On July 2018, the BBC covered the story of James Maina Mwangi, the self-proclaimed best dressed man in Africa.
James Maina Mwangi lives in Umoja estate, Nairobi.
He reportedly owns 160 suits, over 300 caps, and over 200 pairs of shoes, and that was in 2018.
Fast-forward to 2020, he is again in the news. His matching style has attracted the attention of media all over the world
Currently, during the pandemic, the man has added the mask that matches all his suits and he has a noble mission to boot. He wants to wants to use his local celebrity to help street children at a time when lockdown measures have made life harder.
“Things have become harder now because of COVID-19. This country has no money,” he spoke to international news channel Reuters from his house in Umoja Estate.
“Men knew how to wear clothes in black, brown, grey or dark blue. Those were men’s colours, God gave me wisdom and showed me all the different colours I can wear to be different from everybody else”
James Maina Mwangi
Why the stylish clothes?
“When I (first) came to Nairobi, I was wearing one shirt, and many people were laughing at me, because they know my father was a freedom fighter and he was poor. And that’s when I asked God to give me something different from other people”, Mwangi told BBC in 2018.
In 2020, he told Reuters, “God gave me wisdom and showed me all the different colours I can wear to be different from everybody else.”
Mwangi, who dropped out of school at 12 because he could not pay the fees, said he only had one shirt when he was a child, which he would wash it daily and put on still damp.
He earns a living as a jack of all trades, says he lends his suits to members of his church and street children who need them.
He donates most of his clothes to street children and some members of his church.
Interview with BBC
Interview with Reuters
