Roslyn Karamoko is a Detroit based designer, consultant and life-style brand owner. She is the brainchild behind Detroit’s premier label and (previous) concept shop Détroit is the New Black, a community centric platform elevating underrepresented brands, and founder of an independent retail management and design consultancy. Her work and design philosophy draws inspiration from contemporary culture, innovation in manufacturing and design, and the evolution of urban environments.
In 2023, Karamoko joined the consulting team at Michigan Central, a subsidiary of Ford Motor Company as retail and brand strategist. In this role, she developed a comprehensive retail strategy for Michigan Central Station and the surrounding campus which included the design and management of brand narratives, visual identities, and a retail marketing and digital strategy. Prior to Michigan Central, Karamoko was the VP of Business Strategy & Development at Neighborhood Goods where she led partner acquisitions across a range of retail categories.
Karamoko’s interest in retail and fashion was forged at an early age, stocking merchandise in a Nordstrom warehouse in Seattle where she was immediately enamoured by the vision and dedication of the (at the time) very visible Nordstrom brothers. She later moved to New York to pursue a career as a merchandiser in the office of Saks Fifth Avenue and was subsequently recruited by EU e-commerce giant Zalando/Rocket Internet GMBH to spearhead buying operations in Southeast Asia.
She was named “The Motor City’s Hottest Designer” by TIME Magazine and her work has been featured in The New York Times, Travel & Leisure, The Wall Street Journal and W Magazine. In 2019, she was honoured as a Crain’s Business 40 Under 40 recipient and was a selected member of the Detroit Month of Design Curatorial Committee. Her current work also extends to airport concessions as a joint venture partner with WHSmith Retail Group.
Karamoko is a graduate of Howard University in Fashion Merchandising, a former lecturer at Wayne State University and the University of the Arts London and has served on the Advisory Council of the Charles Wright Museum of African American History.