Introducing: Yemisii

Yemisi Makinde is the driving force behind the brand YEMISII which re-launches with its latest collection in Lagos, December 2010.

Yemisi has always had an entrepreneurial spirit and a strong desire to succeed at everything she puts her mind to. 9 years ago she turned her passion for fashion and accessories into the Virtuoso fashion brand.

Virtuoso was a success as it hit the right notes with young professional women who wanted unique expressions through their fashion accessories.  Virtuoso designs offered stunning yet unconventional creations that not only redefined the norm, but were ahead of their time in style. This pioneering award winning accessories design brand soon became a household name and propelled Yemisi into the lime lights as one of the most creative young designers in Lagos.

Yemisi Makinde

The products gained global recognition and acceptance in fashion shows and exhibitions in Nigeria, South Africa, Europe, England and America, alongside other recognizable industry brands and talent, thus creating a global outlook for the brand. In 2007, Virtuoso evolved into YEMISII (a derivation of her first name), to reflect an authentic African brand with a global perspective.

YEMISII like Virtuoso set out to change the world of fashion through imagination and art. With a strong desire to celebrate the beautiful African heritage to utmost levels of sophistication and elegance YEMISII is firmly positioned as a fine connection between art and fashion, a new dimension to the word ‘style’. “ I love to rock the boat; I work with unusual but exciting media to create unique and innovative wearable art pieces. I see my work as art”, says Yemisi, who also has been influenced by some of Fashion’s greats. She cites Valentino as an inspiration. In Yemisi’s words,  “His works describe a certain type of person; they are timeless pieces that capture the essence of femininity. Back home in Nigeria, I respect the works of Deola Sagoe, they are authentic and she really does think outside of the box.”  Being a Nigerian, Yemisi understands the instinctive nature of Nigerians to always look good and cosmopolitan. It is no secret that Nigerians across the world are always amongst the best dressed and styled in their circles.

The new YEMISII collection titled AVENIR (the future) premiers in December 2010. It is specially designed for the sophisticated and stylish. Now resident in Orange County, California with her husband, Yemisi says her recent two year tour of Europe, South Asia and the United States has opened her eyes to new creativity and influences. This has deeply impacted the new collection AVENIR. Her outlook is now firmly fixed on a future that announces progress, maturity and fulfillment. With production centers in Lagos, Europe and USA, what to expect from the new collection is perfection or as close to it as is humanly possible. Definitely a must-see. No doubt, Nigeria is the best place to unveil this much-anticipated collection.

In a nutshell YEMISII is the timeless essence of a beautiful African heritage with utmost levels of sophistication and elegance that can be embraced by the entire world.

AWARDS/SHOWS/ACHIEVEMNETS:

• Winner of the St. Moritz style award as the best accessories designer in her home country Nigeria in 2004
• ST. MORITZ Style selection in Lagos (2005),
• THIS DAY style weekend (2006),
• DESIGN INDABA, Cape Town south Africa (2006 & 2007)
• NEW AFRICA design exhibition, launched in Denmark and touring other European countries (2007)
• Yemisi has successfully mentored and trained a respectable number of less privileged young adults, personally teaching them her self-taught skills in a hands-on manner. Thus empowering them to become financially independent adults.
• Yemisi’s work has been featured in fashion shows and exhibitions in Nigeria, South Africa, Europe, England and America. She also attended a short course at the London College of fashion in 2009.

 TO SEE MORE OF YEMISII PLEASE VISIT THE WEBSITE WWW.YEMISII.COM