April Walker, an iconic designer, entrepreneur, educator and author from Brooklyn, New York, is in Detroit for the fifth annual National Black Footwear Forum at Michigan’s only historically Black college.
The forum at Pensole Lewis College of Business and Design runs through Sunday and celebrates the influence, leadership and creativity that Black professionals bring to the global footwear industry. The event also featured the unveiling of Walker’s Apparel Design Stu/deo, a space where students can work on their creations and named after Walker as a tribute to her more than 30-year career in the fashion industry.
In the late 1980s, a then 21-year-old Walker opened her clothing boutique Fashion in Effect. Mixing streetwear with a hip-hop style, her clothing attracted clientele that included high-profile rappers like LL Cool J, Run-DMC, Queen Latifah and Tupac. Fashion in Effect has since morphed into the lifestyle brand Walker Wear.
Walker talked with me about how the new space at Pensole Lewis College came together, what inspired her to get into fashion and what she’s seeing in the next generation of Black designers.
Editor’s note: The interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
BridgeDetroit: How did it feel when you first heard that the Black Footwear Forum was honoring you with this new design studio?
Walker: I felt very humble. It was a full circle moment for me because you do the work and you look up and it’s 30 plus years later and then this happens. I give God all the credit, but it felt good to be recognized and to pay tribute to dreams that come through and being able to impact others in a positive way.
BridgeDetroit: Did you have an input on what the studio would look like?
Walker: It was a collaborative process. I worked with Angel (Buckens), who is a student alumni of PLC. She was the designer of this space and she worked really hard with me. Then another professional actually built out the space. I didn’t see the final vision because they didn’t want me to see it, but they took my input and had to ask me for certain things, like pictures. I gave them a bunch of stuff to choose from and they did the rest. They curated it lovely, so it was beautiful to see it all come to fruition.
BridgeDetroit: What are some of the features in the studio?
Walker: When you walk into the hallway, there is a whole montage of the history of my family foundation, mixed in with some moments of my journey. And then, on the opposite wall, there are four pillars. There are four different samples of my work. And it says, “Workwear meets fashion.” A big part of Walker Wear’s journey was we were inspired by workwear. So, workwear fashion, fit and function was a big part for me. And there’s an amazing mural that Sydney James did of myself. She took a photo that she found at a photo shoot, and she did her thing that she does. I really wanted to make sure it was community-centric and that Detroit had its stamp in the building and now it does.
And then it’s a few mannequins with some of our iconic pieces that put us on the map and a wall that outlines different historic moments in Walker Wear’s timestamp. Mike Tyson in the ring, you have my first album cover with Naughty by Nature, just a lot of the legends that I’ve worked with throughout the years.
BridgeDetroit: What inspired you to get into fashion?
Walker: Honestly, it was the backdrop of hip-hop. I was a hip-hop kid for real in the culture, embedded in it, and I love the music. It was the soundtrack of my life and I just believed in that. And I just expressed myself.
It didn’t start out as ‘I’m going to do this collection.’ It just was almost like painting, you just start creating and that took a life of its own and your tribe will find you. And people started telling me I should do a line and that’s how we transitioned into our first collection with Walker Wear, which was literally one denim suit called the record market suit. It was based on me wanting to create function and fashion and put those two things together, and create something timeless that would be durable, quality and dress up, dress down. That’s really how it started. It was based on a demand that wasn’t there, but I saw it.
BridgeDetroit: How do you continue to find inspiration for Walker Wear?
Walker: I surround myself with young people. Young people have always been the gateway to our future and I pay attention. I teach and teaching is another part of me, being able to connect with young people, to understand their minds and not become this rigid, seasoned lady, but to keep my mind agile. I also connect by staying in these streets. That’s why I’m here in Detroit. I never want to get to the point where I’m in the penthouse and I can’t come downstairs.
BridgeDetroit: What kind of things are you seeing from the next generation of Black designers?
Walker: I see innovation, I see creation. I see them really owning their magic way more than my generation did in terms of them being completely fearless. I see them having agency over their own decisions, and I see them being a lot more aware about self-care. When I was coming up in this business, a lot of time, I felt like I was alone. It was a lot harder.
This generation is not afraid to ask questions, to step to you, to get the information they need. And at the same time, they’re also very aware of keeping their mental health in check and that’s something I don’t think that our generation was.
BridgeDetroit: What’s your favorite place to go to when you’re in Detroit?
Walker: I like going to Shinola. But right now my favorite, if I had to pick one, it would be Pensole Lewis College. It’s very special and it’s the first business and design HBCU.
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