Aurora James

Brother Vellies has been worn by activists, celebrities, artists and musicians, including Beyoncé, Solange Knowles, Nicki Minaj, and Elaine Welteroth. James designed the "Tax the Rich" dress worn by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez at the 2021 Met Gala.

In 2020, James was featured on the cover of the September issue of Vogue magazine, in a portrait by Jordan Casteel.

In 2020, in the wake of the murder of George Floyd and the wave of Black Lives Matter activism that followed, James launched an initiative called the 15 Percent Pledge, with an Instagram post on May 29 that Vogue writes "immediately went viral and resulted in an outpouring of interest." The 15 Percent Pledge Foundation was then created as a non-profit organization to urge major retailers to commit 15 percent of their shelf-space to Black-owned businesses. The foundation offers large corporations accountability and strategy suggestions as well as consulting services. The goal of the foundation is to advocate on behalf of Black-owned businesses and to build generational wealth in Black communities; according to its website, the initiative "was born from seeing multiple acts of social injustice and police brutality in the United States, with a lack of corporate accountability for the systemic issues at play."

In 2015, James began producing handbags for Brother Vellies, the same year she won the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund prize.

Aurora James is a Canadian creative director, activist, and fashion designer. In 2013, she founded the fashion label Brother Vellies, with the goal of promoting traditional African design practices and techniques. In 2020, James founded the 15 Percent Pledge as a non-profit organization to support Black-owned businesses.

After traveling across Africa in 2011, James spent the next few years experimenting with design, testing designs at local markets in New York and working with various artisan groups. She launched Brother Vellies in January 2013, started with $3,500 in savings, with a goal of promoting the work of African artisans. The first formal Brother Vellies collection was produced for the spring 2014 season and was created entirely with shoemakers in South Africa. James later expanded to working in other countries within Africa and beyond, including Mexico and Honduras, to continue producing desert boots, shoes, slippers, and sandals.

James was born to a Ghanaian father and Canadian mother in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. Her childhood was split between Canada and Jamaica. In 2010, James relocated to Los Angeles and later to New York City.