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Hongkonger Darren Lee is hoping to visit Tanzania, a country in East Africa, to attend a wedding. He has never met the bride and groom. One of their fathers, Waziri Msewa, creates art for Lee’s sock company.
Sababu Socks was launched in December. It works with dozens of artists across Africa to design socks. Thirty per cent of the profits go back to the artists themselves. The artists hail from different places across the massive continent, such as Tanzania, Zanzibar, eSwatini, South Africa, and Kenya.
“The stories and connections I’ve built with these artists motivate me to keep going,” 18-year-old Lee said.
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Reason and purpose
Lee attended secondary school at ESF Sha Tin College. There, he took a business class with a teacher from eSwatini, a small country in southeast Africa.
The teacher helped him raise money for under-resourced athletes in Tanzania and eSwatini. They organised tennis tournaments through an initiative called “Serve for a Cause”. Lee also partnered with the non-profit Crossroads Hong Kong to create a donation drive.
“After secondary school, I wanted to continue doing something similar,” said Lee, a student at the University of Hong Kong.
Lee and his teacher came up with the idea for Sababu Socks. Sababu is a word in Swahili that can mean reason and purpose.
Lee launched the company using money he had saved from his red packets and from working as a freelancer building websites.
“There’s a common misconception that you need money to help others,” Lee said. “But I thought, why not do this project in which we can use the money from the socks to help these artists?
Lee chose to focus on socks because their basic design does not change, while clothes tend to go in and out of style.
His teacher helped him build his network of artists. He regularly communicates with them on WhatsApp, using Google Translate to chat.
The teen hopes his brand can inspire Hongkongers to learn more about different cultures, such as those across the African continent.
“[Hongkongers] don’t have a lot of awareness relating to African cultures, which is why I wanted to bring ... their arts and their culture here,” he said.
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Changing perceptions
Lee’s newest collection showcases work from Hong Kong’s domestic helpers.
“Everybody knows [domestic helpers] are not treated too well and not paid fairly,” he said. “So why not use this opportunity to share their culture and allow the people of Hong Kong to support these artists?”
Lee reached out to Guhit Kulay, a group that helps migrant workers share their artwork. Lee chose three artists for the first release of this collection.
Jhoan Estera, who prefers sketching and mandala art, has been creating art since around 2018. She first moved to Hong Kong in 2016.
Estera wanted the opportunity to show off her art. However, domestic helpers are not allowed to receive any money from extra jobs. That is why Sababu Socks sends money directly to their families.
Estera is excited to work with Sababu Socks. She thinks it can be a voice for migrant workers. She also hopes Sababu Socks will change people’s perceptions of domestic workers.
“People see us as just migrant workers. I hope it can be more eye-opening to everyone that migrant workers can do anything,” she said.
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