Introducing: London-Based Artisanal Brand Oiza
Olivia Ozi-Oiza Chance's earliest fashion memories revolve around her mother and clothes. Trips to Nigeria in search of vibrantly hued fabrics to have spliced into traditional gowns by local tailors, for example, or watching her mother’s meticulous Sunday ritual in preparation for attending church back home in Chichester, West Sussex. These formative experiences inspire much of Chance’s work today, though she admits they weren’t always easy to embrace at the time. ‘I remember being so self-conscious of how my mum dressed; growing up, you just want to fit in,’ she says. Fashion became a vehicle for Chance to reconcile the different cultural influences she experienced growing up, and she has used it to write her own identity narrative.
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After graduating from Middlesex University with a fashion degree in 2015 she went straight into the industry, with stints at British brands Martine Rose and Burberry. But it was during lockdown and the Black Lives Matter protests of 2020 that she thought about going solo. ‘I knew what I was trying to say, but I didn’t quite have the confidence in my voice early on,’ she reflects.‘I realised, no matter how small my platform was, I needed to speak out and represent.’
Launching her brand Oiza (her Nigerian name) in 2022 provided a space for her to explore her British-Nigerian heritage in new ways. ‘I was curious about my identity from a young age, and was always trying to find my place within a British space while connecting to my Nigerian roots,’ she explains. Sharing the cool-meets-crafted sentiment of Grace Wales Bonner and Priya Ahluwalia, and with a fanbase that includes musician Poppy Ajudha and journalist Yomi Adegoke, the brand is one to watch.
Craftsmanship is core to Oiza’s DNA, and Chance works to highlight artisanal West African techniques. Her designs are all made to order and produced in London, with lace sourced from UK-based African vendors when possible, to support local communities. She also generates minimal waste, giving new life to old fabric scraps across hemlines, collars and trims.
Her SS25 collection, shown at London Fashion Week as part of the British Fashion Council’s DiscoveryLab programme, draws upon the age-old notion of the ‘English rose’ – a pale-skinned ideal of beauty that she has often seen but never identified with.‘It felt alienating, like a standard I could never fit into. I wanted to challenge what it really means for someone who straddles two cultures,’ she says. The collection is full of fuchsia, jet and white lace separates, draped halter dresses and wrap skirts, embellished with pearls and cowrie shells – embodying a romance rooted in tradition rather than whimsy. Lace, a fabric central to both British Victorian and West African tradition, forms Chance’s now-recognisable signature of hand-stitched, seamlessly panelled textiles. ‘What I do is so personal – it puts me in a really vulnerable place, but it’s about gradually letting everyone in,’ she says.
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