Nigerian ball dresses that have the WOW postman for us, adolescents,

“I felt like a princess,” said an American teenager Brianna Ledoux about her ball gown that she specially ordered in Nigeria.

“I wanted my dress to prevent people in their footsteps.”

The 18 -year -old man from Florida, who has Haitian and Dominican roots, wore a black garment made from a skewer and pearly lace fabric, which is commonly used in traditional Yoruba conceptions for events where people want to wear matching clothes.

“I didn’t only want a dress,” said Brianna to the BBC.

“I wanted a story that I could wear – something that said:” It is, and that’s where my roots run. “”

High school balls in the United States have been a rite of passage – for a long time in countless films from adulthood – and are an opportunity for some to make a declaration on identity and fashion.

The event is more than a party, it’s a show: part of the red carpet; Part of social milestone and for many young women – a powerful moment of self -expression.

But when Brianna made a Tiktok video of herself in her African ball dress, she did not expect the reaction she obtained – she became viral and her message has now more than 1.1 million views.

This reflects an increasing interest that has led to the demand for tailor -made outfits with daring conceptions and unique embellishments.

What started as a Tiktok and Instagram trend – with people like Brianna displaying their clothes – has led to a booming company that connects fashion designers to Africa to young people outside the continent.

The average price for an African manufacturing ball dress varies from $ 600 to $ 1,000 (£ 440 to £ 740), depending on the complexity of the design, the choice of fabric and additional details. Personalized luxury pieces can exceed $ 1,500.

It may seem expensive but is much cheaper than having a tailor -made clothing in the United States – where the cost starts at around $ 3,500 and can go much higher depending on the designer and the materials.

The BBC was maintained with five fashion designers in Nigeria and Ghana who, in all, completed more than 2,800 ball dresses commands during the 2025 season, most of them are linked to the United States.

Creator Shakirat Arigbabu and her team, based in the southwest of the Nigerian city of Ibadan, were responsible for 1,500 of them.

She has cut a niche for herself, even if the tradition of the ball is not popular in her country.

“Eighty-eight-eight percent of the dresses we have made in the United States. We were working in teams, just to meet deadlines,” said Ms. Arigbabu.

His company, the Keerah fashion cave, employs 60 full -time employees and at least 130 contractual employees were brought during advanced periods.

In 2019, when she had her first major ball order, she had 50 dresses to deliver. By 2024, orders spent 500, and this year, this figure has tripled.

Even if for the carriers of the dresses, the Post-Prom can be a chance to bask in the persistence of the June event, those who make them are back to work.

Each month of July, the team of tailors of Ms. Arigbabu begins to prepare for next year: the bases of the corset are cut; The silhouettes are sketched; The fabrics come.

“It’s no longer seasonal – it’s a whole cycle. The ball consumes everything,” she said with enthusiasm.

Business also exploded for designer Victoria Ani and her workshop in Uyo, southeast of Nigeria. She says she sent more than 200 dresses to New York, New Jersey and California.

She began to operate this market in 2022 and now has a team of eight. Only one dress takes three to seven days to end, depending on the design, she says.

Ms. Ani thinks that the choice of an African designer is a cultural declaration.

“They say that there is this pride when they can say:” My dress came from Nigeria “,” she said. “We had about three customers who won the” better dressed “and two who were ball queens.”

Popular styles include corsets, high slots, feathered trains, detachable capes and pearl sleeves. Some are inspired by themes Met Gala, Yoruba bridal looks or an Afrofurist aesthetic.

“We get requests like” Coachella Queen “or” Cinderella but African “,” explains Efua Mensah, Ghanaian designer based in Accra, adding that the ball season has become a reliable sales cycle for companies like his.

Nian Fisher, 17, from Miami in Florida, describes experience as “unique”.

She found her designer on Instagram, attracted by their follow-up of 200,000 people and “work ethics that goes beyond, they do not make the minimum minimum”.

All the arrangements were taken on WhatsApp, including a live video call where a tailor in Nigeria guided him, she and her mother, taking measures.

“They made sure that each number was perfect for my dress to adapt like a glove,” she said.

When the emerald dress arrived, “everyone was amazed,” said Nian.

“The veil was hanging on the ground, the fabric was heavy and people kept saying:” Wow … a beautiful black queen. “”

Her mother, Tonya Haddly, admits that she was nervous about commanding abroad.

“But when I saw this train sink from his head towards the ground and catch the light, I instantly knew that it was not made in America.”

Social media was a meeting place for adolescents and African fashion designers who benefit from the market opportunity.

When Memphis’ high school girl, Trinity Foster, 18, went in search of a ball gown, she wanted something “rare to see” in the United States and found her on Tiktok of a designer based in Lagos.

Even if she had never worn a super formal dress before – only bulk sun dresses – Trinity had trusted the creator’s advice, settling on an adjusted look with “at least one exaggerated song”.

The two -week process was smooth, the vacuum sealing packaging to open, but inside was a perfectly adjusted dress that made it feel like “like Tiana” on the evening of the ball – referring to the first African -American princess of Disney.

“I was super excited … happy that we did not have to send it back or anything,” she said.

His Instagram post attracted gentle comments, curious questions and more than a few people who asked who made.

The hashtag #AfricanPromdress now has more than 61 million views on Tiktok.

“Instagram Runtings Sales”, MS is like. “Tiktok Brines renown.

For the Nigerian designer, most orders go through Instagram DMS, after potential customers have traveled photos of dresses marking his brand, then contacted.

But social media also provides complications.

Ms. Arigbabu remembers a few frustrated customers who made their complaints public instead of contacting her directly: “A girl said:” I don’t want this to be resolved – I want to become viral. “”

Efua Mensah, a designer to Accra, who has sent 404 dresses to the United States this year, said: “Sometimes the dresses are late because of customs or mail rear.”

Sometimes they are simply outdated. “There are days when we work 20 hours repairing a dress while wrapped another,” she said.

However, designers say that most customers are satisfied – often film detailed unpacking videos, mark the brand and help feed visibility and an increase in orders.

The African designers who spoke at the BBC said that orders for American ball gown represented a large part of their annual income – in one case up to 25%.

With the team of Ms. Arigbabu in Ibadan who was already preparing for the ball season next year, she said for the first time that she will not have to dismiss temporary staff.

However, the new 15% American price for goods imported from Nigeria has an immediate challenge.

“The price will increase the cost … making them less competitive on the American market,” explains the designer.

Although the higher price can reduce sales, she says she plans to make small adjustments, reducing costs, improving efficiency and exploring alternative markets to remain competitive without additional customers.

“Of course, I am worried,” she admits, reflecting broader anxiety among Nigerian companies navigating on the change of trade policy of US President Donald Trump.

Another big change will be that instead of operating on the old model, where each dress was only manufactured after an order, it plans to go to a ready-to-wear system, the clothes being available to ship immediately.

Affordability is also a key problem – and although cheaper than buying an equivalent room in the United States, a ball dress requires significant financial resources.

As the market develops in sophistication, the means to pay, the designers starting to use online payment plans to distribute the cost.

With hindsight, Brianna said that the price was worth it because the ball was all that she hoped since she was little.

“I remember a lot from the ball – it’s something that girls have dreamed since childhood.

“Honestly, if my nails were ugly, my makeup was disgusting and my hair was not cute, as long as I was in this dress, I was fine.”