How Post-Imperial Became Fashion’s Ego-Free Brand to Know
The fashion industry is built on a mountain of lies that we go along with in order to enjoy its spoils. One of the most impenetrable, though, is the insistence that every collection—every garment, even—emerges from the mind of one designer. In reality, it’s a team of stylists, pattern makers, fabric cutters, dyers, seamstresses, consultants, tailors, and even marketers who are responsible for everything you see on a runway or in any luxury men’s store.
Post-Imperial, the Nigerian menswear label started by Niyi Okyboyejo in 2012, doesn’t aim to totally blow up that godhead designer myth. But Okyboyejo is definitely interested in opening it up. Whereas many designers insist on a narrative for their collections that creates a tight sense of control, he insteads prefers to think in terms of mythology. Narrative, he says, “is egocentric. “It’s you wanting to grab some sort of power, you wanting to tell the