Designer is putting Samoa on map

Afa Ah Loo believes in designing dreams.
But don’t be fooled by this lofty ideal. This up and coming young designer has spent years on menial jobs in the fashion industry and has gone from buttonholes to bridal dresses to get to where he is now and where he plans to go in the future.

This is his story.

How did your interest in
fashion start?

I went to school here in Pesega, my mother was sewing and she taught me some, but she didn’t really teach me a lot. I was interested in how things were put together – how sleeves are attached and the very intricate details. When I was at school here, I had worked part time at Cecelia’s Fashions and I did button holes and worked at Lokostyle for a short time but I never designed anything. Working in those places, I knew I wanted to be in the fashion industry.

The move to Hawaii

When I left school, I went to University Preparatory Year then I went to Uni in Hawaii. When I was there, I wanted to study Interior Designing but they didn’t offer it. My original thing was to become an interior designer but they didn’t offer that or any designing course whatsoever so instead I took Political Science!
But then my passion was always in fashion so while I was there I did some side jobs – students were asking me. They had clubs and they have this Culture Night so they asked me to do uniforms. So I’d design and sew all their uniforms, some groups would be 40 or so people so that would be 40 puletasi’s. The Samoan club is the biggest club they had there. When I was doing those side jobs, I learned a lot. At that stage, people were just coming to me for simple stuff but it was a good stepping stone for me to get where I am now. I was in Hawaii for two and a half years.

Mission in Utah

Then I came back to Samoa and later went on my mission to Utah and while I was on it, I also did some stuff, people who were going to be baptized, they wanted to be in a new, all-white dress, but they would ask about getting something made and I was able to do that for them. I would say, “Hey, I know how to design and sew a little bit, do you want me to help you out?” So even on my mission I was able to design and sew.

Back in Samoa

Then I came home and that was when it really started – in 2010. I started off doing simple things like the uniforms for the Special Olympics and the Digicel Medical Outreach uniforms for two or three years. Then a friend of mine approached me to design a puletasi for his niece who was running for Miss Samoa so I helped design that.

The wedding dress

Then I went back to Utah in 2012 and this lady who I had never met before, asked if I could design a wedding dress. She had heard about me from a friend. Her wedding was in a month and so I designed her dress. When I did that wedding dress I got hooked into making elegant evening wear, formal wear.
I returned to Samoa in 2013 and began designing for special occasions, balls etc
I started taking photos and putting them on Facebook

Multi talented
I was invited to go to Mangere to show my line and to sing as well. I had won Samoan Idol in the duet category and I had also put some of my designs on Facebook
I only had four weeks, to the show which was from 25th August to the 30th.

There were 12 garments. I went there and made them there. A week after I was invited, my mum passed away so the two weeks after that it was my mum’s funeral and try to get sponsorship because I couldn’t do it on my own

I went to Apia Concrete Products that morning and that same evening, they called and said they were happy to sponsor me. I am so grateful to them; I couldn’t have done that without them. That show was the highlight. The show started Monday – that was the opening.

Every day was dedicated to an art form – poetry, animation, dancing etc. I was the only one from Samoa. All the other artists were from New Zealand.

Amioga Samoa
I’ve got to tell you my mum (see photo top right) was the inspiration behind this line I showed in Mangere. The line is called ‘Amioga Samoa’. Amioga is my mum’s name but ‘amioga’ means samoan attitude and behaviours. It fits into what I’m trying to do.

Polynesian Showoff

The show itself was called ‘Polynesian Showoff’ and was organized by Three USOs, Pinnacle and Taro Pages. It was the inaugural show and they hope it will become an annual event. So I sang on Tuesday – I was the finale of the evening and I sang a Samoan song and some jazz because I’m more into jazz and R & B.

I had told the organizers I needed models from there. I needed 13 girls and at least 3 boys but when I got there they only had six girls – so I ended up getting my nieces to come and model and the guys, well they were all my cousins!

Saturday night there were shoe designers, t shirt designers, another had mainly a street wear and the others showed prints. There was a Niuean, a Tongan, a Cook Islander, a Fijian and then there was me and also several Samoans living in N. Z.

People had seen my designs coming in and I was just in casual gear – a t shirt. So they were saying, “So you’re the guy who designed this? So you design and get someone else to it sew for you? And I’m saying “No I do both. So I first showed my traditional wear I wanted people to know I was from Samoa.

When the show started, people were surprised. They were saying, “Oh, something different.”
There were no prints, it was elegant, vintage looking. After the traditional gear, I had my boys come out in a business look ie faitaga, almost kilt like. People have said to me, “Can you design something where I can go overseas and wear it to my business meetings so I’m in the modern world, but I’m Samoan.”

They are different. Some have a contrasting back pockets, some have pockets in the front.

At the end I had the men come out in their casual ie faitaga without their shirts on so it was a crowd pleaser and would get the women going. They did, they loved it.
When I came out people were surprised to see the designer behind the clothes. That was such a highlight. Knowing that my mum was there …

Changes and inspiration
I was sewing during the day and enjoying the shows at night. I designed, cut and sewed but the thing is when I’m sewing, when I cut it, I take away some of the things I had in the original design, I change things, I get inspired as I go. A lot of people ask me how do I get my ideas? I also get inspiration from music. When I’m designing traditional wear I’ll listen to traditional songs and when I’m doing more fun and casual stuff I listen to that kind of music.

Samoa in the fashion world
I want to show the world that Samoa’s got style, we’re not just stuck in the leaves or the prints. I wanted to say we have taste, elegance and sophisticated looks. When I talked to people they’re like “So you’re from Samoa; that’s very interesting”. Fashion designers from Samoa are usually women or fa’afafines and I don’t fit into either of those categories.
At the moment, I’m working from home but I’m looking to get a show space.
In the future I want to just design and get others to sew. So that way, I can just perfect the design.

Other designers
A designer I admire is Vera Wang who specializes in wedding gowns – I love how she does the draping. I read a quote from designer Ralph Lauren said, “I don’t design clothes, I design dreams.” With wedding dresses, that’s the girl’s dream, the spotlight is on her, it’s her most vulnerable time.
It’s also a big risk doing a wedding gown because if you get it wrong people would say to the bride, “Who designed that?”
But at the same time, I want to be with that person in her special moment, to be able to say to her, “Hey I was able to make your dreams come true.”

Commitment to the
spectrum of fashion
Now I want to put all my efforts into my designs. I’m saying, “I’m here, I mean business and I’m not going anywhere. And you’d better remember my name because I’m going to be around for quite a while in the industry.”
I’m not limited to formal wear, I also do costume designs. For a recent wedding the theme for the bride’s hen’s night was Disney characters and I designed a Snow White costume. I had worked extra hours when I was at university and made costumes including tuigas. For the 2007 South Pacific Games here in Samoa Pesega School told the story of people sailing from island to island and I did the costumes for that week-long show. However my passion is for designing wedding gowns and formal wear, traditional wear and puletasis.

my future
My fashion label is Afa and you can find me on Instagram at com/afa.
From now, I want to be able to live here but go overseas to take part in fashion shows in Fiji, New Zealand, Australia and the United States.
I would die a happy man if I could see a celebrity wearing one of my designs. I’m determined to live my dream. It might take years, but I’ve got this far and I know I can make it.