Designer, model, tourism enthusiast

What you need to know:

THE KNIGHT. Sam Akuaku, 24, is the cluster head for Miss Tourism West Nile region. He is a fashion stylist, designer and model at Shomi African fashion house that deals in African fabrics. He spoke to Beatrice Nakibuuka about his role as a cluster head

What does it mean to be a cluster head?
The Miss Tourism cluster head leads and implements the Miss Tourism pageant in the allocated region. I must look for the girls; see how they dress, their makeup, and mobilisation during the contests. I’m glad my girl won last year and she was crowned Miss Tourism Uganda at the national contest.

How did you become the cluster head? Does it come with privileges?
I was appointed by the then environment Minister, Maria Mutagambwa because I had worked under the Ministry for my region. Someone else was holding the position but he was not that active because he was not from the region.
Since the time I was given the authority, I see daily changes and improvement. The only privilege comes after a long struggle when your girls win. I am glad that within a year, my girl Eildad Epiaka Ondongkara won the national pageant for Miss Tourism.

What does it take to be a fashion designer?
It takes courage and talent for one to be a fashion designer. Unless one has the art of creativity in the fashion industry, they will instead become copy cats.
It is about the passion, hard work and taking up worthy opportunities. Opportunities are for people who are ready to make the best out of them. Sometimes I stay out late in the night or wake up so early in the morning to get things going.
It also takes one to have knowledge about the field. Go to school, read a book, work for someone and gain your experience or get a mentor you can learn from.

What is the difference between tailoring and fashion designing?
There are many talents that must be nurtured. The tailors have a talent that must be natured into fashion designing because they sew what one has brought to them. The fashion designer however, can advise on style depending on clients’ character and do the tailoring work.

Do you do fashion and designing for money or interest?
I do fashion because I love it and it is part of me. People who love my work started demanding for my pieces and started paying for my services I should say the industry is paying off and worth investing in.

Are there any challenges involved in what you do?
In the fashion industry, we are generally faced with a problem of copyright. We have no right over a particular design idea.
When I post pictures of outfits on social media, I expect people to call so that I can make them the same design but instead they just download and take to another person. Many Africans are not embracing what is theirs. Dealing in African wear, many people think it is very traditional so we still find trouble in marketing this.

What are your future prospects?
I am a model and I am glad I am gradually growing in an industry that has few players that are starting to be recognised. I hope to achieve great.
I want to hold a fashion show in Arua because fashion is not something that my people there have embraced. I want them to start appreciating fashion. I want to start a fashion house too and by June 2017, I want to start a fashion and entertainment website.

What special thing don’t people know about you?
When in the fashion industry, people think that staying out in the night and walking on the runway is being ungodly. I am someone who puts God first in everything I do.

THE WINNING FORMULAR
How did you manage to have a gril from your region win Miss Tourism?
Each region had to bring two girls that would contest for the national pageant. I started by pleading with the girls’ parents as most of them did not like the idea of their children being involved but I explained to them that it was for a good cause. I had a hand into each of their fabrics and dress they wore from my fashion designer skills.

It was about publicity and how many people vote for the girls. I have known and had friends who would sponsor and buy as many votes as possible. I also went to almost all universities around the country and asked the students that hail from west Nile to vote for my girls. The students usually have associations of students from particular regions of the country so I targeted those from west Nile.