Modern-day menswear brand LABRUM along with the National Sports Authority Sierra Leone, (NSASL) launch the new uniform designs for both National Sports and the official Olympics 2020 kit.
If you haven’t yet heard of LABRUM, then sit up and take note. The London based brand, who founded in 2015, have released probably one of ‘the’ stunning kits of the year.
The studio prides themselves on telling the untold stories of West Africa to help bridge the gap between western and West African culture. Their collections, (which are beautiful by the way) focus on the finer details, as well as reflecting their founders interests in travel, exploration and a desire to make honest and practical clothing.
You could honestly spend hours on the LABRUM website, allowing desire to consume you. Only to find yourself adding multiple items to your shopping cart. Every item seems to represent a deeper consideration and their NSASL collection is no different.
The new national uniform from LABRUM, designed for more than 16 disciplines, makes of two powerful prints presented in a vivid colour palette of green and blue, inspired by the Sierra Leonean national flag.
Created by LABRUM’s founder, Foday Dumbuya, alongside another London based agency Rosie Lee creative, the the first of these graphic prints interlocks L (LABRUM) with S (Sierra Leone) to form a bold repeating pattern. While the second print, paying homage to all ethnic groups of Sierra Leone, features sixteen zigzags, created in the silhouette of the iconic LABRUM triangle.
Building on their long term relationship and recent London Fashion Week partnership, Converse continues to support LABRUM’s mission to progress West Africa’s narrative by providing creative funding for the trip to Sierra Leone where Dumbuya journeyed back to his birthplace Freetown for the accompanying campaign with the local tribes that inspired his kit design, alongside co-creative director and poet Julianknxx.
Styled by i-D’s senior fashion editor-at-large, Ib Kamara, the campaign features a striking photo series by Rafael Pavarotti, and a stunning short film from director Harry Deadman featuring beautiful stills photography by Ash Narod, all honing in on the power of sport to pay tribute to the city of Freetown. While embracing the bright future of the country and celebrating its wealth of raw talent, the models and actors were scouted from St Edward’s and St Joseph’s Secondary Schools.
Activism through sport is not a new thing for LABRUM, with Dumbuya establishing the Freetown sporting charity, ‘KING NAIMBANA II FOUNDATION’ in 2016, while in the capital competing in the Street Child Marathon. The charity takes its name from Dumbuya’s father’s given chief title and is powered by the designer’s own love of sport. In addition to funding education for underprivileged kids, it provides children with running shoes, apparel and a training coach to help them realise their dreams of becoming athletes.
“The concept behind the print was born from a desire to depict the power that sport has in uniting people together. Hence why it was imperative for me to ensure the kit represents all 16 tribes of Sierra Leone. I believe tribes build a nation and a nation builds its people.” – Foday Dumbuya.
Commissioned to design the kits for the Olympic Games in 2021, LABRUM concurrently created a range of sportswear to be sold to the general public, while also making the national football kits available, too.
Labrum’s unisex collection comprises of replica athletics vests for training, the national home and away football kits, sports socks and a tracksuit, with all proceeds going towards youth and sports development in Sierra Leone.
The collection launches on 25th June 2020 at labrumlondon.com
Don’t hang about on this one, folks. It's going to be selling out fast and rightly so.