Designers Ozwald Boateng & Nana Boateng: Coincidence, not Cousins

Inset; established menswear designer, Ozwald Boateng.
Above; upcoming menswear designer, Nana Boateng.

I just got word from Tim Quale, the PR representative for Savile Row, London-based menswear designer Ozwald Boateng and his company, Bespoke Couture, Ltd., that contrary to popular belief there is no familial connection between Mr. Boateng and upcoming Ghanian designer Nana Boateng.

Mr. Quale has stated in an email to Au Courant that, "The two designers are not related and have never actually met each other. I am not sure how the information originated, but I can confirm there is no relation between the two designers."

If you recall, I posted a feature on both designers sometime ago, including the info that the two were cousins; I corroborated that tidbit with various reputable online/personal sources before publishing. Just do a random search on the web for 'Ozwald & Nana Boateng' and you'll get numerous sites - some dodgy, others more professional - that list the two menswear designers as 'first-cousins.' A tad strange, no?

So I felt duly compelled to give an update on this.

Furthermore, the question of the origin of the 'relation tale' popped into mind. Maybe some folks just assumed the two designers were related because of their common surnames. Maybe it was just a long-standing PR snafu that was never straightened out until now; you know what they say about untruths. After sometime, it becomes more and more believable.

Or maybe, one designer played up the common surname or went along with the misinformation, in order to benefit from a career boost through association with the other designer. Maybe. Maybe not. In any regard, it's nice to have that matter cleared up. So there you go!

PS. Many thanks to Tim Quale on behalf of Ozwald Boateng/Bespoke Couture Ltd. for contacting me and straightening this out!

LMN Harris


NB Images courtesy The Satorialist and Bond Mag

I Heart The Boateng Boys

Nana Boateng; Inset: Ozwald Boateng;

It's not often that I talk about men's fashion on Au Courant, but when I do, it's for good reason. Like most women, my heart stops and I all but salivate at the sight of a manly-man who's not afraid of cutting a natty figure; one who knows what he likes and what looks good on him.

To me, nothing gets better than that. That was, up until I discovered the personal and professional style of bespoke men's designers Ozwald Boateng, and (most recently) his cousin Nana Boateng. Talk about seeing two damn fine black men who can dress themselves as dapper as they outfit their clients. And I'm talking 'bout clients like Russel Crowe, Will Smith, Daniel Day-Lewis, James Franco, Djimon Hounsou and the like. Damn!

The former Boateng designer is quite a menswear force to be reckoned with; with more than 25 years under his measuring tape, he's been honoured by the Queen of England, has had his work showcased in retrospectives at the V&A Museum, did a stint as the Creative Director of menswear for Givenchy, and is generally credited as THE man who revamped the image and reach of London's Savile Row.

And the latter Boateng is not too shabby himself! He recently staged a collection at Caribbean Fashion Week (CFW) 2009, introducing a bold colour palette to the regional menswear scene with his set. Ironic actually, because although we tend to equate the Caribbean with bright, bold colours, most island designers try to appear 'international' with their colour palettes, drowning us in a deluge of autumnal tones and blacks.

But it took a Ghanian Dandy to bring us back to basics with pink cummerbunds, pastel striped shirts, and full-on teal suits for the guys. Love it!

L.M.N. Harris

EDIT: Nov. 30th 2000 - Au Courant has just received word that Ozwald & Nana Boateng are not related: click here for the update.

NB Images courtesy BondMag and The Satorialist