The striking designs of Ray Darten are not for the timid, yet they are worth a shot. The Africa dresses are not to be missed; they are made to be worn. They have reasonable prices and products for men, women, and children in a variety of sizes.
Although Bay Street has grown to be a popular destination in Emeryville, California, it is not typically known for housing locally owned businesses; instead, it is where you go to shop at well-known chains like The Gap and Uniqlo. Nevertheless, one local designer has dared to open a store amidst the abundance of chain stores and well-known names. Yetunde Olukoya is Owner and designer at Ray Darten.
A pioneering Ray Darten photo shoot (2016)
Ray Darten Journey To Quality Africa Dresses
After two years of being an online-only brand, Olukoya opened the store in November 2018. The transition from designer to entrepreneur to store owner took place swiftly.
Yetunde Olukoya
It has been fantastic to open the Bay Street storefront, and Olukoya is pleased to have established retail roots in the Bay Area.
“The Bay Area represents a very special place to our brand. It was the first place I ever sold my handmade pieces I had been sewing for months,” she said. “It also represents the first place we had our first fashion show and pop-up shop event. The love was so real, the words of encouragement, wisdom, the heartfelt prayers continue to be a motivation to me.”
Photos of Africa Dresses By Ray Darten
MAFOYA AFRICAN PRINT JACKET DRESS
KEBBI EMBROIDERED DRESS
AWARUN AFRICAN PRINT DRESS
KANI AFRICAN PRINT DRESS
FADEKEMI AFRICAN PRINT JACKET DRESS
BALORE AFRICAN PRINT JACKET DRESS
DEMI AFRICAN PRINT DRESS
MUREWA AFRICAN EMBROIDERY KIMONO (EMERALD GREEN)
MIDE AFRICAN PRINT JACKET DRESS
TITI AFRICAN PRINT JACKET DRESS
MONOTAN AFRICAN PRINT JACKET DRESS
TUMI AFRICAN PRINT DRESS
Olukoya made a deliberate choice to open a location on Bay Street. “We also made a conscious decision to make our first location easily accessible to all parts of the Bay area, and Bay Street stood out as the No. 1 location.”
