Ophelia Crossland Named Swarovski Ambassador

Top Ghanaian fashion designer Ophelia Crossland has been named West African ambassador for international brand, Swarovski.

She becomes the first Ghanaian and West African designer to represent the world brand in West Africa.

“It is a great opportunity to align with a brand like Swarovski. It is an honour and I like to say thanks to Gizela Gagakuma, the African representative of Swarovski and the entire team at Swarovski for making this possible,” she confirmed the deal over the weekend.

Swarovski is a world leading producer of cut lead glass. The company is split into three major industry areas – the Swarovski Crystal Business which primarily produces crystal jewellery and accessories; Swarovski Optik which produces optical instruments of high precision such as telescopes and binoculars; Tyrolit, a leading manufacturer of grinding, sawing, drilling, and dressing tools, as well as a supplier of tools and machines.

Swarovski Crystal Business is the highest grossing business unit with a global reach of approximately 2,680 stores in around 170 countries, more than 26,000 employees, and a revenue of about 2.6 billion euros (in 2016).

The celebrated Ghanaian fashion designer and chief executive of Ophelia Crossland Designs was chosen because of her unique designs and the quality of designs she produces. She uses Swarovski crystals to do amazing designs.

She was made ambassador for the brand a year ago and the deal was renewed weeks ago.

As part of the deal, she will also be using Swarovski's tags and labels on her designs and she is the only Ghanaian and West African with the right to do so.

Ophelia Crossland is leading fashion brand in Africa. She has been around for over a decade and she has designed for some high-profile personalities, including former First Lady Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings and a lot of Ghanaian celebrities.

She designer makes clothes for different individuals based on their personality and figure. She was one of the first fashion brands in Ghana to have done the whole merging of African fabrics and contemporary styles. Her company was one of the companies that started doing that before it became popular for other fashion houses to join in.

“Our signature is entirely based on fit-in dresses. This is because we are pretty particular about fit-in and finishing. We don't compromise on our quality. There is one thing we stand out for—our finishing. It is one of the reasons we export to some parts of Europe, Ivory Coast and Angola,” she once said about the quality of her work.

By Francis Addo (Twitter: @fdee50   Email: [email protected] )