Meet Ngozika Okeke, the Nigerian designer who has secured two collections with popular online retailer SHEIN as she creates a positive impact in the Los Angeles community.
Okeke has grown as a creative size-inclusive designer while earning a Ph.D. in organizational behavior and entrepreneurship. She puts meaning behind each one of her Ngozika Okeke Clothing pieces by donating a percentage of every item sold to a local non-profit organization focused on helping survivors of sexual assault and domestic abuse.
Okeke uses her clothing company to spread messages of hope, self-love, and body positivity.
“The inspiration behind Ngozika Okeke Clothing is about simply embracing all parts of you and helping to improve the human experience for someone else,” Okeke told BLACK ENTERPRISE.
On July 25, Okeke released her second collection under the SHEIN X program dedicated to uplifting small mission-based indie designers like herself. The collection’s pieces are aimed at helping others find a way to balance all the parts that make them special.
“It feels amazing to have been asked by SHEIN to collaborate on a second collection,” Okeke said. “I could h
ave never imagined 14 years ago that a leading global brand like SHEIN would reach out to me to collaborate with them and help me grow my personal brand. I’m truly thankful for their support and collaboration.”The pieces in the collection are bold, colorful, and full of flavor meant to make the wearer the center of attention.
“This second collection is full on floral, and I love everything about it,” Okeke shared. “I feel like this collection is much more cohesive than my first and each piece works together to tell a delightful story.”
Ngozika started working with SHEIN X in early 2021 and in less than a year secured a second collection. The SHEIN X program aims to discover and empower indie designers showcasing their talent to millions worldwide and providing them with tools, marketing, manufacturing, and financial support, so they can focus on their fashion and art.
“SHEIN has helped to amplify my clothing brand by making my collections available to millions of customers around the world,” Okeke said. “SHEIN does an amazing job marketing collections both on their website and social media channels.”
,”I know firsthand that many independent designers have amazing designs and products, but the lack of visibility and reach is what tends to hold them back from success,” she continued.
“SHEIN tags, promotes and interviews many
of their SHEIN X designers to help them gain as much exposure as possible and get their collections in front of customers.”“Working with SHEIN has been amazing because not only did my first SHEIN X collection exceed retail expectations, but it drove record numbers of SHEIN customers to my design website, www.NgozikaOkeke.com, and the website for my latest product website, www.SuperCrownz.com (a 3XL shower cap).”