AYWA LONDON started as an experiment in Buckinghamshire to revamp the dark and sombre essential cloak called the ‘abaya’.  Founded by Waqaas Ahmed in 2014, showcasing his debut collection at a charity fashion show in London, the collection was a burst of fresh air. 

Pouring colour and print down the runway with a collection of abayas that were anything but plain black.  The collection reflected a sense of joy and relief from the orthodox and conventional cloak.  It turned heads and created an impact.  

Over the years, AYWA LONDON has slowly and organically developed and demonstrated its core values through its collections and practices – essentially to offer something alternative.   

Today AYWA LONDON continues to create beautifully handcrafted garments for its loyal customers all over the world, with amazing fabrics and great tailoring skills at hand.

Housed in the fashion capital of London, AYWA LONDON develops all collections in-house, from fabric selection and design, all the way to production and distribution – and everything happens here at our workshop in London (and some of it in Buckinghamshire still). We are proud to have a very streamlined supply chain with maximum quality control.  

"I want women to feel amazing in what I create" 

It was just as experiment at first.  Women close to me struggling to find abayas that felt special.  With my love for amazing fabric and skills in tailoring, I began to make robes and kimonos, which quickly started to get noticed.  Curious women wondering "where is your abaya from?  It's so different"!

- Waqaas Ahmed, Founder and Creative Director