More than a decade ago, Mai Atafo was working in marketing with a job promotion to a senior role on the cards. However, his participation in a friend’s wedding would unleash his creativity and set forth his career in fashion. After helping with coordinating and designing suits for the groomsmen, one wedding favour turned into two turned into three and three years later, ATAFO the brand was born.
The label started with creating bridal wear and tailored suits before evolving to include Nigerian traditional wear, menswear for women and ready-to-wear lines.
To celebrate twelve years of the brand and the release of his first collection since 2019, Bubblegum Club sits down with Atafo to talk about the fashion label and its evolution.
Photograph by Kola Oshalusi for Insigna Media
Photograph by Kola Oshalusi for Insigna Media
What’s the earliest memory you have of your love of fashion?
Mai Atafo: I guess the earliest memory [I have] is looking forward to Christmas because we got to wear new garments on Christmas day and it was something special for me. That’s when I started having a love for fashion. I used to love taking out the clothes from the box.
Your friend’s wedding triggered your venture into fashion. At what point then do you develop the brand’s personal identity?
Mai Atafo: I never intended to be a fashion designer. I used to love dressing up and looking good and I never thought that there would be anything beyond that. I started making things for different people randomly and did whatever they wanted – shirts, shorts, trousers. I just made anything anybody wanted.
There was organic growth to the point where I quit my job and I gave myself a year and initially, the product was not defined. Not everything was thought through, I wouldn’t sit here and lie, but menswear became a focus because it had a high margin and we made a lot of money so I started making suits. Then from making suits, I moved into bridal wear and that went on for a bit [as well].
At the end of 2010, the financial analysis revealed that 80% of the revenue came from wedding orders. So we officially made it a wedding brand and at the time, I was the only one making garments for the bride and groom.
That defined the brand at first. As time moved on, we added evening dresses we started making traditional outfits for men and that also grew organically. We then made menswear for women and created an aesthetic based on [our strengths].
Photograph by Ebuka Mordi for ATAFO
Nigerian traditional attire is very unique. The garments have an air of royalty and elegance to them. How do you go about transforming those silhouettes when they are already elevated?
Mai Atafo: I think that’s the beauty of me being able to do different things. I look at design from other areas, and I try to incorporate that into Nigerian traditional wear and taking risks gives another twist and edge to things.
For example, with typical agbada (flowing wide-sleeved garment worn by Nigerian men), most people make it with the embroidery at the front but because I do beadwork on bridal, I can convert embroidery into beadwork. Obviously, beadwork is more 3-dimensional and it adds more texture so the garment is elevated and brings a little more grandeur. It’s little things like that. I mean, because I use velvet when making tuxedos, I introduced velvet as a third piece in my three-piece caftan.
I’m aware that you had your showcase with your first collection since 2019, to celebrate 12 years. What are you most proud of in terms of what you’ve accomplished with the brand?
Mai Atafo: It may sound very cliché when I say that I don’t think that the thing I would be most proud of has come to fruition yet. Everything that I have achieved makes me believe I can do more. I can’t put my figure on one thing and say this is the biggest thing I’ve done – I don’t feel that way about my achievements.
Photograph by Ebuka Mordi for ATAFO
Photograph by Ebuka Mordi for ATAFO
Photograph by Ebuka Mordi for ATAFO
Photograph by Ebuka Mordi for ATAFO
