How is Valentino relevant to Kenya? He is not Italian. This is a very good question. True, Valentino is not Kenyan. His work is not accessible to most of us. However, this is not about access. And it is not about geography.
But to think that makes him irrelevant is shortsighted. What endures in fashion is not price or proximity. It is craft, discipline, restraint, and the patience to build language over decades. These are lessons that matter everywhere, especially in emerging fashion economies like ours. Kenya does not grow by only looking inward. We grow by studying excellence, translating it, and building our own legacies with intention. This is an homage and a reminder: icons are not copied, they are learned from.
Rule One: Perfect, Don’t Produce
Luxury does not rush. It perfects. True couture is not born from constant novelty but from devotion to what has already spoken eloquently. Refine it. Guard it. Elevate it until time itself becomes an accomplice.
Rule Two: Own a Colour, Own a Legacy
Create a colour palette and claim it with authority. Name it after yourself, not for vanity, but for permanence. A colour, when owned, becomes language. It signals presence before a word is spoken and loyalty long after trends fade.
Rule Three: Dress the Iconic
Let society’s symbols of culture, grace, and influence move through your creations. Do not chase them; allow them to compete for your vision. Dress them in meaning. Let them carry your name as they seduce the world.
Rule Four: Sell the Dream
A product may be admired; a dream is desired. Dreams are abundant yet unreachable and therein lies their value. Leave the crowd in awe not only through the meticulous execution of your craft, but through the orchestrated perfection of its presentation. Marketing, when done at the highest level, is theatre. Everyone has a part to play.