Eco Fashion aus Gulu

Sharon Anena lebt in Gulu, Uganda, sie ist 31 und gerade mit viel Einsatz dabei, eine kleine, feine, lokale Eco Fashion Brand auf die Beine zu stellen. Ich habe sie über meine Freundin Carmel Lee Paul kennengelernt, die sich für das ambitionierte Entwicklungsprojekt GYCO in Gulu engagiert. GYKO bildet junge Leute aus, begleitet und unterstützt sie bei ihren Projekten und eröffnet ihnen so neue Zukunftsperspektiven. Carmel Lee bringt ihre Coaching-Kompetenz ein und hat (vor Corona) 15 jungen Mitgliedern von GYCO eine lösungsorientierte Coaching-Ausbildung des Erickson Coaching International ermöglicht, sie lebt in Wien und ist immer wieder vor Ort. Auch Sharon hat diese Ausbildung gemacht, parallel dazu aber begonnen, sich mit Mode und der Herstellung von „Eco Print Fabrics“ zu beschäftigen. Wir treffen uns auf Zoom, die Verbindung reißt immer wieder ab, Sharon erzählt von ihren verschiedenen Projekten, ihrer Begeisterung für Mode und worum es ihr mit ihrer Brand „Ajura“ in erster Linie geht: möglichst nachhaltige, leistbare und schöne Kleidungsstücke für die Menschen vor Ort herzustellen und dabei das, was sie in diesem Zusammenhang gelernt hat, an andere Frauen weiterzugeben.

Sharon, how did you start your brand Ajura?

Around 2019 I came up with ideas to put different fabrics and clothes together and design something new. As I didn´t know very well how to use a sewing machine, I had to ask other people doing that for me at a small fee. Meanwhile I enrolled in school and learned how to sew. 2020 I founded Ajura. From the beginning sustainability was a main focus, because fashion has a lot of impact on the environment. We buy the fabrics on the local market and use them to make our eco print patterns, however, I want to move away from ink printed fabrics that are factory made and produce entirely with nature’s resources. Right now, we buy plain fabrics, cotton, and chiffon, create print patterns on them with natural resources such as flowers and leaves that leave their pigments on the fabric, make different things out of them and sell them in the shop.

How many people work with you?

I have two women fulltime who work with me at the shop, and two who come in when there is need. 

How is the feedback of your costumers?

People like the things we do and purchase them. But I am still in the process of finding the perfect fashion niche for me, I want to specialize in particular items. Right now, we are producing mainly jackets and bags, back bags, laptop bags and travel bags. We also do sustainable prints and are in the process of researching on what people really like to wear. We do not want to produce just into the blue. Another plan is to collect secondhand clothes from people who do not want them anymore, recycle them by adding value to them and resell them. We want to do this especially for the local people so they can buy good affordable clothing. 

I have read that some African Countries don´t want to import our secondhand clothes anymore because the amounts we ship there are ruining the local markets. Is this a problem in your country?

Well, there is a lot of secondhand clothing from abroad and it affects what the local producers have to offer. Another problem is that they are expensive and most of our people can´t afford buying them. I think it would be good to give the local producers a chance to sell their products without competition from secondhand imports. So, as a brand we will use local secondhand clothes for our project, recycle it and sell it at an affordable price. Most fashion brands and designers don´t think very much about the local people, and thus only the rich ones can buy their stuff. So, we want to do this differently. We produce locally, reduce the environmental impact, and make clothes that are affordable for the local community.

Your next steps?

We are still researching on what wear will suit the eco fashion prints and what people will love. And after we finished our remodeling, we start producing the clothes. I also did some prototypes for a few people, they love the pieces and already started to promote our brand and our ideas. Very soon we will also start to collect these secondhand clothes and redesign them. Also, very important for me is sharing with others what I learned. I teach people how to design, produce sustainable fabrics and make clothes. I show people, who are interested how they can grow their own business and inspire others to make their own clothes.

What do you like/love about fashion?

The idea of putting pieces together and creating something unique and beautiful fascinates me. I also want to promote African prints and show what beautiful things we can make in Gulu. And I don´t want to limit myself to that what other people produce and want to be unique in my way of designing. I hope this is inspiring also for others. 

Sharon hat sich auf ihren eigenen Weg gemacht und inspiriert andere Frauen, das auch zu tun. GYKO hat sie dabei unterstützt und unterstützt sie weiterhin. Vielleicht werden wir ja in nicht allzu ferner Zukunft Sharons Designs auch in Europa erwerben können. Bis dahin schaut rein auf Facebook, was Sharon und ihr Team entwickeln, interessant ist auch, was GYCO hier auf die Beine gestellt hat, außerdem findet ihr auf der Website auch einige Infos über die Situation in Uganda und der jungen Menschen dort.

Fotos © Sharon Anena