July 29, 2022
OliveAnkara Celebrates 5th Anniversary
Last weekend, we jump-started summer by inviting the community to our 5th birthday party following the launch of our 5th-anniversary summer collection, ‘We are Made to Shine’. An evening of bubbles, trying on clothes and informal chit-chat ensued, all to the backdrop of Afrobeat music by James Selva.
BOLD STYLE FOR THE CULTURALLY CURIOUS
The attendees
Friends from the music, fashion, art, health and fitness worlds gathered to toast the 5th anniversary, including representative from the Nigerian Embassy in Singapore, City nomads, Expatliving, our dearest friends Nadia, Susannah Jaffer, Tracy Phillips and Elika to name a few.
“It was really nice to see the OA community in one place, getting together and having fun. I am really happy to have been given a chance to thank everyone in person and see people dancing and trying on clothes simultaneously to Afrobeat tunes by a dear friend, James.” - Ify
“Loved that the OA tribe is finally meeting each other for the first time in years and seeing everyone having a ball of a time.” - Nabilah
"Great people! Fun music! (It ain't your regular latest pop mush) It was a great and fun experience for me to meet OA’s community and get to know them personally." Alicia
What went down at the party?
Our attendees of friends and community members were treated to Nigeria’s favourite mocktail called, Chapman, made by Ify, alongside bubbles and a Dj set by James Selva.
A visual installation was incorporated as part of the experience which showcased a vast trove of archival footage that highlighted some of the key moments from 5 years of OliveAnkara.
We love you!
We thank you for granting us yet another year of spreading joy through our universe of colours. Our heart is full of nothing but gratitude for the happiness and joy we have experienced in the last 5 years. So another year down, and a lot more to come! We look forward to seeing you at our next party!
THE END.
The Hive not only gave us the chance to work with such an amazing and inspiring photographer, they also wrote a very nice article on OliveAnkara on their Hive Life website!
Thanks to The Hive and Jeff Chang for having us, it was a great learning experience!
]]>You can read the full interview here
and you should definitely check City Nomads on a regular basis to find out the collest stuff happening in South East Asia ;)
]]>We thank Veneziatoday for the article, if you understand Italian, you can read it here :)
]]>"When I moved to Singapore 4 years ago I realised that there wasn’t a place where I could by African print clothes, and then I thought I should start created them."
Read the full article here
]]>"For the wild and adventurous woman, delight in OliveAnkara pieces with bold African prints to match your confident personality...."
Read the full article here
]]>"There are always new things to check out in Singapore — whether they’re new restaurants, bars, cafes or shops. But if there’s one thing that’s always hot on our radar, it’s emerging local fashion labels. No, we’re not talking about the big names like Charles & Keith and Carrie K. (shout out for representing SG in a big way), right now we’re talking under-the-radar brands that we’re excited to add to our wardrobe…"
Read the full article here
]]>Read the full article here
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And most of all, it was the first test for our brand: "Will people like our creations?" "Will people buy our clothes?" "What happens if we don't sell anything?"...these were only a few of the tons of questions in our minds!
Setting up a pop-up shop, getting the clothes ready, the accessories ready, the head bands and head wraps ready, the Facebook page ready, the Instagram profile ready, the marketing material ready, and hundreds of other things ready, was surely tough and tiring, but what a great learning experience it has been!
All our fears, all our doubts, got wiped away on the very first day. The launch party was great, people came numerous and the enthusiasm shown for our products was fantastic! And the rest of the week, the shop worked very well and we sold almost 70% of our products! Wow, that was way beyond expectations!
Here are some shots from the launch party!
And as you can see by Ify's smile, happiness was all over the place! Thanks to all the friends and people who helped us to make this happen, we will do other pop up shops in the future, stay tuned!
]]>At first, a bit of anxiety kicked in when we received the invitation, but then thanks to the amazing team at The Hive, the hairdressers, the make up artists and our four gorgeous models, everything went well and we had so much fun!
Here is a short interview with our founder and designer, Ify, a few days prior to the event, where she was asked to talk about herself and how she got into the fashion world (courtesy of The Hive).
And here are some shots from the night!
Shiori wearing our Chinwe dress:
Nicolette wearing Ronke Top and Oluchi Pants:
This is Ameerah wearing Olivia Top and Nkiru Shorts:
The icing on the cake, Aarika wearing Tinwa Dress:
And it's a wrap, Aarika posing for the photographer together with the make up artist and Ify, OliveAnkara's founder and designer:
Thanks again to The Hive for making this happen! To many more runways and catwalks!
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