Mounir Moda, Senegalese stylist, creator of the eponymous brand, is also the promoter of the 2MDesign show fashion festival in Dakar and the International Fashion Fair, SIM. Mounir Moda is keen to use woven loincloth in its men’s clothing collections to highlight the know-how of its country and Made in Senegal. He makes his textile heritage and present times co-exist.
A way to show sustainable and responsible fashion. Mounir Moda has made fabric and its creativity a signature. Its event which takes place from May 4 to 12 in Dakar is there to highlight the creative and economic potential of Senegalese, African, but also international fashion. We met him during another Fashion Week, that of Lomé, where his show was very noticed.
Before, I watched the shows of great designers like Jean-Paul Gaultier. There was Adama Paris in Senegal, Collé Sow Ardo, I said to myself “Why shouldn’t I do like them?”. This is what pushed me to love fashion and to promote Made in Senegal.
Mounir Moda, stylist and promoter of the 2M Design fashion festival in Dakar and the International Fashion Show: “ Mounir is light, in Arabic we say Mounir is brilliant light. Moda means fashion in Italian. »
Mounir Moda knew very early on what he loved: fashion. Without wasting time, he left school in second grade to focus on his passion, training with a tailor to become a stylist. Anchored in its time, Mounir Moda becomes known thanks to social networks and he launched his eponymous brand in 2015 well before opening a boutique or workshop in Dakar.
“ We are in the digital world, especially in Senegal. We are on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, on social media all the time. There are stylists who have talent, but their problem is that they don’t get advice. Before opening a store, I had a Facebook page. Before Instagram, I had a Facebook page. I only made the shirt mixed with woven loincloths. I started getting a lot of clients. My mother advised me to open a store. It was in 2018, but the store is not big enough. I opened a second store, in 2020. In 2021, I opened a large showroom of 250 m2, there is an apartment where there are more than fifteen tailors and two assistants at the same time. »
Mounir Moda works the loincloth woven in an easily recognizable way both ready-to-wear and made-to-measure for men. “ I draw. I do the design. The woven loincloth is my identity. I take the loincloth with all textile materials, sometimes linen, sometimes super 100 (fine wool). For example, if I’m doing a collection, first, I start by making three pieces, if I make all three pieces, I’ll call a model to do the fitting. Is this okay ? If it goes well, I’ll make a lot more pieces. For the shoot, the woven loincloth is a fabric that has a lot of value, so you shouldn’t be too busy. It must only be handled with discretion. »
This Senegalese stylist is also the promoter of 2MDesign Show, the next edition of which takes place from May 4 to 12 in Dakar. He is also the promoter of SIM, the International Fashion Show, a concept launched around the 2MDesign show in 2019 and has now become an event in its own right. “ During this fourth edition, we selected 35 designers. A selection with two different parades. I can’t say that there aren’t any young creators. There are old creators and new creators and this gives them the opportunity to have optimal visibility. We also select for the big parade. But the big parade is the cream of the crop. »
“ At our event, the 2MDesign show, the first edition, there was no exhibition, during the second edition, there was an exhibition, but only for the stylists who participated in the event. During the third edition, as we had a lot of requests, the exhibition became the fashion fair in order to promote talents. The international fashion show, we can do it in Dakar or in France, why not in Togo, everywhere. Because the international fashion fair now is independent of the event. It’s not the same thing, it’s not the same concept. »
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