A person in a dark room looks at a pile of printed promotional materials and logos branded 'OUALO' spread across a bed.

OUALO is not for everyone.

And we say this in the most kind way possible. OUALO is rooted in two completely different cultures: Senegal and Belgium. OUALO isn’t for everyone, and that will never be our aim. We'd rather stand for something real than try to appeal to everyone.

We hold our culture in the highest regard and love to inspire others with it.

Black and white photograph of two young boys standing outdoors on a wooden path, wearing matching dark vests and trousers with light shirts.

Growing up in Senegal shapes everything about you.

I grew up in Senegal; life there is completely different from life in Belgium, the priorities are different, and the pace of life is completely different.


I came to Belgium at young age

I came to Belgium when I was just 12 years old, a new culture, a new way of life, but of course also a completely different way of living together.

Belgium is certainly a colder country in terms of temperature, but at first it wasn’t just the temperature that felt cold; the environment did too. People had a different way of living together, one that I still had to learn.

As time went on, I began to understand all the things I’d initially seen as ‘cold’, and even to adopt them myself. A different country means different customs, and you pick them up more quickly than you might sometimes realise.

I needed something else.

For a long time, football was my only outlet; my days were filled with going to school, supplemented by training sessions.

The older I got, the more I realised I needed something in which I could truly find myself, something into which I could put my energy, but from which I could also draw a great deal of energy.

Football was, and still is, one of the most important ways for me to express myself, but it just didn’t feel like enough.

I began to notice that fashion plays a very important role within the world of football, helping to reinforce one’s identity; however, I found it difficult to find clothes that reinforced my own identity. That’s when the idea came to me to reinforce that identity myself with my own brand, based on my story, a story I’d love to share with the world. A brand with Senegalese roots, combined with Belgian influences, tells my story exactly as I want it to be told.

OUALO. Senegalese Roots. Belgian Art.