From Suitcase to Store: Zia on Building a Fashion Brand, Trusting Instinct & Doing It Afraid | For Mannerless Women

From Suitcase to Store: Zia on Building a Fashion Brand, Trusting Instinct & Doing It Afraid | For Mannerless Women

Author: Legally Clueless December 18, 2025 Duration: 34:59
What does it really take to build a sustainable fashion brand in Kenya, without overnight success, investor hype, or a perfect plan? In this episode of For Mannerless Women, Adelle Onyango sits down with Zia Nyamari, fashion entrepreneur and founder & creative director of Zia Africa, for an honest conversation about building a business from the ground up, fear, faith, intuition and all.

Zia takes us back to her very first business idea at 10 years old (selling popcorn on the street), through years of importing clothes in suitcases, quitting employment, navigating family pressure, and eventually opening a flagship store at Village Market. She shares the behind-the-scenes realities of growth, the fear of dead stock, imposter syndrome, and why consistency matters more than speed. This episode is especially for women who are:
  • Thinking about starting a business
  • Growing slowly and wondering if they’re “behind”
  • Learning to trust their intuition alongside logic
  • Navigating fear, faith, and self-belief
In this episode, we talk about:
  • Starting a business with what you have
  • Why growth is rarely overnight
  • The fear of dead stock and financial risk
  • Quitting employment to bet on yourself
  • Consistency as a business strategy
  • Trusting intuition and feminine leadership
  • Sustainability and slow fashion
  • Affirmations, faith, and doing things afraid
ZIA’s reminder is simple but powerful:
“Believe in your idea so much it has no choice but to materialize.”

🔗 Connect with Zia Africa@nandigirl_ on instagram
@zianyamari on TikTok
@ziafrica on both IG & TikTok
website: www.ziaafrica.com.
Physical location: Village Market, New Wing, 1st floor.

🔗 More from Legally Clueless Africa
  • Newsletter signup: www.legallycluelessafrica.com/
  • Instagram: www.instagram.com/legallycluelessafrica/
  • TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@legallycluelessafrica
  • YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/LegallyCluelessYoutube
  • Share your story with us: forms.gle/kMn7Wae5N563JFGQ8
If this episode resonates, share it with a mannerless (or almost mannerless) woman in your life and don’t forget to follow or subscribe so you never miss a new episode.

Each week on Legally Clueless, Adelle Onyango turns the microphone toward the beautifully messy reality of growth. As a well-known Kenyan media personality and social activist, she doesn't offer polished advice from a stage, but instead documents her own unvarnished experiences, framing her life as an evolving and unapologetically African woman. This creates a rare and welcoming atmosphere where uncertainty isn't a flaw but a shared starting point. The heart of this podcast lives in the stories-Adelle opens the space for a chorus of African voices to share personal narratives that might teach you something one moment and have you laughing or crying the next. These aren't theoretical discussions; they're authentic accounts from everyday lives, full of the specific textures and truths that often go unheard. Tuning in feels less like attending a lecture and more like sitting in on a powerful, ongoing conversation where the only requirement is to be human. You'll find a sense of connection in hearing others navigate the same complexities you do, all within the candid and compassionate world this podcast builds every episode.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Legally Clueless
Podcast Episodes
Surviving the Scroll & Staying Human | Mid Week Tease [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 22:27
Social media has become part of our daily lives but it’s also quietly changing us. The endless scroll, the outrage-driven posts, the comparison traps… all of it can keep us in survival mode: tense, reactive, judgmental,…
Unlearning “You Must Be a Mother” PART 1 | Legally Clueless Ep345 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 45:04
In this episode, we document Brenda's path toward a childfree life, from a lively Meru childhood and firstborn duty to the moment, at seven years old, when she first questioned whether motherhood should be her destiny. T…
Yoga Healed My Mother & Rewrote My Story | For Mannerless Women [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 28:32
In this moving episode of For Mannerless Women, Catherine, the first Kenyan woman to lead a yoga teacher training in Africa, shares her extraordinary journey of healing and transformation. Born and raised in Kariobangi,…
Why Women Judge Themselves And Each Other | Mid Week Tease [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 18:36
In this Mid-Week Tease, Adelle dives into the hidden ways internalized shame limits women and how it often makes us judge each other too. Shame is sneaky; it feels personal, but really it’s society’s voice living inside…
The Day My Childhood Shattered PART 3 | Legally Clueless Ep 344 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 41:51
Over the past two episodes, we’ve journeyed with Audrey through her childhood and the unimaginable loss of her beloved brother, Warren. In this final part of her story, Audrey shares how she navigated life after loss, th…
Rest Is Revolutionary for Women | For Mannerless Women [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:52
In this episode of For Mannerless Women, host Adelle Onyango sits down with Ingashian Gibendi, product leader, founder of The Career Whisperer, and a bold advocate for women crafting careers on their own terms. Ingashian…
The Day My Childhood Shattered PART 2 | Legally Clueless Ep 343 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:18
When Grief Silences Siblings In Part 1 of Audrey’s story, she took us back to her childhood in Migori County, the joy, the cracks in her parents’ marriage, and the loneliness of family separation. In this second part, Au…