MEDI1TV Afrique : Grain de mode : L'incubateur qui façonne l'avenir de la mode africaine - 09/02/2025
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00:00Welcome to Mediantv, thank you for joining us.
00:17Today, we are highlighting a revolutionary initiative,
00:20a big trend, the incubator, which shapes the future of African fashion
00:25in a sector in full expansion.
00:27This incubator is distinguished by its commitment to train a new generation of creators
00:32and entrepreneurs ready to transform the fashion industry,
00:36with a particular emphasis on durability and innovation.
00:40It offers a unique platform to reveal African talents.
00:44To discuss this, we are pleased to welcome the Director of the International School
00:48of Professional Training, Michele Yakis,
00:51a partner institution of this dynamic,
00:54who will explain to us how this initiative contributes to shaping the future of African fashion.
01:00She is Mrs. Michele Okeyi, Director of the International School of Professional Training.
01:07Michele Yakis, welcome to our platform.
01:10So, can you explain to us in a few words the genesis of Grain de Mode and what is its mission?
01:18In fact, we started from the observation that after the training at the school,
01:24Michele Yakis, in the fashion, stylists and modelers,
01:28the students had the technical skills,
01:32that is, they knew how to sew, they knew how to cut,
01:35but they did not know how to run a business.
01:38And so we thought that we would put other types of unemployed people on the market,
01:43because, as far as we are concerned, after a year of existence on the ground,
01:49they quickly give up because they do not have the necessary tools to undertake.
01:55So it is true that we have the knowledge of the trade,
01:58but how do we look for a client, how do we plan, how do we organize our day?
02:02They do not have this training.
02:04So we said to ourselves, well, we have to create another form of business
02:08that will be a kind of noise to allow them to know how to run a business.
02:14Even if they have to work with stylists, they must also know how to run a business.
02:19So we were accompanied by Comwe Capital, which is an investment fund,
02:25to install the first equipment and to welcome the first cohort in 2020.
02:30Basically, it is historical.
02:32We started from an observation to create this incubator.
02:35And precisely, how do we integrate it?
02:38You must already have a knowledge of the trade.
02:41You must have already done a school background,
02:44regardless of the establishment, since I receive students from Cameroon, Benin, from all over.
02:49You must have a background in the trade, having been in fashion for two or three years.
02:54And you have to be in the phase of saying, well, I'm going to create a brand.
02:57But creating a brand does not necessarily mean having a store, a shop.
03:01You can create your brand and work from home.
03:04So having the desire to take another step, that is, to create a brand.
03:07And now we go into the incubator, passing a test to see if you actually master the patroning,
03:13you master the assembly, the gradation, the molding, etc.
03:17Before designing the incubator.
03:19Very good. And concretely, what kind of support is offered to these young creators?
03:25So they have the technical knowledge.
03:28We will come to refine this technical knowledge by going deeper.
03:33First of all, they already know.
03:35So we take up the basics of patronage, a little bit of stylism, a little bit of couture.
03:41But to that, we add the oratory, the speaking.
03:46It's not because we're stylists or designers that we don't have to present a project.
03:50We can pitch, so we have the oratory.
03:52We will also have management, entrepreneurship, so the basics of management.
03:58We will also have communication.
04:00How to use communication to sell your business, to sell your products.
04:06So we're going to call e-commerce, social networks.
04:09And we will also have the process of creating a brand.
04:14And above all, how to make a collection of clothes.
04:17So these are the aspects that are innovative, that are in addition to the initial training
04:23that they had previously in their establishment.
04:26Okay, so I want to point out that Grande Haute is part of the Michel Yakis establishments.
04:32So why did you choose the establishment as a base to host this incubator?
04:38For us, it makes sense.
04:40The Michel Yakis school was originally an agreed-upon establishment
04:43by the Ministry of Technical Education, Professional Training and Learning.
04:47So a self-employed establishment that forms in the stylists, modelers and other sectors.
04:53And we want to set up an incubator that will develop the entrepreneurial spirit among young people.
05:00So we said to ourselves, well, it makes sense to put it in the same space.
05:05We rent a place within the Michel Yakis IFP.
05:09And these young people who leave the training and enter the incubator,
05:13they learn how to make clothes, they call everyone.
05:16So for us, it makes sense, it's a logical continuation.
05:19So that's why we negotiated a space within the…
05:22between the establishment and the incubator.
05:27Well, we have our premises, we pay our bills.
05:30I think it's a very good collaboration.
05:32Since the students who are in training within the IFP,
05:35they see what the others are doing.
05:37That is, these are glass walls, so they see that the students are working,
05:40we have visits, we go out.
05:42They see that the entrepreneurs are making clothes, school uniforms.
05:46And they see that it's really small.
05:49We receive clients, we take measurements.
05:52So it's a mess.
05:54And so it arouses in them, I have to continue my training,
05:57because in the end I'm going to go into the incubator.
06:00Or I want to work for other stylists,
06:03but I want to go into the incubator to find out how to create a collection of clothes.
06:07Because in the school program, to finish, we don't have all these aspects.
06:11We only give the basics.
06:13But then on the ground, depending on the sensitivity,
06:16the intelligence of the children, everyone manages.
06:20But we wanted to perfect this course.
06:24Okay.
06:26Are the students of Michel Iaki sometimes invited to join the incubator,
06:32or is it just voluntary?
06:34In fact, it has to be voluntary.
06:36Because at the end of the training at the IFP, you have two choices.
06:41Either you have an entrepreneurial course that you want to do,
06:45so you join the incubator,
06:47or you say, no, I don't need this stress of being an entrepreneur,
06:51I just want to finish by presenting a collection.
06:54So there are courses that you will not follow,
06:56there are sessions that you will follow.
06:58So we share things, because not everyone can be an entrepreneur.
07:01It's not possible.
07:02Not everyone has the soul to undertake.
07:04And so we give them the opportunity to choose.
07:08And then you have to leave people at their own pace.
07:10If they think that this year they don't feel like doing it,
07:14we offer them the opportunity to choose.
07:16It's not mandatory.
07:17Okay.
07:18And within the Michel Iaki Establishment,
07:20what types of jobs, of fashion are taught?
07:25So the basic jobs,
07:26the stylism that attracted creativity,
07:31the drawing, the modeling,
07:33where it brings together all kinds of jobs.
07:36We have the patron, we have the cut, the mount, the graduate.
07:41So several jobs.
07:43These are two great jobs.
07:45So the stylist and the model.
07:47That's it.
07:48Very good.
07:49So to put images on what the director of the Michel Iakis Establishment says,
07:54we will see right away the release of the latest promotion of Crain de Maude
07:59with fashion shows.
08:01We watch this report by Belle Berchelle Coffey and we come back.
08:14Original creations.
08:16And above all, young talents in full effervescence.
08:26This fashion show marks the end of three years of intense training
08:30for the ten students of the Crain de Maude incubator,
08:33the Michel Iakis Establishment.
08:44With their project of brand,
08:46these young entrepreneurs of fashion have captivated the public and the jury.
09:13The moment has come.
09:32The proclamation of the results.
09:34Lucie Guamenet, with her audacious and innovative collection,
09:38called Claire Obscure,
09:41thus reducing the price of the first best entrepreneur of Crain de Maude 2024.
09:46I presented a collection of five clothes that are inspired by the contrast theme.
09:52In fact, I wanted to bring out the fact that we do not always need to be catalyzed
09:59in a kind of box, that despite the box we put ourselves in,
10:03we must always and imperatively bring out a part of ourselves.
10:07And that's what will make our particularity,
10:09that's what will distinguish us from all the others.
10:12We were ten of two different codes.
10:14So frankly, no one gave up.
10:16It was really a fashion show at the height of other fashion shows, I think.
10:21Launched four years ago,
10:23the Crain de Maude incubator is positioned as the first in West Africa.
10:27This innovative concept, real junior companies,
10:30form entrepreneurs capable of competing on local and international markets.
10:35A team that works every day to bring young people
10:38to understand that fashion is a business
10:41and that at the end of the day you have to make money.
10:43And so they did 12 months in the Crain de Maude incubator
10:46and today you have seen the result of their work.
10:48The goal is to develop in young people the love of entrepreneurship.
10:52It is to teach them a trade and above all,
10:54to make them understand that fashion is a business.
10:57We do not come to this sector because we have failed,
10:59we come to this sector because we want to change fashion.
11:03To date, we have about twenty trained young people on the market.
11:06We can say that the relief is assured.
11:08This Crain de Maude launch ceremony makes us understand
11:12the importance of training.
11:14You have seen young people who have gone to learn
11:17and some who were already in the field of culture
11:19but who are still going to train
11:21precisely to become better on the spot
11:23because we are all in competition with ourselves and with others.
11:26And what will make the difference is our professionalism.
11:30The profession of fashion is not just culture,
11:32it is not just creativity.
11:34There is the management of men, the management of a team,
11:36there is all the accounting,
11:38there is the management of these teams
11:40and there is a whole set of things that must be taken into account.
11:43And that's why I would like to congratulate
11:45the École Michel-Yacquist,
11:47which is working to train young people
11:49for a much brighter and more professional future
11:52of fashion in Côte d'Ivoire.
11:55By associating art, training and entrepreneurship,
11:58Crain de Maude illustrates the potential of Ivorian fashion
12:01as an engine of economic development.
12:03A promotional adventure for these young people
12:06ready to conquer the fashion industry.
12:08So, the latest promotion of Crain de Maude, Michel Okéyi,
12:27So, how long does the training last?
12:30In Crain de Maude, the training will last
12:33The training will last from 9 months to 12 months.
12:38It's really a single year.
12:41Very good. And what are the profiles of the trained students in the Michel Yakis establishment?
12:46Within the Michel Yakis establishment, the students are being technicians,
12:52stylists or modelers.
12:55It depends on what they will do as a choice after the internship.
12:59And how are all these young people sensitized about fashion and responsible courses?
13:06Well, in fact, it's on a daily basis in the training, how we use the fabric,
13:11how we recycle waste.
13:14We have young people who specialize in recycling through accessories.
13:19There are other accessories, like clothes.
13:21It's on a daily basis that we sensitize them.
13:23And even when we do the training, how do we reduce waste?
13:27The weighting of the fabric, the patterning.
13:30So I think it's on a daily basis.
13:32There is no magic recipe at the moment.
13:34It's on a daily basis, during the training, that we sensitize them to that.
13:37And we also ask them to think about how they will reuse the scraps of fabric in their future workshops.
13:44And there are some who already do it very well.
13:46And what role do African raw materials play in your programs?
13:54In fact, we are really a training program.
13:57We will highlight the quality of all these textile fibers.
14:01And we will sensitize young people to say,
14:04it's good to highlight African resources.
14:08But in the end, it's the learner who is free to do what he wants.
14:12So you have people who will only use plastic to work,
14:17others will say they will specialize in African materials.
14:21Our role is to show them all this panoply of textile fibers,
14:26and to sensitize them to say that the world of tomorrow will be Africa.
14:31So from now on, those who take possession,
14:33those who know how to manipulate African textiles,
14:37because they have to highlight their identity.
14:41It's useless to copy those who come from abroad.
14:43It doesn't identify them.
14:45So we have the role of coach, of trainer,
14:51to explain the benefits, to tell them,
14:53if you have tapas in your region,
14:56you as a creator, come and make clothes with tapas,
14:59but in a different way than we are used to wearing.
15:01If in your region we are more textile,
15:04or a young woman who comes from Cameroon,
15:06she will highlight the panoply of Cameroon.
15:09So that's what we arouse in them.
15:11But we can't impose it on them.
15:14Everyone is free to specialize in what they want.
15:17But we sensitize this role.
15:20And we stick to it.
15:22And we understood that it is an incubator,
15:25a school, Michel Yakis, that opens up to everyone,
15:28including people of foreign nationality.
15:31Yes, because at the beginning,
15:33I would have said, before 2020,
15:37before Covid, we received a lot of foreign students,
15:40from Cameroon, Central Africa, Chad, Benin.
15:44We are open.
15:46Because for a long time,
15:48when I say I speak of the past,
15:50people don't want to hear it,
15:52but for a long time we were the turning plate of fashion.
15:55We are being dethroned by Nigeria or South Africa,
15:59but we must say that we have good seeds,
16:03we have good seeds,
16:05and we receive everyone.
16:07It's open.
16:09It broke a little, it was slow,
16:11foreign students,
16:13but we still receive them,
16:15because, you know, Covid has changed a lot of things,
16:18and we receive less and less,
16:20because in other countries,
16:22people started to create establishments,
16:24but we are still a lot of foreign students.
16:28Very good.
16:29And what results have you observed
16:31since the creation of the incubator?
16:33Much more confidence, much more audacity.
16:36I am well placed to know,
16:38because I have been directing this school
16:41since about 2005,
16:43and I have seen several promotions
16:46in the EIFP school.
16:48I saw the difference when we created the incubator.
16:51Young people dare more,
16:53they are more confident,
16:56they are less afraid of starting a business,
16:59they go to people at the meeting,
17:02they know how to express themselves,
17:04because we have cataloged for a long time
17:06those who do training, fashion,
17:08in people who do not have a school level,
17:10I tell them all the time,
17:12if you do not take me seriously,
17:14no one will take you seriously.
17:16So know how to communicate, know how to speak,
17:18know how to express yourself.
17:20We did not say that if we go to school,
17:22we stay in what we are,
17:24we can evolve in the profession.
17:26So I feel more audacity, more confidence,
17:28and that's what I like.
17:30Very good.
17:31So what kind of promotions are offered
17:33to these young people after the passage?
17:35There are several openings.
17:37I can be a creator for a fashion house,
17:39a stylist for a fashion house,
17:41I can be an entrepreneur on my own,
17:44I can work for other brands.
17:47Really, there is a panoply.
17:49I can even teach.
17:51You just have to do a tour at ICNET,
17:53the institutes that train teachers,
17:55because I have the basis of the job,
17:57I may have the basis of the teaching.
17:59There is a panoply.
18:01I can even start
18:03in the production of costume clothes.
18:05There are many things.
18:07There are no limits.
18:09We can do everything.
18:11And from your position,
18:13what are the main challenges
18:15faced by young creators
18:17in the fashion industry?
18:19The main challenge is funding.
18:21It's the nose of the war.
18:23It comes back.
18:25Because I start a business,
18:27at all costs, I have no means.
18:29Now we tell them,
18:31you already have a sewing machine.
18:33So we tell them,
18:35during the incubator,
18:37during the training,
18:39start making clothes around you
18:41and take money.
18:43There is a panoply.
18:45It's true that the fashion industry
18:47ruminates the learners
18:49during the training,
18:51when they make school uniforms,
18:53because we make clothes for schools.
18:55But besides that, we tell them,
18:57but now you have to build
18:59an uncle, an uncle,
19:01there are no comrades,
19:03there is no pity in the business.
19:05The business starts while you are at school.
19:07If you know how to sew a skirt,
19:09you earn the skirt.
19:11If you know how to sew a dress,
19:13after three or four years of training,
19:15one year in the incubator,
19:17you must have a small box
19:19to at least buy supplies
19:21to start your loan.
19:23We train you on the tool,
19:25on everything that is communication network.
19:27If you have a sewing machine at home,
19:29if you have a little money in your pocket,
19:31you start buying the first fabric
19:33that will make the dress,
19:35your phone, you take the first picture,
19:37you start.
19:39We can no longer be blocked
19:41to say, I have nothing to start.
19:43Because it's a program we're going to do,
19:45it's a planning we're going to do with them.
19:47Since we receive young people individually
19:49who expose their problems,
19:51their living conditions,
19:53how sometimes they are a little confused,
19:55we are there to tell them
19:57it's true that the horizon
19:59can seem obscure,
20:01but in this horizon,
20:03we have to find a place of hope.
20:05If you yourself are discouraged,
20:07it's not good.
20:09In fact, if you want,
20:11on a daily basis too,
20:13we are parents, coaches,
20:15grandmothers, educators,
20:17because sometimes these young people
20:19are left to their own devices.
20:21If you noticed,
20:23at the ceremony,
20:25we had a lot of parents,
20:27of well-wishers,
20:29who sponsored young people
20:31who did not know.
20:33They saw young people with talents
20:35and they paid their tuition.
20:37I want to say that everything is possible.
20:39You really have to believe in your talent.
20:41Believe in your talent, be disciplined
20:43and then God does the rest too.
20:45What is the impact of fashion
20:47on the development of fashion
20:49in Côte d'Ivoire?
20:51Pay attention.
20:53I always say that when an investor
20:55comes to Côte d'Ivoire,
20:57he finds a very strong ecosystem.
20:59If we contribute to train
21:01young people, well-trained,
21:03qualified,
21:05when the investor comes
21:07and he looks for young people
21:09to work in a factory
21:11or in a big international brand,
21:13he has the necessary
21:15competence.
21:17That's why we are
21:19inviting young people
21:21for all kinds of training.
21:23Even those who are not at school,
21:25who have a job,
21:27who are in the state,
21:29we invite them to train.
21:31This is what will make
21:33us have quality creators.
21:35We will be a country
21:37known for the professionalism
21:39of its creators.
21:41We really want to train
21:43this new generation
21:45of young creators,
21:47so that these young people
21:49do not take the big head
21:51and continue to work
21:53on the ground.
21:55This is also the most important.
21:57Are they oriented towards
21:59a financing mechanism
22:01for their activities?
22:03Yes, we are on all platforms
22:05and we receive all
22:07financing platforms,
22:09whether with the Ministry of Culture
22:11or other organizations.
22:13We create WhatsApp groups
22:15and all the opportunities
22:17that are available to us.
22:19If the young person is interested,
22:21we accompany him,
22:23we tell him how he can
22:25upload his file.
22:27We must also encourage
22:29engagement among young people.
22:31We do not do everything,
22:33we give them the way
22:35and if they want to be accompanied,
22:37we can accompany them.
22:39What are the future projects
22:41to strengthen the impact
22:43on young people
22:45outside the borders?
22:47Outside the borders,
22:49maybe it is to go
22:51abroad,
22:53to do a campaign
22:55to mobilize
22:57young people to come and train.
22:59Internally, it is to improve
23:01the training system,
23:03to add other skills
23:05that do not exist,
23:07but always try to do better.
23:09To have other international consultants
23:11specializing in training.
23:13To go to everything
23:15designed by the computer.
23:17We think because we cannot
23:19stop.
23:21Do you envision partnerships
23:23with international brands?
23:25At the moment,
23:27I have not thought about it.
23:29It depends on the opportunities.
23:31What are the challenges
23:33for you today
23:35to position African fashion
23:37on a global level?
23:39So that African fashion
23:41is a bit like the leader
23:43in the field.
23:45At my level,
23:47first it is training.
23:49To go abroad,
23:51you have to be well-trained.
23:53It is the B.A.B.
23:55We are going to leave the
23:57tocklonism that I call
23:59and go into professionalism.
24:01It is the B.A.B.
24:03When we go abroad,
24:05we are faced with people
24:07who start with the B.A.B.
24:09First, train yourself.
24:11At our level,
24:13we want to train people first.
24:15What do you want to do?
24:17Do you want to work for yourself
24:19as a stylist?
24:21You have to do things step by step.
24:23We want to go international.
24:25We want to position ourselves
24:27on the market,
24:29but we cannot position ourselves
24:31as amateurs.
24:33It is not possible.
24:35On social media,
24:37everyone copies themselves.
24:39But in this wave of copying,
24:41we need a bit of creativity.
24:43It is true that fashion
24:45is being redone.
24:47It is a wave,
24:49a succession of things
24:51that we have already seen.
24:53But with a touch of personality.
24:55We wear the jackets,
24:57but we have creators
24:59who make the jackets differently.
25:01That is what we need.
25:03We are recreating
25:05to give a personal touch.
25:07When we see a person
25:09on a T-shirt,
25:11we say, wow!
25:13It is true that I see the jacket,
25:15but it was sewn differently.
25:17With a particular touch.
25:19We have to get to that.
25:21To go international,
25:23you have to train yourself first.
25:25For me, that is the basis.
25:27If we do not have the training,
25:29we do not have the B.A.B.
25:31which is already very,
25:33very competitive.
25:35For me, it is the training
25:37where we do our part.
25:39I think that
25:41if each entity does its part,
25:43then the country can be,
25:45we can have really
25:47strong creators.
25:49Very good.
25:51Michèle Okéi, thank you for answering
25:53our different questions.
25:55Thank you for inviting me.
25:57You understood it,
25:59thank you to those who followed us.
26:01Thank you to the team in charge,
26:03Fares, Jean-Marc, Dosso and Manuela.
26:05We will meet again
26:07next week for another issue.
26:09Until then, take care.