Born in Trinidad and raised in Florida, style was always a central part of Kamau’s life. Whether it was requesting color coordinated hangers for his short and long sleeve shirts as a middle schooler to launching a style column for his local newspaper while in college, the idea of always being put together was a constant.
Throughout his career in the industry, he recognized the power of clothing, how it transformed the wearer’s mood, their gait, how they walked a little taller and felt a little cooler. Putting on beautiful pieces of clothing, allows us to escape into a world, even if only to ourselves, that’s a little more glamorous, making us feel sexier than perhaps our 9-5 allows. That’s the essence of what clothing should and can be, a vessel to take us towards our best feeling selves. That’s the essence of Kamau’s approach to style.
In 2013, a few years after launching the blog Proper As, while living in Miami, he was named a winner of Vanity Fair’s Best Dressed Challenge. Less than a year later, he made the leap to NYC, set on being in the epicenter of the clothing industry in the US. It was here he was able to witness the work of master tailors and fell deeper in love with the delicate artistry of producing beautifully designed clothing.
Putting on beautiful pieces of clothing, allows us to escape into a world, even if only to ourselves, that’s a little more glamorous, making us feel sexier than perhaps our 9-5 allows.
That love of clothing coupled with equal inspiration from the feeling of glamour, decadence, and soul, in music from Thelma Houston to Teddy Pendergrass to Prince pushed Kamau to launch a brand in which all of these worlds combined. Kamsten was founded in 2019; marrying Kamau’s expertise in tailored clothing with an equal appreciation for the sense of release and power clothing has.
Kamsten is the brand for the person who lives outside the boardroom. Who loves the sexiness of a sharp peak lapel, the softness of velvet, the subtle rakishness of a hacking besom pocket. The brand for those who want to dress like they are the occasion.