Custom Collaborative
Ngozi Okaro, Executive Director
Economic Mobility
Custom Collaborative trains, mentors, and advocates for and with no/low-income and immigrant women to build the skills necessary to achieve economic success in the sustainable fashion industry and broader society.
Year Founded: 2016
Custom Collaborative envisions a world in which all women possess the skills, confidence, and agency to design their futures and contribute to a sustainable world — regardless of race or background.
Custom Collaborative is activating their work through their:
- Training Institute, a comprehensive 15-week program teaching the art, technique, and business of fashion design.
- Business Incubator which offers management consulting, mentorship, technical assistance, advanced training, and professional equipment to Training Institute graduates and others in the fashion industry.
- Production Co-Op a worker-owned sewn-goods cooperative comprised of Custom Collaborative Training Institute graduates.
Founded in 2016 as a New York City-based entrepreneurship and workforce development organization, Custom Collaborative trains, mentors, and advocates for and with low to no-income and immigrant women to achieve economic success in the sustainable fashion industry and broader society.
In 2023, Custom Collaborative received a $100,000 investment from New Profit’s Catalyze Cohort. This funding supports our participants with a collaborative model that includes peer learning, 1:1 leadership coaching, and consultations with external experts.
Ngozi Okaro
Executive Director