EBIT™ (Enjoy Being in Transition™)'s "TRUE STORIES [E050]" Marks World Mental Health Day

Returning for World Mental Health Day (October 10), mental-health first brand EBIT™ (Enjoy Being in Transition™) has unveiled its “TRUE STORIES [E050]” concept. The Spring/Summer 2024 collection serves as the inaugural physical offering from EBIT™ in exclusive partnership with retailer MODES.

Founded by Reference Studios CEO Simon Whitehouse at the height of pandemic lockdowns, a time of isolation and struggle for many. EBIT™ (Enjoy Being in Transition™) seeks to change the status quo surrounding mental health in the fashion community. Pursuing its goal through artistic collaboration, EBIT™ counts M/M(Paris), Glen Luchford, Michel Gaubert, Soo Joo Park, Wilson Oryema, and DJ John Digweed as creative collaborators.

Dubbed “TRUE STORIES [E050],” the line of ready-to-wear coincides with World Mental Health Day and utilizes the short-story art form. The concept narrates the parallel 2,000-word personal journeys of two individuals whose lives have been deeply touched by the spectrum of mental health experiences.

Intersecting via EBIT™, “Amina Ladymya shares her story of moving from Senegal, where she grew up living in hospital grounds surrounded by mental health patients, via France to become a rising talent in the fashion hub of Milan. Daniel Moors recounts a tumultuous upbringing and rebellious youth in Manchester’s subcultural underground at the Hacienda nightclub – and how he came, after surviving a breakdown and suicidal ideations in Shanghai, to settle as an English teacher in Italy. Daniel is the cousin of EBIT™ Founder Simon Whitehouse.”

“I grew up in a psychiatric hospital. My father had to live inside and be available 24/7 for emergencies. When someone broke down in the night, he was there. So were we. Many extreme moments, on alert. Deep, crazy situations. Waking up to screams and broken glass at any time. Chaos. We experienced all of that vulnerability and confusion that comes with a psychotic break. The horror when you look into the eyes of a lost soul. Harrowing,” Amina Ladymya.

“We were partying a lot at the Hacienda in Manchester (FAC51). On Fridays, DJs Graham Park and Mike Pickering used to play tunes like ‘Me, Myself and I’ by De La Soul and ‘Keep on Moving’ by Soul II Soul. Cliché songs, but just sounded amazing. We had the ‘Stoke’ corner. 30 odd people in the bottom corner of the Hacienda all from Stoke-on-Trent. Mad times. Madchester, Daniel Moors.”

The true, raw, and intimate stories display vulnerability as a strength and fuel the “TRUE STORIES [E050]” concept available digitally and in physical form as a flip-out concertina concept. The folded layers serve to reflect the complexities of individual mental health experiences – and our capacity to come together in solidarity and support around them, notes EBIT™.

“I feel a lot of people in fashion will relate to the TRUE STORIES of Amina and Daniel. I urge people to read them – so empowering. Fashion can be an incredible medium to build community and belonging. Clothes can cocoon our vulnerabilities, creating a silent solidarity. I am so touched and proud of Amina and Daniel for sharing their stories in this unique concept, and proud to partner with Aldo Carpinteri and the team at MODES to give it a home,” said Simon Whitehouse, EBIT™ Founder.

“Simon and I share a deep respect that has evolved into a meaningful friendship over the years. Modes has always championed emerging brands, young talents, and those with great potential. Today, I have the honor of welcoming and hosting EBITTM, an enlightened brand that supports an immensely noble cause, within the Modes boutiques,” Aldo Carpinteri, MODES CEO.

Priced between €175 and €500 EUR (approximately $185 and $528 USD), the SS24 “TRUE STORIES [E050]” collection made in Italy and from organic fabrics is gender-neutral and expresses a luxury casual wear aesthetic in cocoon shaped over-sized silhouettes. The special range will be available exclusively via MODES boutiques in Paris and Milan from January.

For more contemporary fashion, Heaven by Marc Jacobs’ latest collaboration celebrates Donnie Darko.