Adut Akech’s Journey From Refugee Camp to Runway

The Business of Fashion Podcast

The Business of Fashion

Fashion & Beauty, Business, Arts

4.6 • 770 Ratings

🗓️ 27 October 2023

⏱️ 21 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

The South Sudanese model reflects on her path from a Kenyan refugee camp to travelling the globe as an international top model.

Background:

South Sudanese model Adut Akech has made her mark on fashion, having appeared on countless international magazine covers and on the runway for brands including Chanel and Prada. But Akech’s story begins worlds away from fashion shows and Vogue cover shoots: The model was born while her family was fleeing war in South Sudan and spent her early years in a Kenyan refugee camp.

"I will always be a refugee, because that's who I am," she told BoF's editor-at-large Tim Blanks on stage at BoF VOICES in 2018. "No amount of money or my status or how famous or whatever the case is... I'm always going to be a refugee and I'm proud of who I am."

This week on The BoF Podcast, revisit Akech and Blanks’ conversation, where they discuss Akech’s childhood and journey to the fashion industry.

Key Insights:

Though she spent part of her childhood in a refugee camp, Akech recalls those years being mostly happy. “I didn’t know I was in a refugee camp, I had cousins there, I had friends… some of the best memories are just running around and playing,” she says.

Her first experience modelling was in a small fashion show put on by her aunt, who was a fashion designer. That moment made her realise she wanted to model professionally. “I just fell in love instantly," she says. "When I’m on the runway, I’m a whole different person."

Growing up, Akech idolised Black models Naomi Campbell and Alek Wek. Now, she serves as a source of inspiration for the next generation of Black models. "I have people messaging me saying I inspired them to love their Black skin, that I inspired them to chase their dreams," she says.

BoF VOICES, our annual gathering for big thinkers, returns from November 28 to November 30, 2023, uniting the movers, shakers and trailblazers of the fashion industry with the thought leaders, entrepreneurs and inspiring people shaping the wider world. The entire event will be livestreamed for BoF Professional All-Access members. Register now to join us.

Additional Resources:

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Hi, this is Imran Ahmed, founder and CEO of the Business of Fashion.
0:08.4	Welcome to the B.O.F. podcast. It's Friday, October 27th. Mark your calendars for BOF Voices
0:15.3	2023, which takes place from November 28th to November 30th, as always, featuring industry icons, cultural
0:22.9	disruptors, and business moguls, delivering a rich tapestry of insights and perspectives on fashion
0:29.2	and the wider world.
0:30.8	And to get into the Voices' mood, in the coming weeks, we will be sharing some of my favorite
0:34.5	conversations going all the way back to 2016.
0:38.5	This week, we revisit a special conversation with the inspiring Adute A Cage, one of the
0:43.9	industry's top models, having appeared on the covers of a plethora of international magazines,
0:49.0	and walked for some of the biggest names in luxury fashion from Chanel and Dior to Prada and
0:54.1	Valentino.
0:55.5	But a dude's story started in South Sudan and Kenya, where she was a refugee before her family
1:01.7	relocated to Australia.
1:04.0	I will always be a refugee because that's who I am.
1:08.7	No amount of money or my status or how famous or whatever that's who I am. No amount of money or my status or how famous or whatever the case is,
1:15.7	I'm always going to be a refugee and I am proud of who I am.
1:20.2	Adute came to Oxfordshire for Voices 2018 and sat down with our editor-at-Large Tim Blanks
1:26.1	to share her journey into the world of fashion.
1:29.0	Here's Adut Akech on the B-O-F podcast.
1:34.1	Adud, just before we talk, I wanted to say that one of fashion's most seductive synchronicities is that between model and moment.
1:44.1	I think of Twiggy, or Virushka or Linda Evangelista or Kate Moss,
1:48.7	where the model defines the moment so perfectly that she becomes something more.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from The Business of Fashion, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of The Business of Fashion and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.