00:01Gold rush in the slums? How is a bright future being made here of all places?
00:06Well, this jewelry brand is turning hardship into heritage.
00:12Here in Kibera our super talented artisans are hand crafting jewelry pieces that are aesthetic 100%
00:19but beyond that there's so much culture, intention and creativity that goes into each and every piece that's handmade with
00:26love.
00:27In the heart of Nairobi's Kibera, a quiet shift is underway.
00:32Meet Umutoni. At 29, she's using jewelry as more than an adornment. It's a way in.
00:40Through craft, she's creating opportunity, challenging assumptions about value and reshaping what's possible.
00:48Her work shows that luxury can hold meaning and that purpose can be won.
00:53Our founder story can be summarized by three main points.
00:57The first one being I am from Kenya and Rwanda.
01:00I've always had a very close affinity to my East African roots, born and raised in the UK.
01:05And I'd spend a lot of my summer holidays coming to Kenya and would typically get gifts for friends and
01:10family in the form of jewelry.
01:12So this was like going to the Maasai market. And as the years went on, I would be asked for
01:17more and more jewelry.
01:18For the second part, after graduating from university, so I studied economics, I wanted to support a young girl that
01:25looked like me but was born into different circumstances.
01:27Now, what this meant was there was a lot of scandals with some of the charities at the time.
01:32So I didn't want to go down the charity route.
01:34But what that meant was that I got in touch with my social, my grandma, and I told her I
01:38really want to support a young girl.
01:40She connected me with a young girl at the time who was 13 years old.
01:44Her name was Kui and her parents were not in her life.
01:47So there was substance abuse and drug abuse.
01:49Within a few months, her academic performance increased, like she jumped up in class and it was just so rewarding
01:55to see.
01:56So it showed that a little went a long way.
01:58And so I knew that whenever I started my own thing, whatever that would be, that I just wanted it
02:03to be a sustainable way of supporting and more empowering than anything.
02:08Now, the final element was watching Black Panther.
02:11So whenever I watched the first film, Black Panther, I was so inspired by the costume design.
02:16You could see a lot of the African influence, so throughout the continent.
02:21But as an East African, I could see like the Masai influence and things like that, which was super powerful.
02:26The Brit, who has Kenyan and Rwandese roots, noticed a growing global appreciation for African inspired arts.
02:34For her ethically sourced jewelry, she works with local artisans drawing on heritage techniques while building a future facing brand.
02:43Her long term hope is to eventually source all her materials, especially gold plating products from within Kenya and across
02:52Africa.
02:55When it comes to our materials, our brass is upcycled and it's purchased right here in Nairobi.
03:02And then when it comes to the gold plating, the gold that we use that is imported from Italy.
03:07Now, I am all about making sure that we add the value on the continent as much as possible, which
03:12is why it was important for us to purchase the machinery, import it into the country, have the knowledge within
03:18our own team.
03:19Our mission is to empower disenfranchise, to create a spirit of reciprocity and to cultivate a culture of equitable exchange.
03:27From the ethically sourced materials to the hands that shape each detail, every design choice is deliberate.
03:35So when it comes to the base metal of a lot of our pieces, we work with brass.
03:40And so creating a new piece means starting with a material.
03:43So buying whether it's a brass plate, brass wires, cables, or actually just melting things.
03:50So depending on a jewelry item, I've got a variety on me today.
03:54But just using this ring as an example, this is a cast piece.
03:58So what we do is create the template and then we use molasses and soil to kind of create the
04:05cast.
04:05It's melted, poured into the folds, the moulds, and then it sets.
04:11Then we go through the polishing, the buffing.
04:14Eventually this moves to the gold plating and then you have a finished product.
04:18This jewelry room is a celebration of beauty, purpose, and African possibility crafted one story at a time.
04:27From a branding perspective, we've had so many incredible opportunities.
04:30We've been featured on TV shows.
04:33So our pieces have gone all the way to Hollywood.
04:35We've been on Bel-Air Season 2 and Season 3.
04:39We were in Love Life Season 2.
04:42Because we're more than a jewelry brand.
04:44There's a whole story, there's a whole community that is behind the pieces that we are designing and wearing.
04:49And it's just so beautiful to see that that reach and that story and the communication is pretty global.
04:56Our vision is transformative, sustainable luxury.
04:59The message is really elevation.
05:01And ultimately, beyond the luxury positioning, we want our customers to have a sense of pride,
05:06understand the significance and intention behind each and every jewelry piece that they are wearing.
05:12Everything is handmade, with love, right here in Kenya.
05:15Over here.
05:17End of the journey.
05:17Number of 10 are too big.
05:18I'm lucky for myself.
05:18Pay me if I'm happy.
05:19May I'm happy.
05:19Bye-bye.
05:19Bye-bye.
05:19You
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