Felloci Howa

My name is Felloci Howa a Malawian leather designer and artisan trainer with over ten years of experience advancing circular design through culturally rooted, material-led practice. My work transforms food-industry by-product leather into functional accessories that honor African utility while meeting international durability and sustainability standards. My design philosophy is material-first. Scars, grain variations, and tannery off-cuts that dictate each silhouette, ensuring zero-waste patterning and unique outcomes. This approach underpins my studio’s commitment to chrome-free, vegetable-tanned processes and 95% waste-derived material use, directly aligning with the Real Leather Stay Different ethos that waste, not leather, is the problem. As a trainer, I have built one of Malawi’s leading artisan development programs. I lead some workshops for emerging makers and cooperatives, covering sustainable sourcing, zero-waste cutting, mlaza grass integration, saddle-stitch construction, and repair culture. My curriculum equips artisans with both technical skill and commercial viability, paying three times the local day-rate and creating export-ready products rooted in Malawian identity. My recent project, the _Alingofa handbag for RLSD 2026, exemplifies my impact: by-product leather, recycled grass, mlaza grass reinforcement, and repurposed chitenje cotton combine to solve environmental, social, and economic challenges simultaneously. Whether designing, judging, or mentoring, I advocate for slow belonging over fast fashion. I believe leather’s future is collaborative, circular, and African-led. My role is to ensure the next generation of makers design with conscience — turning heritage and waste into heirlooms that age with wisdom.