameroon government against the English-speaking minority. To help in any way possible, AKWAMAN partnered up with the Ayah Foundation and is donating 22% from each purchase to support the refugees and give them a chance to rebuild their lives.
AKWAMAN partnered up with the Ayah Foundation and donates 22% from each purchase to support the refugees and give them a chance to rebuild their lives.
Bold, colorful, and unique, AKWAMAN shows what happens when you blend two worlds into beautiful and original fashion items. Take a look at the latest collections and make sure to follow AKWAMAN on Instagram.