Makeba Designs Shows Kids Power of Representation!
How one mom created a way for black kids to express themselves at school! By: Toya Ross
How many times have you gone shopping and seen images of yourself represented in items sold there? No, not talking about in the hair care section either. What about on their apparel? What about on their accessories like handbags or book bags for children? Probably not that often. One mother was quite tired of the absence of our culture and decided to do something about it.
While taking her daughter's school shopping, Makeba Griffin found herself searching for anything that represented young, black women and came up empty-handed. From there she took it upon herself to create Makeba Design & Prints, LLC placing images of young black girls on tangible goods such as backpacks, travels bags, lunch bags and more!
Initially founded in 2014 as “Kinky Display Designs” and rebranded in 2017, Makeba Design & Prints seeks to encourage, enlighten and inform the world that our black is beautiful. For her it’s about “motivation and inspiration” and providing images children can relate to and take pride in.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BgxQgCbnMxq/?taken-by=makebadesigns
What Makeba is doing is important and helping to shape a new narrative for how black children express themselves. In a market geared towards shaming the characteristics of our natural beauty, it is extremely empowering for her brand to challenge the status quo. This can be especially hard for a new brand. However, she is motivated to keep going
“I’ve learned that the road could be challenging.I’m a small business so I have to work extra hard – like 1000%.”
And it looks like that hard work is paying off. Makeba Designs hopes to one day make a debut in major stores, but until then you can place orders and stay updated using the links below!
