Kova – Minimalistic Quality Leather

There’s a new fashion brand on the block and it’s coming for everything. Kova is a 100% Namibian brand of bags and accessories made from leather.

Made up of a small team that makes sure that everything produced under the brand is inspired by their love for the simple things in life, everything Kova is a mix of minimalistic, clean lines, quality and accessibility but most of all, their love for the organic and unique nature of leather. Hence the name, which is a translation from the Oshiwambo word for leather, onkova.

A newbie to the market, Kova has only been around since 2017 but is already standing out as a vibrant and unique brand to reckon with.

interviewed Kova founder Petrina Auino-Mwandingi about the brand, the journey to getting it where it is today as well as its future.

I’ve been interested in natural medicine and a holistic approach to healthcare ever since I was first exposed to naturopathy through my holiday job during high school. I then went to study natural medicine at the University of the Western Cape and came back home to practice as a naturopath. I’m really passionate about not only helping, but also educating and empowering my patients to live their healthiest life! I built a health and wellness business around my practice over the past eight years and that’s how I also became an entrepreneur. Being a doctor is my eight-to-five and making handbags is what I do on the weekends, my creative outlet… I guess you can call it my side hustle. The combination works well. Both activities fit into my life and create balance.

Kova was born out of curiosity and necessity. It was a bit challenging to find a simple leather handbag locally despite the fact that we produce so much leather. Getting bags customised to what I wanted also proved to be difficult so I bought myself a leather sewing machine and decided to make my own bags. I could already sew and with YouTube and the help and guidance of an experienced lady, I began to make my own leather totes and small accessories. The entrepreneur in me soon saw it as a potential business and I decided to just go for it!

I handcraft and make most of the bags myself using a heavy duty leather sewing machine. The time it takes will depend entirely on the complexity of the design – whether it has pockets, zips or an inner lining, for instance. The simpler the design, the faster it is to produce. The type of leather, and how soft or hard it is, also affects how fast one can work.

How has the feedback from the public been so far?

So far it’s been really encouraging and very positive. People love the bags and we appreciate all the support and also the advice and suggestions on how we can improve our product.

Anyone who loves quality, durability and someone who appreciates minimalistic, timeless leather bags and accessories. Occasionally we make bold pieces that pop and make a statement!

Where do you source your material from?

All our materials are sourced locally. We’re very proud to use only Namibian leather!

I’m hoping Kova grows organically into one of Namibia’s biggest fashion brands and eventually we can go international and sell our products beyond our borders. I’d definitely love to work with other Namibian creatives! I’m particularly interested in collaborating with textile designers to see what magic we can create together.

Currently we are an online store. We’ve also sold our bags and accessories at craft markets and pop-ups and we’ll be doing so in future again. Our online catalogue is available to view at kovanam.com.