Taswira: Authentic African streetwear gallery located right here in Seattle
By Vaughn Williams
The Founder and Creative Director of Taswira, Avery Barnes, envisioned a store that combined art and culture with empowerment. Taswira, a sustainable African streetwear store, is home to a myriad of products. From stylish cultural clothing to bags, spices, and home goods, Taswira has it all. Furthermore, everything is sourced from the beautifully diverse continent of Africa.
Barnes also wanted to make sure that everyone knew that two women make the designs for all the clothing; these women are from Mombasa, Kenya, and that a percentage of the proceeds from the storefront go directly to the Bamburi Women Empowerment Center (BWEC) in Mombasa. Barnes has personally spent a significant amount of time in Mombasa and is currently a representative for BWEC.
During her stay in Kenya, Barnes marveled at the unique and elegantly crafted clothing that the women made in Mombasa. Seeing the potential, she brought back some of the designs and showed them off during the 2021 Africa Fashion Week Seattle. Taswira subsequently won the Best Designer Award. This award was a lightbulb moment for Barnes and her business. “Wow, I need to figure out how to make this work,” said Barnes. Once the idea was born, Barnes needed help acquiring a storefront. She found that support when she got in contact with the Seattle Restored program.
The Seattle Restored program is a post-pandemic program co-opted by Shunpike, Seattle Good Business Network, and the City of Seattle Office of Economic Development. The program’s goal is to revitalize Downtown Seattle and to fill empty storefronts with local artists and small businesses so that they can bring life to the city. Out of 150 applicants, only seven were chosen to be pop-up shops. So, statistically speaking, Taswira is a business that is many steps above the competition and it has created its own lane and is empowering women while doing it.
With community support and a storefront ready to be moved into, Barnes only had one problem: she needed inventory. It takes approximately two months for supplies to ship from Kenya, and after some thought Barnes knew there was only one solution. She booked a flight to Kenya the same day. With dedication and tenacity, she brought all the supplies that she needed for the storefront back with her on the plane.
The Taswira storefront is now up and running. It is located at 510 Occidental Ave S. Make sure to check it out; their catalog is truly inspiring and beautifully crafted. You can also find them at https://taswira.org/ online.
