Dress to impress with modern high quality African clothing.
D’IYANU (dee-yah-nu) is a Black-owned, ready-to-wear African-inspired clothing brand. Offering on-trend luxury fashion at affordable prices. Owned by a Nigerian brother and sister team. Founder and CEO Addie Ajayi and President & Partner Dara Ajayi. Headquartered in Norristown, Pennsylvania.
The loose translation of D’IYANU, the “D” means “of” or “from” in French, while “IYANU” means “miracle” or “wonderful” in the Nigerian language, Yoruba. The blending of the two languages also signifies the blending of the two cultures which define the brand: African and European.
Ajayi’s journey into fashion began when she was six years old. Her family moved from Nigeria to the United States. Her transition was challenging. As she grew older, she embraced her uniqueness. Fashion became her form of self-expression and individuality.
At the time, there was little to no ready-to-wear modern African-inspired clothing available in the mass market. Wearing African-inspired clothing typically involved one sourcing their own fabric and finding a tailor. That’s when the idea for D’IYANU emerged.
D’IYANU launched in 2014 from Ajayi’s studio apartment in King of Prussia, PA. Starting with six styles for women. One blouse, two dresses, and three skirts. Five months later, Ajayi quit her job and committed to D’IYANU full time.
In 2016, Ajayi’s brother Dara joined as President offering invaluable support.
Every D’IYANU garment is designed from scratch by an all-female in-house design team. Those who appreciate African culture, and wearing bold, beautiful prints can find exciting outfits from D’IYANU.
Personal Interview with D’IYANU Founder and CEO Addie Ajayi
What are D’IYANU’s most popular clothing?
“Among our most popular women’s styles are the Ronke maxi dress, Aisha cardigan, and Hiba sweater. For men, customer favorites include the Olu shirt, Abiade shirt, and Iferan sweater. Overall, our top-selling categories are women’s dresses, men’s shirts, and sweaters.”
What is your favorite part about working with African Textiles?
“I enjoy working with African-inspired prints that celebrate the heritage of the continent. What excites me most is incorporating these prints into a variety of fabrications, making our clothing not only meaningful but also more comfortable and accessible for our customers.”
Any new products or collections upcoming for 2025?
“For the rest of 2025, you can expect to see 5 more collections: midsummer, prefall, fall, athleisure, and holiday.”
That concludes the interview. It was a pleasure and insightful.
D’IYANU rewards loyal customers with the Royality Program. Gain points, and rewards with every dollar spent. Follow, like, or share on social media to earn even more points.
I own the Mazi Men’s African Print Button-Up Shirt (Teal Maroon Multipattern) and Obike Men’s African Print Shirt Jacket (Malachite Diamond Adire). The quality is unmatched by any other clothing I own. Fabric is substantial, well-tailored with deep lined pockets and precise stitching. I feel ultimately confident and worthy of life’s best while wearing the clothing.
Cartoon Characters Aljay, Drella, Starlight, and Jayden are created by Sterling Haynes.
This is what I’m talking bout!!!!!
Ordering a dress for my family reunion from this black owned brand. The characters from
New Haynesburg look sharp
I’m into the shirt Jayden is wearing.
Pleased to learn about this black owned company in Pennsylvania.
Nice article!