One thing you need to know about Ruby Buah’s life and design philosophy is that it goes something like this: When you jump into something, you go all in with heart, soul, and gratitude.
So, when she decided her jewelry hobby needed to expand, she bought what she describes as a “mortgage payment” worth of materials. Let’s just say it was enough that she had no choice but to go all in—and the result was Kua Designs, a jewelry and accessories brand that pays tribute to her family, her culture, and her love of Africa.
“It’s culture meets cosmopolitan,” Buah says. “That’s my story in a way. I came to the United States at 17, got my education here, but I still go back to my culture for my designs.”
Buah was born and raised in Ghana, and she describes her design philosophy as being greatly influenced by the country and its people. Her parents hoped that she would go into a sensible profession despite her penchant for a career that emphasized her creativity, so she followed their advice.
After attending an all-girls school in Ghana, Buah moved at 17 to the United States as an exchange student. When selecting a college, Buah says she picked Wesleyan College because it also was an all-female educational institution in Georgia, and she felt comfortable there. She decided to major in business because her family had an entrepreneurial bent and she knew she could always go into business for herself someday.
Buah started working in finance, learning as she grew and moving up from company to company. She ended up eventually at the Coca-Cola Co. in Atlanta, where she was a financial analyst. Buah says she loved the job, but she had a little hobby that was quickly growing into a time-consuming side hustle. It was her new company, Kua Designs.
“I had taken a jewelry-making class after work, and I got hooked,” Buah says. “I went to a bead shop one weekend, and I bought a lot of beads. A LOT. It felt like a mortgage. I asked myself: ‘What am I going to do with all of this?’ So, I had friends that I knew liked my earrings, and I started working it.”
That resulted in weekend pop-up shops, stalls at flea markets, and plenty of booths at art shows. Buah wondered whether she could transition this small business to become her main employment, so she started researching how people started a fashion brand and jewelry company. When she found an article about a lawyer who had become a jewelry designer, she knew she had found her path.
Buah packed up and went to New York, where she attended the Fashion Institute of Technology, graduating with a degree in jewelry design. By this time, she had become a mom so she decided not to go back into the corporate world. With renewed vigor, she started making handbags and other accessories with African themes and Ghanian symbols.
“I knew once I had made that move, I’d have to work in fashion,” Buah says. “I did it because it meant so much to me. It had to sustain me and my lifestyle.”
To support her home country, Buah sources her materials from Ghana and upcycles everything she can to boost her brand’s sustainability. Hiring people in Ghana and naming her business after her mother—Kua is her middle name—are among the many tributes Buah offers to both her culture and her family. Buah says Kua also stands for “keeping us authentic.”
“I remember everyone who buys from me because I want that connection. I want to build that kind of community,” Buah says. “It goes from my hands to you. It’s personal.”
Now, she has a store in Accra, Ghana; attends trade shows regularly; and comes to the United States as often as she can to see her U.S. friends and customers. She is here now as part of a summer pop-up tour, visiting cities including Los Angeles; Washington, D.C.; Miami; and New York.
“Because I had a separate career before this, I’m still in the gratitude space. I love that people want to buy my designs. It feeds my soul,” Buah says.
Top: Ruby Buah studied business because she knew that practical decision would offer rewards for a lifetime, influencing her to open her own jewelry and accessories company that pays tribute to her connections to Ghana and the United States (photos courtesy of Kua Designs).
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