WED MAGAZINE | June 2011

WEDWEDI D E A S

WED MAGAZINE | June 2011

Q: Tell us about your educational background.

I went to Primary School at Senior Staff School, University of Ibadan, Ibadan and Secondary School at International School Ibadan, University of Ibadan and obtained a BA Fine Art (Textile Major) Degree from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile – Ife. I then came to the UK and studied Women & Menswear at the Paris Academy School of Fashion,London (since closed down). I was formally trained in Old-School Couture, which is creating gowns with an individual client in mind in a process that

involves creating an individual Body Block for that client on paper, drafting all patterns from that Block, making up a mock version of the gown in muslin or calico (the Toile) to fit onto the clientin order to ascertain and correct any technical or aesthetic issues, going back to correct these issues, and creating another Toile to ensure a perfect fit has been achieved and only after these steps developing the pattern for the actual garment. The creation of this type of garment takes hours of painstaking work and lots of hand finishing details. The end result is a gown that is of such high quality that makes casual wear or lessformalwear not as viable and this naturally led me to more special occasion wear and bridal wear. My designs also lent themselves to this as well and my specialization became a natural progression.

Q. What is the inspiration behind the KOSIBAH label?

KOSIBAH is a derivation from my mother’s tribe - Cosiba. The name Cosiba is actually spelled with a ‘C’. It is the name given to a female child, born on Sunday in the Republic of Benin, where Mother originates from. I chose the name KOSIBAH not only to pay homage to my mother, but also because of its African centric value which wouldtranscend to a wider International audience.

Q. KOSIBAH is a name to reckon with (a household name) and you are a guru in the fashion industry. How or when did you come to the realization that it was either fashion design or nothing else?

I appreciate the recognition given to KOSIBAH. It truly makes all the years of dedication and hard work worthwhile. I have been designing under the name KOSIBAH, since 1982. I had my first exhibi-tion and fashion Show at the National Theatre, Iganmu, Lagos. At that time I could not sew and my dress designs were made up by a seamstress.

Welcome to the World of

June 2011 | WED MAGAZINE

In 1991, I officially established KOSIBAH as a business. It was during that year and its last recession that design houses stopped hiring. I had just completed my course at the Paris Academy School of Fashion in Oxford Street, England and I was not getting any positive replies. I decided to set up on my own. In addition, I enrolled into a Government sponsored Business course that touched on Taxation, Marketing, PR, Book Keeping etc. This was one of the most important decisions I ever made, because it helped me to reallyunderstand the whole conceptualization of administration and I understood that regardless of talent, without proper use of administration mostbusinesses fail. This has helped me tremendously in the business as I have remained uninterrupted for 20years despite challenges such as recessions, changing trends in the fashion industry. In Septem-ber of this year 2011, it will mark 20 remarkable years sincethe establishment of KOSIBAH.

Q. Where do you get your bridal design inspirations from?

I am inspired by the celebration of the female form. Most importantly, I aim to develop an ideal shape for every one of my clients and I accomplish that with my corseted gowns with fabulous boned bodices, hand-ruching and draping. This leads the eye to a slim waist- line resulting in a structured, yet comfortable gown with the WOW-Factor! In addition, sometimes I take inspiration from fabrics and em- bellishments that then spark off and

transpire into design ideas.

Q. Are fashion designers born or made?

I feel most designers have an inherent talent or flair for fashion, usually from an early stage. This can be rea- lized from being good in the Arts, sewing or just putting the right clothes/ accessories together almost instinctively. However, I feel it is important to then hone this talent formally through a combination of formal design training and vocational work experience to expose the budding designer to both theoretical and practicalaspects of design and manufacture.

I was someone that had the imagination to conjure up new designs and sketch them out to become reality on a two dimensional level, but I could not sew at the time and I had to learn that from scratch. On the other hand, some people can sew and then have to learn the elements of design de-velopment in order to come up with original designs. This is what eventually separates designers from dressmakers.

Q. Do KOSIBAH brides feel more confident with your presence at their weddings or is that your personal signature trademark for being the bridal designer?

I offer a service dedicated to personal attention to detail. This is a service I do not charge for; it is simply as you noticed my personal touch. However, clients outside the UK have to provide a business-class airfare and hotel accommodation for the duration of my stay. This is carried out right from the first consultation where after an in-depthdiscussion; I come up with a design, unique to the client. From dressing the bride on her wedding day, to suggesting suitable drycleaners for the

WED MAGAZINE | June 2011

gown afterwards, it is my personal dedication and attention to detail. By being there, I make sure the experience of having a KOSIBAH gown is a special experience, one of luxury and professional-ism. Thus, my presence is a reassurance that the bespoke dress that I have specially made for my client is exactly the way I envisaged it to be on their d-day. Moreover, after the hours of labor, it is a great pleasure for me to see my work materialize in its proper setting. As for the bride, it is more of a reassurance and confidence that her designer is on hand. For example, since corsetry has become my trademark, the bride is rest assured that she is being laced-up into her gown the exact and right way it should be for its maximum and exceptional effect.

Q. What are the challenges you face as a Fashion Designer?

One of the most challenging things for a designer is the continuation and consistency in coming up and keeping up with new, fresh and fashion-forward ideas. Also, there is the constant struggle between the creative and the production/market-ing aspects of the business; the constant need to maintain relationships with people in the industry such as fashion editors, stylists etc. Also, the financial aspect, for example, a designer alwayshave to keep making new samples, which can be quite expensive to create especially if one specializes in couture. In some cases, these samples cannot be sold off afterwards, but are rather used for fashion shows; photo shoots in other to showcase to clients samples of one’s works. These gives a client the opportunity to see, feel and/or possibly try on the designs on as well.

Q. What advice can you give aspiring Fashion Designers?

It is essential that you acquire professional and technical training in fashion. It is important that you discover which aspect of fashion you have the best aptitude or interest in. Learn to carve a niche for yourself as you try to get as much work experience as possible, while you are still training to become a designer. Remember fashion is alsoa business and it does involve more than just sketching and staging fashion shows. Develop the ability to constantly be able to work under pressure. Most importantly, if this is what you really want to do, keep your focus and do not allow yourself or anyone to sway you from your goal. I encourage you to be inspired; If I could make it to where I am today, I reckon anyone, (anyone) else can.

To be continued on p.

“[I]t is a great pleasure for me to see my work

materialize in its proper setting”

June 2011 | WED MAGAZINE

WED MAGAZINE | June 2011

June 2011 | WED MAGAZINE

Q. Do you think there is any such thing as an outrageous budget on a wedding gown?

No, I do not believe that at all. It all comes down to getting what you pay for and placing a value on it. If a gown is time consuming, complex or with expensive and delicate fabrics and/or embellish ment, it will no doubt be expensive. Every bride has a budget and there is a wide range of bridal gowns out there. There are ready-to-wear wedding dresses which are ‘off the peg.’ They are mass produced gowns of a variety of styles. Also, there is the made-to-measure wedding dress selection, of-ten altered to one’s size from a pre-existing style, sometimes referred to as designer gowns. In addi-tion, there is the bespoke wedding dresses (these are unique; custom made/ personalized dresses made that are perfectly fitted for the bride), some-times referred to as couture. Couture is created from a sketch drawn for the individual client by the designer and made up from scratch by a team of seamstresses or by the designer. The process of making couture gowns is tedious and time consuming, but in designing a bespoke/ couture gown –the sky is the limit. Thus, it is a bride’s per-sonal decision to have such a gown and the price tag that comes with it is an agreement between the bride and designer. Since the majority of my clients require bridal wear, they also the value of Couture and appreciate the amount of work that goes into it and most importantly they can afford a bespoke gown.

Q. Do you have a particular favorite wedding gown out of your numerous designs?

No, all my gowns are so different and reflect the personalities of each one of my client, so it is dif-ficult to say which one is a favorite. Categorically, it is like asking a parent, which is their favorite child? However, I have had the opportunity to design the most amazing gowns that have been displayed at some crème de la crème venues.

Q. Is every woman a KOSIBAH Bride?

No, by that I mean I have a certain style aesthetic that may not suit everyone. But any woman that is discerning enough to want a Couture-Bridal-Gown that shows classical restrained sophistication, regardless of size, height, colour, age can be a KOSIBAH Bride.

Q. What more can we expect from Yemi Osunkoya in the nearest future?

There is always more to expect from me. The continuum of unparalleled excellence in my work and designs that are still yet to be created. I was recently selected by the Assistant Press Secretary to HRH: the Prince of Wales to create the dress she will be wearing to the Royal Wedding of Prince Williams and Katherine Middleton. The publicityassociated with this wedding will get my design the most coverage ever.

Currently, I also have a very strong internship program in my studio mostly working with 2nd and 3rd year fashion design students from universities across the UK. In doing this, I am passing on my first hand knowledge and techniques, thus, giving back to myindustry.

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