We’re thrilled to introduce the latest accessories brand to join Sapellé’s line-up:  Nakate, an ethical brand that launched in 2010 and has been working with women in rural Uganda to train them in the skill of jewellery-making for the international market.

Nakate is a multinational luxury brand with a mission to empower women in underdeveloped or remote areas of the globe by providing a platform for their art in the high fashion and design community.

One immediately gets a sense of the passion and determination that drives Nakate’s founder Shanley Knox when hearing her speak about Nakate and it’s progress so far.

Shanley explains that the Nakate story is inspired by Cossy, a 17-year old girl with a tragic past whom she met on her travels in Uganda.

Cossy had lost both her parents to AIDS and had then faced abuse at the hands of relatives. Her future looked bleak, and yet she maintained an air of optimism and strength.

“It wasn’t the tragedy in Cossy’s story that caught us – it was her spirit. She has a twinkle in her eye and a quickness to her step. She’s loving, she’s expressive – and she laughs more than your average kid. We knew we wanted some of what Cossy has in our lives. We could tell she was going to be the kind of woman we wanted to do business with, to be friends with – to know as she grew older.

“We launched Nakate in Nakasangola (Uganda) on purpose, because we felt that these women, in particular, needed to be noticed and empowered. So, we’ve been working to help them grow in their newly acquired skill as jewellery makers. Along the way, we’ve been focusing on helping them to re-construct how they view themselves as women.

“We want them to see themselves as artisans, designers, business women, and as women that have the power to make choices – choices about where they live, about whether they send their children to school, about where they want to open a bank account, and what they’d like to do with their money.”

And so Nakate has grown from strength to strength, expanding its range from jewellery to bags and shoes – all innovatively and carefully crafted with recycled and other ethically-sourced materials.

Nakate has worked in partnership with some key names in the fashion industry, and most recently the brand made further inroads on the fashion scene with several of its pieces appearing on the catwalk at Africa Fashion Week New York.

” I have been stunned by the reception we’ve been given from stylists, photographers, magazine editors and other designers on the runway. And, I have become more and more convinced that the kind of handmade, carefully crafted products coming out of rural Uganda belong in high fashion with couture designs. They should be celebrated with the best of the best.”

Nakate at Africa Fashion Week New York

And now Nakate makes its debut with Sapellé, one of the brand’s few European-based stockists. We’re proud to stock items including recycled paper, cow horn and mahogany pieces.

And as a special treat for our readers, sapelle.com is offering a 15% introductory discount on all Nakate products until the end of August.

Simply enter the discount code ‘SAPNAK12‘ at the checkout. Click  here to start shopping: http://sapelle.com/collections/nakate

All photography courtesy of Nakate.