Tunisian pride and funky designs create growing business

There’s an irony to it. Tunisia is the sixth largest supplier of textiles to Europe and yet most Tunisians buy their clothes either at the limited number of imported brands such as Zara, the flee market, or overseas. This didn’t make sense to Sofiène and Claire Ben Châabane.

The couple came back to Tunis from Paris, to fill that gap and establish a quality Tunisian clothing brand. The idea had been there for a while but the revolution pushed them to move faster, explains Sofiène. “We wanted to be part of this new chapter of Tunisia,” he says, “contribute to the Tunisian economy.”

Lyoum, which means “the day” or “today”, opened its doors in June 2012 with a children’s brand and a café in a hip and fashionably designed studio in La Marsa, the upmarket suburb north of Tunis. “There was nothing nice for kids, so we thought that could be, that’s how we entered the market,” explains Sofiène.

Today the brand is perhaps mostly known for the duo’s latest line of cheeky prints such as “Nietzsche Loved Shakshouka” and “Beauvoir Loved Baklawa.”

Original article by Christine Petré

Continue reading at Wamda:

Tunisian pride and funky designs create growing business