Aurora James

Aurora James had her first internship at the age 15 at Next Models in Toronto. After high-school, she studied fashion for a year at Ryerson University before switching her major to journalism and taking a job with Jeanne Beker at Fashion Television. The experience of watching the passion and candidness that Jeanne Beker was able to get out of her interviews and off-the-record moments affirmed James' desire to express herself as a designer. James first traveled to Morocco in 2011 and spent two years working with numerous artisans and experimenting with local materials. James founded Brother Vellies in 2013 with two specific goals in mind: to introduce her favorite traditional African footwear to the rest of the world and to create and sustain artisans in Africa. Handmade in South Africa, Kenya, Ethiopia, and Morocco, Brother Vellies shoes maintain the spirit and durability of their ancestral counterparts. While the company offers a variety of styles-including boots and sandals-it was