Imane Ayissi.

Born in Cameroon, Imane Ayissi danced with the Ballet National du Cameroun and, after moving to Paris in the early 1990s, modelled for luxury houses before devoting himself to couture. His Paris house builds its pieces from African textiles and techniques, including Cameroonian obom and raffia, Ghanaian kente and organic Faso Dan Fani, sourced directly from artisans. In 2020 he became the first designer from sub-Saharan Africa to show on the official Paris haute couture calendar, as an invited member of the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode.