Entrepreneurs who grew up in Nigeria before moving to Middlesbrough to study launch collection with a purpose.
A fashion entrepreneur and a writer/creative director who grew up together in Nigeria before moving to Middlesbrough to study at Teesside University have launched a new fashion collection with a purpose.
Victor Kwesi and John Nwachukwu have been friends for 25 years and grew up in a city in the Eastern part of Nigeria, before “fate” brought them to Middlesbrough to pursue their careers in business and public health.
“There are other cities we could have gone to, but Teesside University brought us here and John studied public health, while I studied business,” said Victor, whose Victor Kwesi brand of clothing creates hoodies and casual clothing, while John’s ‘Casual Billionaires’ brand creates smart casual outfits for all occasions with an African influence.
Both Victor and John work to support individuals with their mental health through the organisation PIPS (Positive Individual proactive Support) which helps people with learning disabilities, autism and mental health needs across Teesside.
Now the pair have launched a new clothing collection, which combines their shared interest in promoting positive mental wellbeing amongst men on Teesside, with looking good and feeling great.
Victor says: “Fashion can be used as a tool to drive mental health awareness, especially in the black communities in Middlesbrough and I believe that a good outfit is worn best when someone has a sound mind.
“We studied this back home in Nigeria – we grew up together – he’s into clothes making and fashion artistry and I shared the idea with him about how much I feel like fashion can be used as a tool to tell people more about how much they’re caring for their mental health.
“When I told him about my idea for a fashion collection that supports positive mental health and wellbeing, he thought it was a good idea.”
Their Spring/Summer menswear collection, REBIRTH includes five-looks inspired by people overcoming trauma, healing, and spiritual awakening.
The collection uses plant symbols, natural fabrics, and soft, earthy color palettes to echo internal rebirth: “from silence to self-acceptance, from numbness to wholeness”.
Victor says: “Gone are the days when fashion was only skin-deep.
“With REBIRTH, Casual Billionaires steps into the deeper conversation about mental health, emotional vulnerability, and the masculine journey of transformation.
“Each look is more than a fit — it’s a ritual. A quiet rebellion against cultural silence around emotional pain.”
John adds that when Victor brought the idea of a fashion collection supporting positive mental health, he immediately saw the need for men, particularly for men in Middlesbrough.
“Some of the clothes that we make, the materials are light and quite calming on the skin and they make you feel relaxed when you wear them with pride,” he says.
“Wearing them brings you back to sanity, as sometimes the clothes you wear can bring you calmness and help take down your anxiety.”
Victor and John’s summer collection features breathable, soft and cool luxury fabrics at an affordable price.
One particularly striking yellow outfit “represents each and every black man you see in Middlesbrough” according to Victor, because everything about the outfit from the fabric and the idea for the style was made back home in Nigeria.
John says: “We’re bringing the culture of where we come from to the UK – but the clothes are not just for the African community.
“They are smart clothes that can be worn for any occasion.
“Fashion is a language everyone understands – everyone wears clothes and if you put on clothes that help you reduce your anxiety and give you charisma it can benefit your mental health.”
The five looks include ‘Buried Seed’ – a soil brown and faded stone minimal look symbolising emotional shutdown and representing a beginning unseen, but full of latent power.
Meanwhile, Bloom Theory is a soft, joyful ensemble celebrating vulnerability as masculine beauty and unapologetically expressive. The palette for this look features sun yellow, blush, and cream.
The pair are happy to see the black community growing on Teesside and have encouraged friends back home to consider Teesside University as international students since they found a home away from home here in 2021.
Victor, who also writes about positive mental health and wellbeing and has a novel entitled ‘Whispers of the Soul’ coming out next month, says: “As a writer I’ve been able to publish articles on mental health awareness here in Middlesbrough and the work on the fashion collection goes hand in hand with that advocacy work.
“Every three months I write a flyer and post them around offices and shops where I know that the target audience, which is men in Middlesbrough, can get access to it and through our work with PIPS we help people to experience and express life to the fullest.
“My book will shed more light on how men need support to deconstruct their mindset and be able to take care of their mental health better.”
Watch this space!