We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Edmund Galabe a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Edmund , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to go back in time and hear the story of how you came up with the name of your brand?

I wanted a name that reflected where I originated from. I wanted a name that depicted where I was born and raised. I named the company African Rich. Our rich African culture, values, beliefs, diversity, languages, foods, music, and last but not least, our natural resources.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I was born and raised in Cameroon, West Africa. I grew up in the only African country that has French and English as its official languages. I am the middle child of six. Growing up, I was very entrenched in sports, music, and fashion. I moved to the USA to pursue my higher education. I had my undergrad degree in Nursing. I worked as a nurse for quite a while, then returned to `graduate school and studied Business obtaining an MBA degree. I currently live in Arizona and have two amazing boys.

I began African Rich when I was in search of African-inspired clothing, which did not include our traditional kente fabric. I wanted African-inspired outfits in cotton and polyester fabrics. I wanted outfits that I could wear on any occasion; be it casual, business, or classy occasion.

What sets me apart, is my logo. It is extremely unique and eye-catching. I however pride myself on my customer service and willingness to hear my customer’s feedback. I sell clothing and apparel, but my goal is to expand into categories.

I want potential clients and fans to know my brand resonates with everyone. The brand is relatable to anyone. All of us have richness within us. It is a brand for all. I am most proud of how far the brand has come. It keeps growing its fan base substantially every year. I am also very proud of us for improving the quality of the brand every year. Quality is something we pride ourselves on.

Can you talk to us about manufacturing? How’d you figure it all out? We’d love to hear the story.

Manufacturing a product is not as complicated as it seems. I learned a lot along the way. When I first started my clothing brand, I would buy blank tees on a wholesale site, then take them to a local print shop for printing. I quickly learned that was not cost-effective and I would hardly make any profit from this process. So I did a lot of reading online (google) and many hours of youtube videos. I learned about Alibaba.com and that changed my manufacturing life for good. I found a few suppliers and with their collaboration I was able to design and produce my designs in bulk. This made a ton of difference in relation to cost. If you can, I strongly advise you to follow suit.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

I started my company in the fourth quarter of 2019. I thought I had it all figured and business was going okay. I could see the growth in the new company and then all of a sudden COVID hit in 2022. That put a heavy wrench in my business as the world came to a complete standstill for a while. The supply chain was greatly affected and customers were not buying any more since everywhere was shut down. instead of putting my head down and crying, I decided to make some critical changes to the business. I drastically reduced expenses and curtailed bringing out new collections. I used the time of shut down, to come up with more unique and aesthetic designs. As COVID is finally behind us, I am in a much better place than I was at the beginning. I have new exciting products that my customers will love.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.africanrich.com
• Instagram: @african.rich
• Facebook: @africanrich
• Youtube: African Rich