How a women led fashion brand is preserving heritage while reshaping profit and the planet in New York and Ghana

Studio 189: Family Album

Storytelling changes how we understand the world around us. When people in the United States think of fashion, often what comes to mind is the final product. The silhouette of a dress, the detailing on a bag, the designer label that adds cache. Rarely do people think about the process of how, by whom, or why something is made.

Over the years, we have documented the transatlantic operations of Studio 189; from runway shows and fashion shoots in New York to batik dye print studios and garment centers all over Ghana. Our team has stepped into the world of Studio 189 to witness how and why responsible women led fashion is making a change to people, to planet, and redefining profit.

Women Made. Women Led.

Studio 189 is fashion brand based out of the New York City and Accra Ghana. The brand fuses traditional Ghanaian fashion techniques and culture to the global fashion market. The design and mood of the brand was inspired by the a trip between Abrima Erwiah and Rosario Dawson to Eve Ensler’s City of Joy in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The two left the journey fueled with the charge to create a women’s lead and operated fashion brand. They have nurtured that vision into a reality over the past few years creating a supply chain of women owned and operated businesses and in turn a family of artisans, creators, models, singers, and feminists who push society towards a better place.