Ozwald Boateng
Ozwald BoatengOBE is a fashion designer. Boateng was born in Ghana in the late 1960s and brought up in north London. While studying computing at Southwark College, he was introduced to cutting and designing clothes by his girlfriend at the time. With the help of his mother, who was an excellent seamstress, he started selling his mother's designs to passers-by along Portobello Road. At twenty-three, disillusioned with a mundane job in IT, he had set himself up full-time in business. He began making bespoke suits in 1990, and is widely credited with introducing Savile Row tailoring to a new generation. The first tailor to stage a catwalk show in Paris, Boateng's many clients include Will Smith, Laurence Fishburne, Jamie Foxx, Samuel L. Jackson, Russell Crowe, Keanu Reeves, and Mick Jagger.
Ozwald Boateng
Born in Ghana, in the late 1960’s, Ozwald Boateng, the first tailor to stage a catwalk show in Paris[, is coined with revolutionizing the most famous street in the world for Men’s tailoring. Ozwald Boateng sees himself as both tailor and a designer and in being so, coined the term 'bespoke couturier. He has re-written established perceptions of the row by redefining the cut of the traditional suit and fused those expert cutting skills with colour to enhance the experience for the wearer. His distinctive approach to menswear design has helped to forge a new appreciation for Savile Row and draw in a younger demographic. Ozwald’s love of texture in the cloths he uses offers an understated form of uniqueness and elegance in an essentially classical tailoring scene.
A prominent figure on the international menswear scene, Ozwald began tailoring at the age of 16. His entirely self taught skills led him to set up a design studio on London’s famous Portobello Road, in his early twenties. It was from here that his reputation as a unique British tailor grew. Inspired and guided by the renowned tailor Tommy Nutter, Ozwald’s dream of being based on Savile Row flourished. In 1997 he realised that dream with the opening of his store on Vigo Street, at the end of Savile Row
Entering Savile Row
May 2002 saw the launch of Ozwald Boateng’s company headquarters in Savile Row. To celebrate this, along with the Queen’s Golden Jubilee, Ozwald Boateng closed down Savile Row for a breathtaking event. Over 100 metres of marquee erected down the middle of the street and 1500 stellar guests were treated to a spectacular fashion show. The ground breaking event was covered by the media around the globe and was feted as one of the most impressive of the year. Mayor Ken Livingstone credited Ozwald with making a vital contribution to the promotion of creative talents in the capital. This is the only time in history Savile Row has been has been shut down since the The Beatles performed their last public concert on the roof of their offices in the late 1960’s. As well as his much sought-after bespoke service, Ozwald also produces two ready-to-wear collections a year, which are sold internationally and through his flagship store on Savile Row. These collections are shown to critical acclaim each season during the Menswear Collections in Milan.
Through his attention to cut, detail, sharp tailoring and innovative use of colour, this last decade has seen Ozwald receive many awards and appointments
Ozwald Boateng and Givenchy
The President of LVMH Bernard Arnault handpicked Ozwald in 2003 and appointed him as Creative Director of Menswear at the celebrated French Fashion house Givenchy – one of the jewels in the LVMH crown, to bring his unique brand of Savile row tradition and contemporary design to this French menswear brand[7]. This prestigious appointment led Ozwald to take this brand, steeped in hundreds of years in heritage and tradition to further secure a more dominant position on the world Fashion stage. His first hugely successful collection for this historic Parisian house was shown in July 2004 in Paris, at Hotel de Ville[8]. This is the first time in history a fashion show has been held at this beautiful building, which was achieved through the courtesy of Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoe, as a direct result of the relationship he has with Ozwald.
V & A
In 2005 Ozwald celebrated 20 years at the forefront of British Tailoring and was honoured with a major retrospective event at the Victoria and Albert Museum. In 2006 Ozwald Boateng was awarded an OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire), by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II at BuckinghamPalace in 2006 for his contributions to the tailoring industry
In 2007 Ozwald was appointed to the Mayor of London Skills and Employment Board, which examines and promotes the kind of skills London, needs to remain competitive globally. The board who’s other member’s are drawn from business and other key sectors, set the strategy for skills learning in London and work closely with the London Learning and Skills Council.
In the same year he was also recognised by the world economic forum as a young global leader. The Forum of Young Global Leaders is a unique community of the world’s most extraordinary leaders below 40 who are ready to dedicate a part of their time and energy to jointly work towards a better future. This honour is bestowed by the World Economic Forum each year to recognize the most distinguished 250 exceptional individuals, drawn from every region in the world and from a myriad of disciplines and sectors. This honour sees him travelling around the world to meet with this powerful international community which can dramatically impact the global future and affect change by developing innovative global strategies that can be translated into decisions and actions necessary to be taken today.
Annual African Union Summit
Ozwald was also invited by His Excellency President of the Republic of Ghana, Mr. John Agyekum Kufuor On July 2nd 2007, to design and orchestrate a show in which some of the most prominent individuals of African decent presented what could be done if they stood together. The historic state banquet at the 9th Annual African Union Summit in 2007, held in Accra, Ghana, coincided with 200 years since the cessation of the transatlantic slave trade and 50 years of Independence for Ghana. The banquet was attended by the Presidents and representatives of the 53 African nations, plus dignitaries from across the globe representing and announcing union between those on the continent and the African Diaspora. Most recently he has also been appointed as an advisor to the Ashanti King to advise him on all matters concerning the African Diaspora.
REACH Panel
In 2008, as a leading black role Model, Ozwald Boateng has been appointed to the Prime Ministers REACH Committee as part of an independent panel to identify and recruit national role models who will work to help raise aspirations of Black boys The programme is one part of a package of measures aimed at countering a culture of low aspirations and low attainment amongst some Black boys and young Black men. The actions are in response to the independent REACH report that highlighted the barriers that are preventing some Black boys from fulfilling their full potential. The group said that if more black boys and men overcame these barriers, it could benefit the economy by a staggering £24billion over the next 50 years.
Virgin Atlantic
In 2004, Ozwald Boateng was called upon by close friend and client, Sir Richard Branson, to design new amenity kits for Virgin Atlantic Upper Class. They are lauded as the most stylish first class kits available to travellers on any airline. The design was so successful that it increased pick rate 5 fold.
Fragrance
Ozwald Boateng has also launched a unique, totally original concept in fragrance for women. Parfum Bespoke comprises two different vials of fragrance within an elongate, jewel-like bottle. Women have the option of wearing each of these fragrances separately, or of adopting a “bespoke” approach: layering and mixing the two synergistic fragrances together in differing proportions, to create an infinite variety of perfumes to suit their mood and personality this unique fragrance concept was developed with the whole essence of “bespoke” in mind
Short Films
Ozwald’s passion and appreciation for film has inspired him to write and direct short films, reflecting, periods of times in his life as well as the inspirations behind some of his collections and designs. To date Ozwald has written and directed over 10 short films He also presented his first collection for Givenchy at a spectacular show in Paris, which opened the show with his first animation – a Japanese, manga-style piece that he directed. The animation told the story of how he came to be appointed as Creative Director of Givenchy Menswear, and the journey he planned to take the brand on. Ozwald’s passion and skill for film making counts some of Hollywood’s top directors as fans, leading to many offer for Ozwald to direct feature films.
Flagship Store
His long-term dream of merging his head quarters and his flag ship store with a prominent Savile Row Store site, was finally realised this year, heralding the commencement of a period of major expansion for his eponymous brand. New stores, in London, Moscow and Dubai, the US and the Middle East are plannedOzwald is also keen to develop an Interiors line, encompassing his unique use of design and colour as witnessed in his head office and store. This ability to gentrify colour in his clothing has been the focus of numerous design-led features as demand for his unique style in interior design increases.
Season upon season, Ozwald Boateng has successfully captured the imagination of both the media and his ever expanding client base. By combining the highest standards of execution with a fresh, vibrant design philosophy, Ozwald Boateng has been largely responsible for the increased interest in men’s fashion and in keeping tailoring current through his design development
Many international business leaders, celebrities and former heads of state come to Ozwald Boateng for Bespoke tailoring of the highest quality. His creations have been embraced by city lawyers and bankers, politicians, sportsmen and Hollywood’s elite.
Awards
Year / Awarded as: / Awarded by:1996 / Best Male Designer / Trophees de la Mode, Paris
2000 / Top Menswear Designer / British Fashion Awards
2002 / Best Male Designer / Cologne Fashion Awards
2006 / OBE for services to the clothing industry / Order of the British Empire
2006 / 2nd Runner up in the short film category / Tremblant Film Festival, MontrealCanada
2008 / Fashion Personality of the year / Mayfair Times Award
Wardrobe Design for Film
Ozwald Boateng’s extensive work for film and television includes such titles as Hannibal, Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Tomorrow Never Dies, Sex and the City, Ugly Betty, Eastern Promises, Gangster Number One and Alfie, Assault on Precinct 13, Matrix, Miami Vice, Oceans 13 and most recently Rush Hour 3.