A Letter From Our Founder

WHO/WHAT IS MDG?

I am the son of two first-generation immigrants to this country. A mother of Jamaican descent born in England, and a father from Côte d’Ivoire. I was raised in the Silver Spring and Takoma Park neighborhoods of Maryland right outside of DC. It was a tight-knit international community, and a place where Black heritage is strong and you learned to be proud of who you are.

The principles that my family and community instilled in me were what anchored my resolve to succeed. As a child, my Jamaican Grandmother would always tell me to stand up for myself and not take any “S-H-I-T” from anybody because we were descendants of the Jamaican Maroons.

“Head up. Chest out. Carry yourself with pride and honor. Let your light shine and don’t dim it for anyone.” These guiding principles drive me to be as steadfast, resilient, strong, and brave as my ancestors.

After earning my bachelors in Mechanical Engineering from USC in 2010, I worked in various aspects of construction and development, and honed my skills in a myriad of roles. I’ve developed and planned the construction of data centers, casinos, skyscrapers, and stadiums down to the most minute of details.

That engineering background and attention to detail coalesced in the design of this first collection of workwear. Workwear is not only a quintessentially American staple, but a convergence of fashion and function. It made perfect sense to develop objects with lasting design impact and durability.

I started Maroon Durable Goods as a passion project. As it began to take form, I decided to give it a moniker that spoke to my truth, background, and experience. The “Maroon” in the name isn’t for the color, it’s for my ancestors, who fought their masters and escaped slavery to the freedom of the Blue Mountains to commune with the indigenous peoples and practice their traditional West African ways of life. Maroons were DURABLE in mind, body, and spirit. They created a legacy of standing up to tyranny no matter the odds, and never giving up the fight for freedom.

CUT & SEW COLLECTION 001

I developed this Maroon Durable Goods Cut and Sew Collection from scratch just for you. This first collection is years in the making, and inspired by those close to me.  We source and manufacture all of our garments locally in Los Angeles. We select the finest deadstock fabrics and craft them into individually numbered limited edition pieces for you the end consumer.

DESIGN & MANUFACTURING PRINCIPLES

We use a preorder process to minimize waste, and make sure that the consumer gets a custom-made product that is truly one-of-a-kind and will last a lifetime. Our garments are made with love, improve with age, and are meant to become staple pieces to pass down for generations.

We’re dedicated to expanding our offering of durable goods made in the USA and implementing LEAN engineering methodologies to capitalize on manufacturing efficiencies - thus delivering more value to you, the consumer.

BUY IT ONCE.

PASS IT DOWN.

PAY IT FORWARD.

MDG.

Love, Peace, and Respect,

Kahniley Sangare

Founder & CEO,

Maroon Durable Goods