MIZIZI, a sportswear brand based in the United States, dropped a new Somalia Hockey Jersey to commemorate the 61st Independence Day of the country.
The brand was founded in 2015 by Paakow Essandoh while he was studying at the University of Florida in order to connect the African diaspora in Florida, and across the world. MIZIZI’s collections include unique baseball, hockey, soccer and basketball shirts that come printed in the flag colours of several different African, Latin-American and Caribbean countries.
“Since we first launched in 2015, we’ve always had a strong demand for Somalia jerseys but when we launched our first Somali baseball jersey in November of 2015, I felt like we dropped the ball. The design was cluttered and didn’t feel as authentically representative as I had hoped,” says Essandoh.
“Since then, years in the making, we’ve designed iteration after iteration, making sure we do right by the Somali community the next time we release. Even down to our visual campaign; drawing inspiration from both vintage and rural Somalia, we consistently spoke with those in the Somali diaspora to make sure we accurately represented Somali culture,” he says.
The hockey jersey that was released in commemoration of the Somali Independence Day has Somalia stitched across the front of the jersey with a “Soomaaliyaa” flag crest patched on the shoulder. The independence year, 1960, is displayed on the back with blue colour bands stitched on the sleeves and along the bottom of the jersey. The jersey is 100% polyester fabric, sublimation printed with tackle twill stitching for optimal comfort.
“To say this jersey is a labour of love is an understatement,” Essandoh explains on the decision to design a shirt to commemorate such a special occasion for Somalia. “We’ve spent more time on this campaign alone than we have any of our others, and I can’t be more proud of my team for all the hard work they put in to make sure we got it right”.
This campaign was orchestrated by creative director Temi Thomas, designed by Kenneth William Obeng, captured by photographer Kwesi Yanful and videographer Aaron Lewis, and modelled by Faye Imanke, Afafa Imanke, Kafay Doualeh, and Abdisalam Mohamud.
To get your own Somalia hockey jersey, visit MIZIZI’s shop here.
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