This Iowa fashion designer is sharing her bright, African-inspired styles with the world

Why it matters: That dream brought Mutunda to Iowa, where she earned her degree in fashion design at Iowa State and is now collaborating with SHEIN to put her clothes into mass production.

How it started: At first, Mutunda's father was against her fashion career dreams — people who made clothes were just tailors on the street in the Congo with little income, she says.

• But after convincing him that she could start a business, he agreed on one condition — that Mutunda attend school in an English-speaking country and challenge herself to learn the language.

State of play: That brought her to the U.S. in 2015 and eventually to Iowa after a family member told her about the affordability (and quiet) of the Midwest.

Details: Mutunda studied fashion merchandising at DMACC and fashion design at Iowa State starting in 2018. There, she earned grants from the ISU Pappajohn Center for her own business and competed in fashion competitions in New York.

• After graduating from ISU in 2020, Mutunda moved to California to make custom clothing and later earned her master's degree in New York.

Now, she's back at Iowa State, pursuing her doctorate and teaching classes to fashion students.

• And she's launching a spring 2025 collection for SHEIN, the Singapore-based fast fashion e-commerce site, after a recruiter reached out about bringing her colorful, African-inspired patterns into mass production.
• "When you look at the nature in my country, it's breathtaking," Mutunda tells Axios. "So I maintain that. I like bold colors and very bright, vibrant things and big flowers."

What's next: Next year, Mutunda wants to return to designing custom clothing, but also take some time to embrace each day as a mom of a two-year-old son.

• "I used to be very driven by what's next, what's next," Mutunda says. "But since I became a mom, I learned to also enjoy life, day by day."