The contemporary luxury of Prince Ouankpo-Johnson leather goods

Audio 03:15

Prince Ouankpo-Johnson, founder of Maison Wonkpo © wonkpo

By: Maria Afonso

3 mins

Travel bag, backpack, handbag, clutch or wallet at Wonkpo, Prince Ouankpo-Johnson's collections invite us to travel with and through the names of the models: Accra, Lomé, Tunis, Yaya and many others .

These accessories combine leather and textile.

They are inspired by traditional patterns with a unique design.

They are imagined in France by the founder of the Wonkpo brand and made with excellence and the know-how of several countries in Africa and the Maghreb.   

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I did not study drawing but I learn, I let my soul speak and what I want to see 

Prince Ouankpo-Johnson, founder of the Wonkpo leather goods brand

“ 

Wonkpo is not just a brand, there is a name behind it because it's my family name: Ouankpo-Johnson, but I wrote it differently.

The semantics of the name is: I leave my mark, the perfume is still present. 

»

Born in Nigeria, Prince Ouankpo-Johnson was rocked by its culture but also that of Benin, Ghana, France and Italy.

He arrived in France, in Libourne, near Bordeaux at the age of fifteen, where he grew up with his uncle and his family.

After his baccalaureate, he evolved in the field of the pharmaceutical industry.

In 2019, he returns to Africa after more than twenty years of absence.

It was then that he had the click to imagine a brand for all lovers of accessories like him.

It will be the Maison Wonkpo that he is launching in 2021.  

Wonkpo marvel travel bag © wonkpo

A brand, a family, a story 

This brand of leather goods invites you to travel but also to discover the family history of Prince Ouankpo-Johnson

All Wonkpo bags have a name, a city name because this fabric comes from that country.

Bamako, a nod to Mali.

The Ronke bag has a double wink and a tribute because Ronke it's a Yoruba name from Nigeria it means the precious thing and it's also the name of my big sister who died at the age of twenty years.

I wanted to pay tribute to her, for her to tell herself that from where she is, her little brother has not forgotten her.

»

Wonkpo, Sakyna backpack © wonkpo

The difference is the solidarity we can have within the continent

Prince Ouankpo-Johnson offers an alliance between tradition and modernity that recalls his identity and his shared values.   

I was very marked, when I was in Libourne, by my aunt who fought to contribute to the lives of children in an orphanage in Benin or single mothers.

I saw her collecting hospital beds, bags of rice, clothes, notebooks to send.

It marked me.

We are lucky to have all of that, in abundance, here and I wanted to contribute something.

The brand is very young but for each item sold, 5% is donated.

I would like to do more in the long term.

I have the chance to see a lot of cultures, a lot of different countries and I want to help in these different countries, be it Mali, Senegal, Ivory Coast.

Today, what will make the difference is the solidarity that we can have within the continent

,

concludes Prince Ouankpo-Johnson.

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