ABOUT US
Makula is a Black-Owned ready to wear African print clothing line offering quality, trendy African inspired fashion. With her love for fashion and hunger for a Ugandan online fashion store that sold “Kikoyi” inspired garments, Alfeah Namakula decided to launch the Makula brand in the fall of 2019. Kikoyi is a traditional cloth worn by Baganda women in Uganda.
Makula is an explosion of cultures between East and West Africa, blending prints that don’t usually mix, aiming to show unity through our clothing. All garments are professionally made with great attention to detail.
Meaning behind the brand name “MAKULA”, the name stems from our founder’s middle name Namakula. In Uganda among the Baganda tribe, A’makula ga Kabaka means royal gifts for the King, or someone of high prestige, therefore this is our founder’s gift to you. Each piece is thoughtfully curated, channeling a bold, powerful, and provocative attitude from its wearer. Truly made for the culturally confident person who wants to remain stylish, while embracing their African heritage.
Karibu = Welcome
When an African meets someone, they introduce themselves first not just by their last name, but also that of their father and mother, this collection is the first introduction of ourselves to you, we hope you like it as much as we do.
Welcome to Makula
Meet Our Founders
Alfeah Namakula
Founder & Creative Director
Is a US Navy veteran that had an early upbringing in Uganda where she lived for over 18 years of her life.
Moving to America and seeing the vast amount of opportunities, she decided that she would try and do something for her community that did not only benefit her but also the people at home.
Growing up, she always read articles about how big companies exploited or underpaid their employees, mostly because these people lacked an education and did not have many job opportunities available to them. It is upon this realization that she chose to start a company based on equity and transparency. Being a Logistics Specialist in the U.S Navy introduced her to a different view in terms of order and level of operations. Living in America introduced her to a world of possibilities and expansion of her creative freedom. Therefore, with both her personal and professional experience, She is able to apply some of those similar concepts to the growth and development of her company.
Josephine Kisaka
Designer & COO
Josephine Kisaka is a Ugandan fashion designer, mentor, entrepreneur, wife, and mother of three. For over 15years, she has worked with youth and women in the fashion industry. She started her fashion education journey at Lisa Institute of Fashion in New Delhi, India where she earned a diploma in fashion. She then returned to Uganda where she earned her Bachelor’s in Industrial Fine Art from Makerere University, at the Margaret Trowel School of Fine art where she majored in fashion design. She finally got her Masters in Textiles from Kyambogo University.
What is her fashion inspiration? “Fashion has always been a love of mine since I was a young girl, I always wanted to create something with my hands, everything about fabric and dressmaking fascinated me, hence the journey into the fashion world”.
Josephine has always wanted to expand her work on an international level. She believes that there’s a lot of talent among East African designers that often goes unnoticed and believes that partnering with the Makula brand is the start of breaking those barriers.
Karibu the Collection
Our Goal is to not only sell ethically sourced African garments but also get the masses familiar with African culture, which is why every piece in this collection is named after a city, tribe, currency, or native linguistic term. We are dedicated to cultivating a positive mindset about Africa to the rest of the world. We hope that with every piece you can feel at home.
All African print garments are handstitched by us in Ghana and Uganda, under the supervision of Josephine Kisaka who has over 15 years of experience in the fashion industry. Our mission is to ethically source African fabrics, and artwork from local artisans at competitive prices. We pride ourselves in transparency, providing employment to the African community with fair wages, a safe working environment, and room for career advancement. You can be guaranteed that your clothing is authentically hand-stitched in Africa. Upgrade your wardrobe with one of our African prints or woven Kikoyi garments.