The Vogue Business 100 Innovators: Class of 2025 includes many Black creatives, entrepreneurs, technologists, and activists whose work is pushing boundaries in fashion, beauty, tech, social justice and culture. Below is a curated list of some of those notable names — combining those you raised plus others clearly identified in the published sources — with key achievements and what makes them stand out.
Yinka Ash
Founder & CEO of Ashcorp Group, which includes Ashluxe (streetwear/luxury brand) and Ashluxury (multibrand retail). He is helping elevate Nigerian streetwear and luxury globally, expanding into the UK, curating over 100 local and international brands through Ashluxury, and positioning Ashluxe as a cultural force.
Bubu Ogisi
Founder & Creative Director of IAMISIGO. Why she’s notable: Her brand uses craftsmanship, wearable art, and cultural heritage; her work is included in the Entrepreneurs & Founders category for blending creativity with craft and Africa’s creative identity.
Adebayo Oke-Lawal
Founder and Creative Director of Orange Culture. Known for experimental design, strong cultural aesthetics, and pushing Nigerian fashion onto wider (global) conversations.
Feben
Designer / Founder. Based in London. Of Ethiopian heritage; born in Pyongyang, moved to Sweden as a child, then to London to study at Central Saint Martins. Her work reflects displacement and identity. She works with artisans in Ghana, does community and charity work in London (e.g. with Sistah Space), and has shown at major fashion weeks, making her a strong voice in Champions of Change.
Golloria George
Content Creator & Consultant. Originally a refugee from South Sudan. Golloria has created viral content highlighting shade gaps in beauty (“Darkest Shade” series), worked as a consultant for beauty brands to expand inclusivity, uses her large audience to advocate for representation and social causes.
Nigel Matambo
Designer / Technologist. Named one of Oakley’s “Future Five” for creatives. Works with AI, wearables, digital and spatial design; consults with big brands (LVMH, Louis Vuitton’s digital wearables), collaborating with figures like Virgil Abloh, Samuel Ross, Pharrell Williams, Nike, Meta, TikTok. His work straddles technology, culture, identity, and design.
Why These Innovators Matter
- Intersection of identity + craft + tech: Many of these innovators are not just designers or creatives; they bring their background, heritage, lived experience (migration/displacement, being underrepresented in beauty etc.) into their work. This gives their contributions depth and relevance beyond aesthetics.
- Social purpose: Using platforms or business models to drive change — be it inclusion (beauty shade ranges), artisan empowerment (working with artisans, fair trade), or community support (charity fundraising, working with NGOs).
- Global & local balancing: Many are bridging local (African, South Sudanese, etc.) roots with global platforms — showing how local cultures can influence global fashion / beauty / tech industries rather than being peripheral.
- Pushing the boundaries: From digital wearables (Nigel Matambo) to redefining what a fashion week brand can be (Feben), or reimagining luxury streetwear and inclusive beauty (Yinka Ash, Golloria George), they are expanding what the industry can do.