The ancient golden land of Egypt is not just full of history; our soil is rich in culture and pure talent that can be found in every corner. In an attempt to bring out the best of what we have into the light, Jozee spread its wings and soared high into the Egyptian fashion scene exhibiting the true essence of ethical fashion.
The local brand is all about ethnic handmade products. Every piece they design and produce tells a story and every garment reflects our heritage from the eye of the craftswoman behind it. Launched back in Summer 2014, Jozee stepped in the market with a powerful message. Rather than merely preserving culture, the brand supported a cause along the way.
By coming up with the designs and providing artisans with the right tools and materials, the end result is something the craftsmen should be proud of. Jozee empowers artisans from different areas in Egypt such as Siwa, Saint Catherine, Naqada villages, and Akhmim. Whether it’s the artisans’ embroideries or the quality handwoven fabrics of Naqada and Akhmim, culture is engraved within each and every garment with love.
Jozee doesn’t just contribute to creating a sustainable income source for those women living in remote areas, the brand’s code of ethics entails much more. It gives artisans the opportunity to create a good living for themselves and their families, providing them with fair wages. In a nutshell, it’s more of a collaboration with artisans; each party simply does what it does best.
The brand is also bearing the consumer in mind; products are of premium quality, transparency is guaranteed, and even designs are timeless. It’s also worth mentioning that products are also eco-friendly. That’s in the sense of following certain practices that minimize waste and reduce damage to the environment along the manufacturing process. For instance, Jozee tries to reduce waste of fabrics by up-cycling them into other products.
With that impressive act of kindness, I knew there has to be quite an inspiring story, and that was true. We sat down with Josline El Kholy, the brand’s co-founder who told us all about it. Jozee comes from the owners’ names; partners Josline and Ezzeldine Moukhtar teamed up for such a beautiful brand to be born. Kholy, who spent a long 15-years in corporate life, and Ezz, who worked in communications technology, ditched their careers to follow their passion. As they both shared an interest in art and the hobby of traveling around Egypt, they decided to make use of it.
The partners found a gap in the handmade market in Egypt where buyers would purchase products they can actually use. From there, Josline and Ezz started exploring the industry, gaining a better understanding of the production process, fabrics, and trying their best to use natural materials sourced from Egyptian lands. Their backgrounds and former experiences were actually of great help. Later on, the power duo started their hunt for artisans in 2011; it took them almost four years to launch.
Through their specially curated products, Jozee aims to offer garments that are handmade, yet practical, durable, modern, and comfy enough for the customers. Such products weren’t available in the market simply because they weren’t tailored to cater to the consumers’ needs, and that’s what Jozee tries hard to achieve through its journey.
It’s also worth mentioning that the fashion brand does a super interesting thing on the side. Just like they support artisans, Jozee offers full support to other brands and young designers that are in the same direction of handmade products by featuring them on the website and providing them with advice and guidance.
Preserving heritage and art and promoting their message to local and international markets is what Jozee aspires for. In light of that, the brand operates both online and offline. The online store serves both local and international customers with a decent customer base in the Arab world in countries like Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Kuwait. On the other hand, there are retail stores in Zamalek; that first opened its doors in 2015, and another in New Cairo; that opened last September 2018.