Glo-sponsored African Voices Beams Klieg Lights On Continent’s Style Icons

 This week's edition of the Glo-sponsored African Voices on CNN will feature Nigeria's style icon, Jide Ipaye, alongside two others: Noella Coursaris, an international model and philanthropist from Congo and Mario Guillot, a French designer.

In a statement issued in Lagos on Thursday by Globacom, the three style icons would be the centre of discussion in this week’s edition of the programme which runs on CNN on Friday at 10.30 a.m., with repeat broadcasts at 4.30 p.m. on Saturday, and at 12.30 a.m. and 7.30 p.m. on Sunday. Viewers can also watch it at 11.30 a.m. on Monday and at 5.30 a.m. on Tuesday.

The first of the three dazzling trend setters to be featured, Nigeria’s Jide Ipaye, is the founder of fast-rising shoe manufacturing company, Keexs Footwear. Keexs is regarded by fashion followers as the first innovative and social-oriented footwear brand in Africa with a mission to pioneer innovation in footwear, bring exciting designs to life and empower communities through social-oriented projects.

Explaining what inspired the establishment of the company, Ipaye says: “We the citizens need to take more individual and collective initiatives towards correcting some of our social issues (economy and society) rather than sitting around complaining and waiting for our leaders to solve everything.”

Noella Coursaris on her part is an international model and philanthropist of Congolese, Swiss and Cypriot descent. After receiving a degree in business management, she was chosen to appear in a campaign for Agent Provocateur. Modeling took her from the pages of fashion magazines like Vogue and Vanity Fair to the global stage. An  advocate for Africa’s youth development, Noëlla is expected to talk to viewers of African Voices about her organization that empowers Congolese girls and their communities through education and health programs.

The third guest, Mario Guillot, is a French designer who fell in love with Mauritius and made it his home. His IV Play fashion company is a fast-selling brand with five stores in Mauritius where it is as highly rated as the likes of Calvin Klein and Diesel. “It is also a huge hit among tourists,” says Chennai-based entrepreneur Vijay Jhaver who has won the rights to manufacture and distribute the IV Play brand in India.