For Black History Month, we’ve brought together 17 Black-owned fashion labels covering everything from everyday essentials to the dress you’ll find an occasion for. Some are names you may already know; others deserve a new tab. What connects them is a clear sense of style, with enough individuality to make you look twice. Here’s where we’d start shopping.
Akino
Akino belongs in the “jeans and a good top” conversation, particularly when you want the top to be the whole point. The label draws on retro-modernist design and early-2000s references, with the Zuri top a useful introduction to its take on statement dressing. We’d start there, then keep the rest of the outfit simple enough to let it have its moment.
The brand releases pieces through timed drops, with Zuri colourways changing seasonally. That makes this one to bookmark and set a reminder for: the shop isn’t permanently open. Follow the next release rather than counting on a last-minute birthday order.
By Kwezi
KWEZI makes a convincing case for planning the outfit before the evening. Founded by Justine Kwezi, the label puts how a woman feels in her clothes at the centre of its designs. The Adriana maxi is a good place to begin: a lined knit dress with an hourglass shape and adjustable straps. Add a small bag and the earrings you save for going out.
There’s a practical thought beneath the glamour here, with structure and support part of the product story. We’ve previously spoken to Justine at Brand Insider about building the label; that interest in personal style gives the clothes a point of view beyond the occasion.
RE ONA
RE ONA is for the days when the outfit needs to come together without a full wardrobe consultation. The Toronto label builds around unfussy shapes and useful separates, with double-layered signature T-shirts, long-sleeved tops and the Bobbi blazer among the pieces to explore. A fitted tee with relaxed trousers is a very good starting point.
The appeal is in how easily the pieces speak to one another. The brand presents a wardrobe you can keep adding to, which makes the shopping experience feel considered. Come here for the quieter clothes that let your shoes, jewellery or favourite bag change the mood.
By Ola
By Ola is where we’d look for an off-duty outfit with a little more intention. Zip hoodies, jorts and trousers sit alongside fitted tops and shirts, with colour names including Espresso, Guava and Whipped Cream. Start with a Primo zip hoodie, or look at the Nami top if your wardrobe needs something to wear beneath the layers.
Those recurring colours and product families make the collection easy to build around. You can stay with a matching set or pull one piece into what you already own. We’d wear the hoodie with a crisp white tee and a good bag for a coffee run that might turn into the rest of the day.
IGDALYAH
If your denim references begin and end with jeans, IGDALYAH is worth a closer look. Virgin Islands-born designer Igdaliah Pickering reshapes familiar fabrics into sculptural pieces, including Tola’s Looped Denim Corset Top and Tutu’s Looped Denim Mini Skirt. We’d wear the corset with a simple bottom, or commit to the matching denim for a night when subtlety isn’t on the agenda.
The brand’s Caribbean perspective runs through its material experiments and colour choices. Alongside the denim, there are knit sets and the Hibiscus Flower Brooch to explore. The appeal is how much personality comes from the treatment of the fabric itself.
KiloKosi
KiloKosi takes its name from a Yoruba question about what someone is wearing. A fitting introduction to a label that wants you to look twice. Founded by five African women from different generations, it brings traditional dyeing and weaving into a wardrobe of dresses, sets and separates. Browse the Rayo set and Adunni top as a starting point.
There’s something appealing about a brand whose identity begins with the reaction to an outfit. The intergenerational founding story also gives its interest in craft a personal context. We’d come here when the occasion calls for colour and a little curiosity, with accessories chosen around the clothes.
BUBON
A cargo corset is a fairly good indication that a brand has plans for your wardrobe. BUBON’s Etta corset and matching cargo trousers bring utility dressing into an outfit you could take to dinner. Elsewhere, the Mother of Pearl jeans, Billow racer jacket and Cobra cardigan give you several routes into the collection.
Designed in England and rooted in West African heritage, BUBON describes itself as existing between cultures. In the clothes, the interesting combination is practical dressing with a more expressive silhouette. We’d start with the Etta pieces, then split them up with the denim and simple tops already in the wardrobe.
Meji Meji
Meji Meji brings Nigerian nostalgia into clothes you can wear out of the house immediately. Founded by Tolu Oye, the label draws on Nollywood and the Juju music era, with graphic tees a natural starting point. The Ko Mi Je Rush Rush cycling tee gives the sporty end of your wardrobe something more personal than another team logo.
Its visual identity has a sense of humour and a particular cultural memory behind it. That makes the graphics worth reading as well as wearing. We’d pair a tee with loose denim and a small shoulder bag, or let it interrupt an otherwise polished outfit. There’s no need to make every piece behave.
Kai Collective
Kai Collective is for the woman who sees a print and immediately starts making plans. Founded by Fisayo Longe in London, the label has a clear affection for colour and clothes with presence. Its Gaia world is a useful entry point, with printed mesh pieces that invite you to make the outfit around them.
The confidence comes through in the way the brand presents its clothes, too. Prints are given space to be recognisable, while styling encourages you to enjoy them. We’d begin with a mesh dress or a printed separate and add shoes we can actually spend the evening in. A strong outfit should still allow you to have a good time.
TOFE
TOFE is a good tab to open when you want the shape of an outfit to feel a little unexpected. Founded by Kehinde Martins, the label combines fluid proportions with pieces designed to be styled in more than one way. Its current presentation includes reversible necklines, moving from a high neck to a deep plunge, with Naïma among the designs to explore.
That flexibility gives you something useful to consider beyond the first product photograph. Browse the styling tutorials as well as the clothes, then decide how you’d make a piece your own. We’d keep the accessories spare and let the neckline or drape set the direction.
Imata Studio
Imata Studio makes the matching set an inviting place to start. Its offering includes the Daphne and Soraya sets alongside dresses such as Aria and Amani, giving you the option of a complete look or one piece to work around. Even the Daphne colour names, from Jade Bloom to Guava Sorbet, are enough to encourage a break from your usual black.
We’d begin with a set, wear it together for the first outing, then find a second life for each half. A coordinated wardrobe can still leave room for experimentation. Imata’s presentation makes that full look easy to picture, which is half the pleasure of discovering a new label.
Studio Bonnitta
Studio Bonnitta is worth browsing when the group chat has finally agreed on a date and you’re ready to think about the outfit. There are party dresses, tops and coordinated sets to explore, including Deba in pink and blue or yellow and blue. We’d start with the sets if we wanted colour without having to work out every combination ourselves.
The shop moves between basics and going-out pieces, making it easy to imagine dressing for more than one part of the week. A set can be the whole outfit for dinner; its separate pieces can keep working afterwards. Add the shoes that suit your plans and leave the overthinking there.
Anko
Anko is for the day you want to look as though every detail was deliberate. The label focuses on clean lines and refined silhouettes, with the Nse suit sitting alongside the Spine halter dress and Halo dress. The latter’s shades include electric blue and red ochre, so polished dressing doesn’t have to mean reaching for navy again.
The brand explicitly pushes against a narrow view of what African fashion should look like. Its tailoring and dresses give that position a wardrobe of their own. We’d look here for a dinner, a work occasion or any day that deserves a little extra effort, even if the calendar says otherwise.
MARTEYA
MARTEYA began with handmade beaded bags and has grown into clothing with the same appetite for a statement. The Leto maxi in purple or golden ochre is where we’d start the dress search, while the bags offer a smaller way into the brand. Sometimes the accessory is the piece that makes an outfit worth leaving the house in.
That continuity between bags and clothing gives MARTEYA a clear identity as the range expands. The brand says it produces in limited quantities, so browse with an eye on the individual piece that catches you. We’d happily build an evening around a good dress and an even better little bag.
Guapé
Guapé is the footwear detour your shopping list may not have accounted for. Founded by Tomi Agapé, the label offers a particularly tempting choice between expressive heels and textured boots. The Pony boot comes in black or brown calf hair, while the Isla appears in finishes including cow print and teal suede.
The flower references in the Anthurium heels give another route into the brand’s playful approach. We’d wear the boots with a simple dress or a short hem and let the texture be the point. For the shoes-first dresser, there is plenty here to make the rest of the outfit fall into place.
MKEWAY
MKEWAY makes a good case for a coordinated outfit on a day with several different plans. The label’s focus is casual womenswear with clean silhouettes, and the Ecru jacket and trousers offer an easy introduction. For something shorter, browse the Pepper jacket and shorts. Both give you a starting point you can dress around.
There’s a clear wardrobe-building idea here: related pieces that look considered together but leave space for your own styling. We’d break up a set with a fitted tee, or wear the jacket over a simple dress. This is the part of the edit for looking put-together without turning getting dressed into a project.
PALMWINE IceCREAM
PALMWINE IceCREAM is where we’d finish this edit with something a little less expected. Ghanaian-British designer Kusi Kubi works with existing and deadstock materials, with a collection that moves through leather, denim and accessories. The hand-painted giraffe-print boots are an immediate conversation starter; the leather tops and patchwork denim reward a longer look.
The work has a strong connection to Ghanaian craft, with the brand describing handmade production in Ghana for its Spring/Summer 2026 collection. We’d choose one distinctive piece and build around it, leaving enough space to notice the material and the making. Some clothes deserve that second look in person.
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
