This fashion label turns refugee life jackets into statement clothing.

| Read time: 4 minute(s)

This fashion label turns refugee life jackets into statement clothing. For fashion label founder and former refugee Mohamed Malim, the discarded jackets are symbols of perseverance. Mohamed Malim, a former Somali refugee who went to the US when he was three, wants his fashion label to start conversations. His Minnesota-based startup Epimonia takes life jackets from the Greek island of Lesbos that were worn by refugees when they crossed the Mediterranean and transforms them into bracelets, beanie hats, jackets and other items of clothing. The label’s seamsters are refugees too. “People see you wearing orange, ask about it, and then you can talk about the company and about refugees,” says Malim. A snapshot at the end of 2020 revealed 82.4 million people worldwide who had been forcibly displaced as a result of persecution, conflict, violence or human rights violations, according to the United Nations Refugee Agency. More recently, more than 3 million people are estimated to have fled Ukraine since February. Epimonia (the word means ‘perseverance’ in Greek) is all about telling a more realistic, balanced story about refugees, as well as supporting them practically. “I chose that word because refugees go through many challenges, and persevere throughout the whole journey,” Malim says. He notes that for many refugees, the life vests are the last thing they wear. It was while studying marketing at university in 2018 that Malim launched Epimonia. He was frustrated at the anti-refugee rhetoric he was hearing from politicians like former president Donald Trump.. Malim began by asking refugees to share a bit about themselves and published profiles about them, along with portraits, online. Realising that he could make an impact through fashion, he collaborated with his uncle, Dutch-Somali fashion designer Omar Munie, to create his first designs. With its initial signature accessory, the Embracelet, Epimonia was born. Mukhtar Dahir left Somalia for Canada when he was just one, and has since moved to the US.

For fashion label founder and former refugee Mohamed Malim, the discarded jackets are symbols of perseverance.

Mohamed Malim, a former Somali refugee who went to the US when he was three, wants his fashion label to start conversations. 

His Minnesota-based startup Epimonia takes life jackets from the Greek island of Lesbos that were worn by refugees when they crossed the Mediterranean and transforms them into bracelets, beanie hats, jackets and other items of clothing. The label’s seamsters are refugees too. 

“People see you wearing orange, ask about it, and then you can talk about the company and about refugees,” says Malim.

A snapshot at the end of 2020 revealed 82.4 million people worldwide who had been forcibly displaced as a result of persecution, conflict, violence or human rights violations, according to the United Nations Refugee Agency. More recently, more than 3 million people are estimated to have fled Ukraine since February. 

Epimonia (the word means ‘perseverance’ in Greek) is all about telling a more realistic, balanced story about refugees, as well as supporting them practically. 

“I chose that word because refugees go through many challenges, and persevere throughout the whole journey,” Malim says. He notes that for many refugees, the life vests are the last thing they wear. 

It was while studying marketing at university in 2018 that Malim launched Epimonia. He was frustrated at the anti-refugee rhetoric he was hearing from politicians like former president Donald Trump.. 

Malim began by asking refugees to share a bit about themselves and published profiles about them, along with portraits, online. Realising that he could make an impact through fashion, he collaborated with his uncle, Dutch-Somali fashion designer Omar Munie, to create his first designs. With its initial signature accessory, the Embracelet, Epimonia was born.  

Mukhtar Dahir left Somalia for Canada when he was just one, and has since moved to the US. 


Lesbos, Greece


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