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Exotique Boutique & Art Gallery Celebrates 15th Year Of Sharing African Culture

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Durham, NC – When it comes to African culture, creativity stems from music, art, clothing, and sculpture. African traditions are expressed through many different forms. These traditions are deeply ingrained into the African culture. Clothing is a big part of expressing cultural awareness and honoring African traditions.

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Lola and Yemi Olufolabi

Exotique Boutique & Art Gallery, located in the heart of Downtown Durham at 319 W. Main Street, is owned by Lola Olufolabi and her husband Yemi Olufolabi. They have had an incredible time starting and operating the store. “We have supported organizations and individuals in many countries, people who are just like us,” says Lola. “People who simply want to have an income and look after their families. We always try to support organizations whose outreach extends to many families. We are so proud to be part of something bigger than ourselves.”

Originally from Nigeria, Lola moved to North Carolina from the United Kingdom (U.K.) with her family in 1997 for her husband’s job. In Nigeria and in the U.K., Lola was a physical therapist. After moving to the U.S., she was a stay-at-home mother until 2006, when she opened her boutique and art gallery. Exotique Boutique & Art Gallery will celebrate its 15th anniversary in April of this year. 

“I wanted to showcase art and the beauty of art and handcrafts and promote the artisans as well,” Lola explains. “The whole idea was to create a place where people come to appreciate what artists have produced, and in another way also enrich the lives of the artists by doing this fair trade thing in poorer countries.”

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…many other countries are available at Exotique. (submitted)
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The works of artisans from NC, across the US, Africa, and…

Lola travels looking for artists and artisans, specifically young or start-up artists to help them establish their businesses. She expressed that she’s been to South Africa, Ghana, Nigeria, Mali, Gambia, Mexico, Argentina, Chile, Guatemala, India, and Indonesia. Exotique Boutique has an African focus because they have the most access to artists in Africa. However, the store is multicultural and finds products from artists and non-governmental organizations. 

Models wearing fashions …
… from Exotique. (submitted)

“When artists are overseas, we have to pay them what they want there and then because they don’t have the luxury of letting go of their goods and not getting the money,” Lola said. “The beauty of it for us is to be able to go in and put some dollars in their business and help them.”

Bringing fashion and artisan designs that enlighten the community are important to the continued growth of the boutique. The owner’s Christian faith is their fuel. “Through Exotique, we connect by using the opportunity of having traveled afar. These artisans want to sell for money, and the community wants to support them. We make that happen…bringing authentic and fair trade items in at an affordable price and traveling to find those unique items,” Lola says. “Artisans in North Carolina and many states here in the USA have also been very well represented. That is our interest, and it is a true blessing to be able to do this.”

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During the pandemic, Exotique added headwrap and mask sets to their product line. (submitted)

When asked how the pandemic has affected the business, Lola replies, “Business has been really, really slow since the pandemic started. Main Street is normally full of empty parking spaces. The difficult part is having to continue to pay bills when nothing is coming in as we have tried to retain our staff.” Lola explains that “People who love us love the authenticity of our products and the fact that we are proud of our artists and artisans both local and overseas.” That local customer base has made it possible for them to survive when so many businesses have not.

Lola and Yemi Olufolabi plan for Exotique Boutique to continue to be an integral part of the progression of downtown Durham.  “We hope to continue to make ourselves relevant as well as hope the community will support us and make downtown a destination,” says Lola.

For more information, please visit www.theexotique.com.

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