Boyedoe – Spring summer 2025

When it comes to fashion in Africa, most people often visualise its details as something vague and vintage. However, African fashion has emerged as one of the fastest growing business enterprises with classical value over the years.

Fashion in Africa has grown to become modernised, sleek and catchy, embracing the sight of people from beyond its continent. This is what Boyedoe represents in all its elegance.

Boyedoe converts this idea into contemporary clothing by taking compositions of the African heritage and reinterpreting them through modern and classic styles.

One of the things that binds the brand’s collections is the creative details that are embodied in the construction of the outfits to tell the story of Afro luxurious heritage, thereby taking the cultural heritage of Africa and presenting it in traditional craftsmanship, textiles, symbols, techniques, history, and aesthetics while presenting them in a luxurious, contemporary style.

The brand’s collection distinctly represents the results of everything they have learned and developed over the culmination of their five years of existence. The brand sits on elegance in its designs while trying to pay attention to how they are produced and the long lasting nature of what is being made.

I see that the Boyedoe’s SS25 collection was showcased at the 2025 Lagos Fashion Week, where it caught the attention of people; the brand is known for creating denim and patchwork silhouettes in it’s collection.

Basically, the choice of colours that were used were special, as they were not shouty. The collections itself contain subdued shades of terracotta colours like baked earth and clay that speak a ton about the designer’s love for earthly treasures.

This is where the collection deserves closer examination of whether the brand has actually achieved what they set out to do:

This first outfit in the brand’s collection is built around an oversized black tailored summer jacket with a deep V-neckline and an overly extra shoulder wrist outfit sleeve with a sharp silhouette.

The front is double breasted and is punctuated by three silver buttons placed in a gapped seven shaped style.

Beside the buttons are two large flap pockets that give volume to the silhouette of the outfit.

There is an extensive use of fringe that runs across the shoulder of the garment to below the knee.

I like that the designer uses rough edges and fringe across the shoulders, sleeves, front and edge of the jacket.

Basically, the dress is beautiful, but it could have been better worn with a stiletto type shoe, not just strapped heels.

By the way, if the jacket were a little longer, maybe just below the knee, it would look even better and give more options for different shoes.

Then there is the second look that includes a double breasted cropped top that is like a jacket.

The jacket has edges that are intentionally not neat but has mini fringes on its shoulder parts. It is clear that the model styled the jacket by wearing a miniskirt of the same colour.

Since the brand speaks of having an afro luxurious culture, this particular outfit shows Africa without having to scream it.

I would have loved this more if the blouse looked longer than where it stopped. It would have looked classic if the skirt stopped at the model’s knee and would have looked perfect on the strapped heels worn by the model.

The third look is a soft denim two coloured skirt and blouse.

The dark brown colour of the outfit blends perfectly with the model’s physical brown complexion.

I like the fact that the colour of the outfit blends with the model’s natural appearance, with no heavy make up to turn viewers off from the outfit.

I can see that the blouse has a minimal long sleeve fit from the hand, and its body is folded and stops at the belly of the model.

Then it has flap pockets on both sides of the blouse that are not so visible because the blouse is neatly folded.

The skirt stops at ankle length with normal frayed edges running through a long slit from the thigh of the model to the bottom of the skirt.

However, I think the metal necklace with a bold pendant does not seem to sit well on the shirt and is somehow off.

This would have looked much more beautiful and smarter for a smart casual outfit, and also quite corporate if the skirt were a sleeveless straight gown with minimal short fringes as a round flare on the dress’ hem.

I also think the blouse would be better as a short, long-sleeved jacket with tiny fringes on its lower part if longer than it is on the model’s body.

I see this fourth look as the boss of all other outfits. It mirrors class and simplicity in one piece. This features a bluish-denim shirt that is worn under a long jacket that stops under the model’s knee. The model really modelled it well.

Even though the model does not wear the jacket like one would normally do; instead, he puts it over his shoulders, it still looks good. The way it is on his shoulders makes one see the denim shirt worn underneath.

I particularly love that the jacket has straps around the wrists, which makes it look like the soil we plant in. The denim shirt has what I will refer to as patches on it that look like the wet soil too. It is what makes it visible that the brand draws ideas from the environment they are a part of.

The collection’s use of terracotta colours in the denim is what makes this look so special; the terracotta colours are really what make this outfit stand out.

Then there is something that seems not clear in any way.

A slipper is worn over the outfit; like, who does that?

The outfit would have looked nicer looking if it were worn with a shoe made from fabric for men or a sneaker made from a lighter shade of denim.

I also see that the denim jacket would have been more than it is now if the sleeves were made from a suede material with three stylish dark buttons placed on both elbow areas.

I so much love this fifth look in the collection!

It is a dark denim jacket with buttons. It is somehow oversized and has two pockets on the chest.

I love that the sleeves are a bit loose and baggy, but get slimmer when it gets to the wrists.

The model has the jacket buttoned up so it fits closer to the body, but it still gives the oversized, pretty look in a way.

The jacket goes well with the fitted trousers. The trousers are minimal, which is interesting because the jacket is kind of loose. I see that there is like extra denim on the side of the pants, which makes it add more volume.

What I like about this look is that the designer makes denim look beyond the regular ones we do see and adds volume to the denim so it becomes part of the shape of the clothes.

I still think it could have been better because somehow, the neckline looks too close to the neck. Perhaps it would have been stunning enough if it were not so close to the neck as it is. A lower neckline would have given room for neck jewellery, like a white pearl necklace, which would add to what we now have.

Boyedoe’s disciplined use of dark, warm tones gives its collections a visual consistency comparable to the controlled elegance associated with Vodi Tailors, while its ambition to translate distinctive design into broadly wearable clothing reflects some of Zara’s commercial accessibility. Unlike Zara’s trend-led model, however, Boyedoe anchors its work in African cultural narratives and reconstructive craftsmanship.

Although the restrained palette may appeal less to consumers drawn to brighter colours, it gives the brand a recognisable visual identity within the contemporary African fashion landscape.

I like that the designer draws inspiration from African vintage looks; the materials give Africa a good class up there. Meaning that African stories are worth recreating even in clothing.

Taking a look at Boyedoe, I see the brand like Maxhosa Africa, which spread its wings through vintage African narratives through quality dresses.

This collection confirms that Boyedoe possesses the cultural clarity and creative ambition required to secure a stronger position within contemporary African fashion. With greater attention to styling, garment combinations and the continued refinement of its design language, the brand could move beyond comparison with established peers and develop an identity that is unmistakably its own. More importantly, the collection demonstrates that BOYEDOE’s future lies not merely in participating in Africa’s fashion landscape, but in helping to shape its direction.

By Seun Emmanuel