News / National
Zimbabwean designer to open boutique in Liverpool
02 Feb 2022 at 05:23hrs | Views
Liverpool-based Zimbabwean designer, Petronella Tayamika Mahachi Hughes, is not looking back in her chosen trade.
If anything, she is just stepping up and ready to cause ripples at the top.
Taya, as she prefers to be called, will open her Seven Streets boutique in Merseyside, Liverpool, on Friday.
The niche boutique stocks a range of fashion materials, including occasional wear, hats, fascinators, jewellery, swimwear and athleisure among others created by local designers in addition to a celebrity exclusive collection.
"We currently have an exclusive Kylie and Kendall collection and we have others in the pipeline," said Taya in a recent interview. "We stock gift sets including fragrances, candles and diffusers. We also stock a limited edition of menswear by local designers.
"This year I'm ready to put in all the work to make Seven Streets a household name synonymous with elegance and style. l am hoping to create new collections for my four fashion brands including the Seven Streets brand all available to purchase in my boutique.
"l am still very much passionate about fashion designing."
Her other brands are Tayamika (fascinators and African print couture), Tayameaca (recycled wedding dresses) and the combination of BASAL T4B (African prints) and BASK (athleisure).
While in the past, her designs have been accessible to a privileged few across the globe, Taya said she was working on creating a visible online presence "and very soon more clients from across the globe will be able to have a made in UK design or product delivered straight to their doorstep".
"Who knows, maybe one day soon we may open a Seven Streets boutique in Africa," she said. "Seven Streets is about supporting the work of indie brands and our hope and dream is to be able to take this model to Africa and support the local designers by giving them the opportunity to be stocked in an exclusive designer boutique.
"We want to help designers to become the best version of themselves. There are so many amazing designers and not many have the opportunity to have their designs stocked in an exclusive boutique. The overheads attached to owning your own boutique makes it an unviable option for most indie brands. We have so many big plans for Seven Streets, this is just the beginning."
Taya is also in the running for a prestigious mentorship programme with Mielle Cosmetics CEO, Monique Rodriguez, if she makes it to the top 10 of a global entrepreneurship programme that she is involved in.
She is one of 60 black women from across the globe selected by the United States-based Mielle Organics, for a global entrepreneurship scholarship with Rutgers University and Newark Business Hub.
The final 10 women will be selected and flown to South Africa for mentorship with Monique Rodriguez the CEO of Mielle Cosmetics.
The 10 also get to present their business plan to a top-notch global investment bank, Goldmans Sachs, which will invest in their businesses through the scholarship.
Besides the scholarship, Taya spent some time last year on artwork for Statues Redressed: The Documentary.
If anything, she is just stepping up and ready to cause ripples at the top.
Taya, as she prefers to be called, will open her Seven Streets boutique in Merseyside, Liverpool, on Friday.
The niche boutique stocks a range of fashion materials, including occasional wear, hats, fascinators, jewellery, swimwear and athleisure among others created by local designers in addition to a celebrity exclusive collection.
"We currently have an exclusive Kylie and Kendall collection and we have others in the pipeline," said Taya in a recent interview. "We stock gift sets including fragrances, candles and diffusers. We also stock a limited edition of menswear by local designers.
"This year I'm ready to put in all the work to make Seven Streets a household name synonymous with elegance and style. l am hoping to create new collections for my four fashion brands including the Seven Streets brand all available to purchase in my boutique.
"l am still very much passionate about fashion designing."
Her other brands are Tayamika (fascinators and African print couture), Tayameaca (recycled wedding dresses) and the combination of BASAL T4B (African prints) and BASK (athleisure).
While in the past, her designs have been accessible to a privileged few across the globe, Taya said she was working on creating a visible online presence "and very soon more clients from across the globe will be able to have a made in UK design or product delivered straight to their doorstep".
"Who knows, maybe one day soon we may open a Seven Streets boutique in Africa," she said. "Seven Streets is about supporting the work of indie brands and our hope and dream is to be able to take this model to Africa and support the local designers by giving them the opportunity to be stocked in an exclusive designer boutique.
"We want to help designers to become the best version of themselves. There are so many amazing designers and not many have the opportunity to have their designs stocked in an exclusive boutique. The overheads attached to owning your own boutique makes it an unviable option for most indie brands. We have so many big plans for Seven Streets, this is just the beginning."
Taya is also in the running for a prestigious mentorship programme with Mielle Cosmetics CEO, Monique Rodriguez, if she makes it to the top 10 of a global entrepreneurship programme that she is involved in.
She is one of 60 black women from across the globe selected by the United States-based Mielle Organics, for a global entrepreneurship scholarship with Rutgers University and Newark Business Hub.
The final 10 women will be selected and flown to South Africa for mentorship with Monique Rodriguez the CEO of Mielle Cosmetics.
The 10 also get to present their business plan to a top-notch global investment bank, Goldmans Sachs, which will invest in their businesses through the scholarship.
Besides the scholarship, Taya spent some time last year on artwork for Statues Redressed: The Documentary.
Source - The Herald
