Power dressing has taken on a whole new meaning in the granite city, thanks to a fashion designer who is using her bright and bold clothes to change women’s lives in Aberdeen and Africa.
Inspired in part by her Nigerian roots and the feel-good factor she gets when wearing colourful clothes, Yekemi Otaru has set up her own online sustainable fashion label Yo Couture.
As a lifelong fan of wearing vibrant clothes, Yekemi, from Westhill, speaks from experience when she says that colourful clothes have the power to lift your mood and give you an inner confidence to face any situation.
Africa
With her fashion line, Yekemi has also provided jobs and an income for women in Africa who use their exceptional seamstress skills to bring her designs to life.
“It’s about bringing the beauty of Africa to Aberdeen, “ said Yekemi.
“I believe that colour can make women feel confident, unique and able to take on the day.
“The work we do with the female run businesses in Africa, that’s a key part of it.
“I know that some of those women have three or four jobs to keep the home running and a lot of them are widows or single mums so they work extremely hard to take care of their children.
“Part of my heart for this is giving those women a source of income and an opportunity to be part of something big and important.”
From engineer to fashion designer
Born and raised in Nigeria before moving to Aberdeen over 17 years ago, Yekemi has always had her own sense of style.
“People have always commented on how I dress because I’ve always been quite a colourful dresser,” said Yekemi.
“I’ve always had an individual and a very strong sense of style that stood out, and I’ve just kind of built on that over the years.”
With four degrees, including in chemical engineering and an MBA, it’s no surprise that Yekemi excelled while working in the oil and gas industry in Aberdeen.
Entrepreneur
With her relentless drive and determination, the busy mum-of-two first exercised her entrepreneurial spirit in 2016 by setting up her own sales and marketing consultancy Doqaru.
Her entrepreneurial ambitions did not stop there though, land she ater set up Yo Couture with her friend Osa – after struggling to find someone in Aberdeen to make her a 40th birthday dress out of the Ankara fabric she had sourced from Malawi.
“With my fabric in hand, I went into the town centre to find a seamstress to make my dress,” said Yekemi.
“The least it would cost was £150, plus, I had to buy my own lining.
“Frustrated, I went home with my fabric and concluded that I have to buy a dress after all.”
Ghana
Luckily, Yekemi’s friend Osa, who lives in Ghana and works as a doctor, came to the rescue.
“Osa was used to having clothes made where she lived in Accra,” said Yekemi.
“She asked her tailor to make me a dress and it cost a fraction of the price, even with new fabric and lining.
“Osa brought the dress to Aberdeen when she came over for my party.”
Feeling like a ‘goddess’ in her handmade dress inspired both Yekemi and Osa to help other women feel the same
“Having a dress created especially for me was a lovely feeling,” said Yekemi.
“It meant a lot, symbolising my life journey so far.
“Since the party and the dress, Osa and I talked many times about how we can bring that lovely feeling to others.
“As someone who had run two businesses, I designed the business model and what the brand would stand for.
“Osa is on ground in Accra and can get close to our fabric suppliers as well as seamstresses.
Women supporting women
Knowing that her business is supporting women in Africa is the reason Yekemi jumps out of bed every day.
“Millions of African families make Ankara fabric for a living,” said Yekemi.
“Being Nigerian (and African), Osa and I understood first-hand how hard women worked to support their households.”
One of those inspirational women based in Africa is Yekemi’s mother.
“Me and my mum source fabric together and she’ll translate my thoughts and designs by actually making them.”
Aberdeen to America
Despite starting on the cusp of the coronavirus pandemic, Yo Couture now has fans from Aberdeen to America.
Looking to the future, Yekemi would love to own her own shop and is on a mission to inject a piece of colour into every woman’s wardrobe.
“I always say to my friends that I would love every woman in Aberdeen to have at least one thing in their wardrobe that’s African print,” said Yekemi.
“As I’m sure you will agree, Aberdeen can be quite grey so I always stand out by wearing colour, like a yellow dress.
“But wouldn’t it be amazing if everyone had something that was African print, whatever you could manage, whether it’s a skirt, top or facemask.
“Just something that is bright and beautiful, I really want to see that.”
Not only is Yekemi a successful entrepreneur, she is also an author, social media expert and will next month succeed Dame Elish Angiolini in becoming the chancellor-elect of the University of the West of Scotland.
For more information about Yo Couture, check out her Instagram, Facebook, Etsy shop and website.
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