Nancy Lusamba Olaoye, managing director of Congo Fashion Institute – which organises the annual Congo Fashion Week – had a lovely childhood. Growing up in Congo, she was always surrounded by cousins and friends. Some of her fondest memories stem from the holiday parties her parents would host for Christmas and Easter – the entire neighbourhood would show up. Nancy lived in Congo until she was six years old and during that time, she cared for little else than her dolls and keeping her dresses and her hairstyles neat.

“For me the culture around fashion in Congo can be described in 3 words: always looking pretty. It is something one of my uncles used to say when we were growing up and it stands true whether you are of Congolese origin and have never stepped foot in the country, or were born and raised here, having never travelled abroad. It is important for a Congolese person to always look good, meaning to often be overdressed,” Nancy told Fashionomics Africa.

Upon moving to Ottawa, Canada, her flair for style continued to evolve. “Being Congolese influences at least 80% of my personal style. Growing up in Kinshasa and Ottawa, my parents always insisted on us looking our absolute best; whether it was for school or the many parties/events we attended. I have six sisters, so for a while, my mom would dress us in similar dresses while growing up. I would say I developed my understanding of fashion and style in my late teens, growing up as a Congolese girl in Ottawa. Most of the Congolese people I knew dressed in very flashy ways; colour blocking (before it became a trend), hyper monogrammed clothing and more. For me, those people had a slightly negative impact on my sense of style, as I was more on the shy side, and didn’t want to dress too “Congolese” because I did not want too many eyes on me. It changed the more I started to learn about the true meaning of Congolese fashion, which to me is to own your personal style and, as my mum always says, it’s better to be overdressed than underdressed.”

Fashion’s ability to change lives, is what first drew Nancy to the industry. Upon studying how the fashion industry has developed in Nigeria – with a 78% increase in contribution to the country’s GDP in the last 9 years – Nancy realized this is no easy feat, but her determination is strong. She hopes to mirror Nigeria’s success in her native Congo, and work towards job creation and the eradication of poverty.

“In present time, we do not have a “fashion industry” in Congo. There are no programmes in place to educate fashion entrepreneurs and help them build the kinds of brands we are seeing coming out of Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Senegal and more. We lack a definition of roles, many people call themselves designers, but are truly tailors (not to take away from what they do as they are an integral part of the industry). The Congo Fashion Institute is working towards the definition of the fashion industry in Congo, coupled with educational initiatives. Many here leave university without any training, internship or apprenticeship because such things are not available to them. One of our goals is to bridge the gap between education and the marketplace,” Nancy explains.

As a Congolese who had the opportunity to study in Canada and the United Kingdom, Nancy very much felt a sense of duty to her country and people. She was inspired by Marie-France Idikayi, the founder of the Congo Fashion Institute. Her story and reasons why she decided to launch this initiative was 100% aligned with why Nancy wanted to go back home and get things done. She got involved because she understood the power of the textile industry in terms of job creation and the eradication of poverty and is very passionate about helping talented people reach their goals. This passion is what keeps her going even during the toughest times.

“There is no “typical day” for me through my work with the Congo Fashion Institute in Kinshasa – every day is different. The only thing that stays constant in my daily routine are my meetings with my team. We’re a small but mighty team of young people hungry for change. We’ll discuss the designer intake, communication/content and a little bit of logistics planning for the show. I usually meet the team at the office, or if my day is busy, I will see them on the go, usually at a coffee shop or restaurant in the city. I usually have upwards of 9 meetings per day, those meetings last anywhere between 40 minutes to 2 hours. Then there is time spent in traffic. During that time, I tackle my inbox, monitor our social media and practice my Lingala with my driver, Papa Seraphin,” Nancy tells us.

One thing Nancy is particularly excited about at the moment, is the Congo Fashion Institute’s participation at the IMG New York Fashion Week. The institute will be having their own show on September 4th, and Nancy can hardly wait for the designers to get their opportunity to showcase their work. “We are taking four designers with us: Marie-France Idikayi, Laetitia Kandolo, Victor Otem and Richie Maya. Being on the global stage in New York ensures that eyes will be on us when we host our own show in Kinshasa this October. As for industry improvements, we are hoping to work together with the new government to implement our plans for a business of fashion curriculum across all provinces in the country.”

Nancy is well aware of the fact that many entrepreneurs get into business without understanding its legal ramifications. “Lawyers are expensive, and many entrepreneurs worldwide don’t see them as a justifiable expense early on in the business, but later regret it when things go wrong. That is why I decided to study law. My education will help me craft the type of business of fashion curriculum which will see to it that all those who complete our programmes are well versed in the areas of taxes, advertising, protection of intellectual property and more. Many artists here do not have that knowledge and therefore cannot protect themselves or their creations. It is important to me to impart that knowledge to ensure that creators can create, knowing they are also protected.”

With the 2019 edition of Congo Fashion Week, Nancy is determined to offer a display of African luxury. “I want to showcase that to dress well one does not need to wear European or American designers. African Luxury is very much real; our designers create beautiful pieces for every occasion. We will have over 30 designers in attendance during the 3 days of fashion shows. Congo Fashion Week 2019 will be held at the new National Museum of Congo in Kinshasa, and we are honoured to be the first event held on their premises.”

The Congo Fashion Institute has a bright future ahead. “We are looking to build strong partnerships with other African countries, as we share the common goal of wanting Africa to prosper. In 2020 we plan on launching different programmes and events throughout the country, as we know that Kinshasa is only a small piece of the giant puzzle that is the DRC.”