For decades the fashion industry has been characterized by exploitation and repression of workers in the Global South. This remains the basis upon which countless international fashion companies generate their profits.

But we believe the world is only truly fair when people in the so-called developing countries have the same opportunities as industrialized nations.

With our campaign “Designed in Bangladesh. Made in Europe” we demonstrate that designers, fashion trends and subcultures in countries we did not pay attention to, can offer us new, enriching opportunities.

With our campaign “Designed in Bangladesh. Made in Europe” we turn the typical supply chain upside down and demonstrate that designers in countries we didn’t pay attention to, can offer us new, enriching opportunities.

We had the vision of a sneaker that stands for self-empowerment and the disrupting of a whole category.

Therefore, we found Rokaiya Ahmed Purna - a female designer from Bangladesh. She created the first sneaker designed in Bangladesh and produced in Europe: the ekn Kamthala. But most importantly the first step towards rethinking.

We demonstrated that countries we used not to pay attention to can offer us new, enriching opportunities. And showed: creativity does not stop at national borders.

With “Designed in Bangladesh. Made in Europe” we created a sneaker that stands for respect, self-empowerment, strong women and the disruption of a whole category.

We demonstrated that countries we used not to pay attention to, can offer us new, enriching opportunities. And we showed: creativity does not stop at national borders.

With our message we want to reach as many groups as possible: People with an affinity for fashion or shoes, but of course also the general public and the general population. But we also want to encourage start-ups, new fashion brands and established fashion companies to rethink their approach.

Ekn Footwear wants to ensure minimal environmental impact and maximum attention to detail. That’s why the ekn Kamthala was limited to 150 pieces.

We launched the sneaker 10 January 2023, since then it has been available. And the campaign is still running.

The campaign runs worldwide, but as a small brand, we didn’t expect this size of discussion. German and international magazines talked about our vision and the ekn Kamthala was discussed all over the globe.

As a small shoe brand our campaign “Designed in Bangladesh. Made in Europe.” helped us to spread our massage. But we didn’t expect this size of discussion. German and international magazines spread our vision of rethinking and influencers shared the shoe within their communities.

All reactions were supportive and positive. We increased our reach on social media by +1,600% and had over 140 million impressions. And the best thing about it: Rokaiya turned into a role model for an entire generation.

We hope people are now more aware of this imbalance.

But we’re not done yet: the campaign is still ongoing. As a direct result of our campaign, there is a platform being built by Rokaiya herself to support designers in Bangladesh - financed by our revenues from the sneaker.