One on one with Tom of Uhuru clothing

1. Tell us about Uhuru Clothing and the designer. Uhuru is a Swahili word meaning ‘freedom’. Uhuru Clothing Co. goal is to enhance the image of Africa, to educate and enlighten and last but not least to give Africans and those who want to represent Africa a lifestyle that reflects who they really are. I am African and i am proud. Uhuru stands for whatever you believe your freedom is. Uhuru Clothing was started in 2007 due to a lack of representation and it has grown from strength to strength with the support of African all over the world. As the designer, i LOVE Africa, everything thing about our beautiful continent inspires me everyday to create awareness of where i have come from and show people where the future lies...in Africa 2. What does doing what you do require on a daily basis? Having a daily planner for activities, patience and a good sence of humor. Most days are spent mailing customer orders, in the factory doing custom or reprints of inventory, replying emails and making calls to the “UC family” (we don’t use the word customer) 3. Are you seeing anyone special, if so how is that going on a personal and business level if not why not? Im currently not in a relationship. I have been blessed to do something I love to do every day, at this point in my life I don’t think it would be fair to my partner for her to have to feel she comes second in my life.I am fully dedicated in building the brand. 4. You travel a lot how does that affect your relationships, with friends, family and romantically? I have been fortunate enough to be supported by the African community in the US, that i can travel and show them what Uhuru Clothing has to offer, in terms of friendships i get to meet new faces and reconnect with old friends every opportunity i get. Family plays a big role in my life so its always nice to visit my siblings and take some time off "working" to sit and relax with them

5. What do you look for in a good woman? Someone who is supportive, confident, hard working, opinionated, loyal and spiritual. 6. As a designer would how a woman dresses say something to you about her and how do you like your women to dress? The way a woman dressed and carries herself does say about her, the way she dresses shows glimpses of her personalty, it really is an expression on who she is and how she feels. There is no one particular way i like a woman to dress, as long as she in confident and comfortable it will show. 7. It cannot be easy for you to do what you do , what are the challenges and how do you get by? I have been fortunate to be able to run 2 business that feed into each other, the clothing line Uhuru Clothing is the backbone of everything that i do and last year i started UC Entertainment, an company that hosts parties across the US. With the clothing line i had people who told me it would never succeed esp people who owned stored that didn't cater to Africans. As the for entertainment i have been turned down by club owners and management who feel that having a different ethnic group in their establishment would chase away their regular clientèle. In both instances i have pushed on, looked to partner with companies that share my vision and looked to work with people who better suite our needs.

8. What is the advantage or disadvantage of being in your line of work? My sister, Agnes once told me "Success has many Father's whilst failure is an orphan" In the this line of work one gets to meet alot of people, some who want to be associated with your name, success, brand etc there are plenty of people who befriend you coz they feel they can gain financially or career wise. One of the advantages of this line of work is one gets to meet many different people from different cultures, similar background and people with great ideas. There however requires a delicate balance to identify and separate who wants to know you for who you are or who wants to know you for what you represent. 9. What of they that would like to do what you do? Any tips? I would like to encourage all those people who desire to break from the norm, believe in your brand and don’t give up, surround yourself with positive people who share your vision as these are people you will need when things get tough. David Brinkley once said “A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks others have thrown at him” Also last but not least don’t sacrifice quality of the product for a bigger profit because at the end of the day people will always choose quality over price. 10. What part would you say God has played in your success and life as a whole? GOD has been the main guiding force in my success, there have been numerous times when i have wanted to give up on my dream and he kept me inspired and driven. I have encountered many obstacles in my life and my parents instilled in me as a child, that God would never give one a task they could never accomplish or a challenge they cannot overcome. With these beliefs i have been able to overcome life's obstacles. Last Words Before I go I would like to thank you for taking the time to learn more about Uhuru Clothing and helping get a step closer to our goal of informing people about what Africa has to offer. Last but not least I would like to thank all those people who have supported us from day 1. This year, 2010 we celebrate our 3rd year, the future is bright for Africa and together we can do amazing things. Bless Thomas -- Check out whats new from Uhuru Clothing Co. at www.uhuruclothingcompany.com

SNAP BOOTHUHURU CLOTHING

Happy Thanksgiving We borrow a lot of things from the west, some good and some bad. Today, we even take time out and get caught up in Halloween; I personally do not take part in that nor do I allow my son to either. One that we have not picked up on however is Thanksgiving. I do believe that as Kenyans this would be something worth adopting. Though we do not take a day off work and all , my family does celebrate this fine day. Thanksgiving falls in the third Thursday of Novem-ber, but here, one can simply choose to have it over the weekend. In the states we often see in movies that they celebrate with a big feast that focuses in on a turkey, This Bird is available here, though one can always settle for chicken, either way there is more to this day than the food. This Thanksgiving, I chose to share with you some-thing my son does while praying that I thought was commendable. On the first day, my son will always pray asking of God. a long time ago he asked God for a daddy, this morning he asked God to take away his cough and last week it was a trip to Disney Land. On the second day and every day after that, my son then says thank you to God for the thing he asked for the previous day, even though it has not physically manifested. It has been over a year, but my son still thanks God for a daddy every morning and night, a few days ago we got onto the internet and looked at pictures of Disney Land, and as we did, he mapped out his en-tire plan of where we would go first, what ride he would go on, he even had me look for where we would stay while we were there. Now the fact is, my bank account does not reflect possibility of going bowling or a movie let alone Disney land, I have not been on a date in years which many would say does

not increase my chances of getting married and lastly he coughed all through the night. Given all the above facts, one would not be too eager to thank God, they would probably not be too eager to talk to God pe-riod, but not this little boy. Looking at it ,I can say the definitely gets that verse in the bible that tells us that whatever we pray for, if we pray believing we have it, then it’s ours. My son knows to say thank you when you receive, and clearly he has. Often we let the facts interfere with the truth of the matter. We have to understand that it is the truth, the word of God that changes the facts. You may be sick that’s a fact, but when you keep thanking God that by His stripes you are healed, that right there changes the facts. It is the truth, the word of God that makes the poor rich, the blind to see, the dead to live, the sick to be healed. This thanks giv-ing, we ought to practice saying thank you to God even when the facts dictate otherwise. We need to give God thanks in advance because he is a God who says and does. There is no question as to whether what he says will come to pass, it must and it will. In the mean time, we should thank him. When your bank account reads zero, thank him in advance for making you prosper. When you are job-less thank him in advance not just for a great job, but a promotion. No matter what the facts are in your life today, thank God for the truth of his word and watch it makes manifest and change the facts. As you do that, let us remember to thank God for what we do already have as we thank him for what we are expecting. We have much as Kenyans to thank God for, for peace, for freedom, even for the construction of the new roads. Make sure to also thank anyone who shows you kindness, who gives unto you no matter how big or small never take it for granted or think that It is your right. Two little words can make all the difference, out then to good use to-day and every day. Say THANK YOU. Shalom, Miss Boss