Designed in Bangladesh, Manufactured in Portugal

Hamburg’s Accenture Song is working with eco sneaker brand ekn to launch a new vegan sneaker, the first ever to be designed in Bangladesh and manufactured in Portugal. The unique design, named ekn কাঁঠাল Kamthala, is a creative collaboration between the Frankfurt founded shoe brand and rising female Bangladeshi designer, Rokaiya Ahmed Purna.

The ekn কাঁঠাল Kamthala, design based on a jackfruit

The idea behind the project is to create a ‘sneaker as a symbol of respect’ - aiming to reverse some of the unethical supply chain practices, pollution and exploitation that have been synonymous with the big players of the fashion industry for decades.

As a product that’s designed in Bangladesh and manufactured in Portugal, the ekn কাঁঠাল Kamthala - Bangladeshi for jackfruit, the country’s national fruit - makes a bold statement, demanding a radical rethink of how fashion brands work with the Global South. By reversing the ‘designed in the Global North, manufactured in the Global South’ paradigm, the project calls upon the industry to stop unethical manufacturing practices there and instead explore the creativity of designers based outside of the West.

The creative agency behind ‘Designed in Bangladesh. Made in Europe’ is Hamburg-based Accenture Song, formerly Kolle Rebbe. Group Creative Director Alexander Grapp and his team developed the project from start to finish alongside ekn, including introducing Rokaiya Ahmed Purna to the footwear brand - and creating the design language, packaging, launch campaign film and photography around the product.