Ethical fashion at its best
Lalesso was launched in Cape Town in 2005 by Olivia Kennaway and Alice Heusser. The inspiration behind the brand came from a holiday to Olivia´s home country Kenya where the pair travelled to the remote island of Lamu off the coast of Kenya. The traditional attire of the local women in these coastal regions is the captivatingly beautiful ´khanga´ or ´lesso´; it´s intrinsic patterns and vibrant colours were the inspiration for the birth of the Lalesso brand.
Alice and Olivia felt it was necessary to practice an ethical, socially responsible method of manufacturing and so set up their own workshop in Diani Beach, Kenya. Starting out with just two seamstresses, they now employ a team of twenty-two. All tailors are paid over three times the average manufacturer´s wage. They instill fair trade labour practices and working hours are flexible to suit the staff´s personal restrictions while production is monitored carefully with targets. The community is key for Lalesso and they try to involve them in as much of the production process as possible, unemployed beach boys are commissioned to hand carve buttons from decaying coconuts, while ´The Crochet Sisters´, a group of nuns, make all the crochet by hand.
Since 2005, the lesso has taken on a different, rather more international role as the inspiration and centrepiece of clothing brand Lalesso, which is currently taking the fashion world by storm.
Five years has seen the designers place a little known cultural garment squarely on the map, with everyone from ethical shopping boutiques to Topshop clamouring to get a piece of their unique vision of contemporary African fashion.
In a decade that has seen dresses grow in importance, Lalesso, which releases just two collections a year (to ensure workers are not faced with any unwarranted pressure) and focuses exclusively on summer wear, is a celebration in the rise of easy to wear feminine clothing. Designs range from the short and fitted to the long and billowy, but whatever the shape the emphasis is undoubtedly on clean, simple lines that let the fabric do the talking.
Lalesso´s flagship store can be found at 8 Kloof Street in Cape Town.
The liveeco team
