By Rita Okoye
If subtlety is your thing, PEM’s Loud collection might not be for you. But for those who’ve ever felt pressure to tone it down, to dim, to dilute and to disappear. This collection arrives like a long-awaited answer. Princess Obeya, the mind behind the luxury womenswear label, makes one thing clear: shrinking is no longer the standard for elegance.
Loud is a collection that throws away the rulebook. It doesn’t flirt with femininity; it reclaims it in full colour. The palette alone is a protest: rich red, bold yellow, shimmery jewel tones that demand eye contact. These hues are not background shades. They’re centre-stage declarations.
What makes this collection stand out is its commitment to theatrical confidence without crossing into costume. The red feather gown, which anchors the offering, strikes the perfect balance between extravagance and wearability. You could easily see it on the Met Gala steps or on a red carpet in Lagos. It’s high drama, yes, but it knows its proportions.
Elsewhere in the lineup, PEM plays with curves and cut-outs, offering a variety of silhouettes that hug, sculpt, and sway. It’s evident that Obeya has a keen sense of the female form, not as something to cover or conceal, but to celebrate. The citron gown, for instance, with its radiant draping and rhinestone straps, adds modernity without losing glamour.
What’s perhaps most striking about Loud is how commercial it feels without being boring. These dresses aren’t just editorial, they’re sellable. That’s not always easy with statement design, which can lean too avant-garde to move units. But PEM has found the sweet spot: eye-catching fashion that women will actually wear.
There’s room to grow, particularly in expanding PEM’s fabric play. We’d love to see Obeya bring this same vision to unconventional textiles or introduce tailored contrasts for added tension. But what she’s doing here is clear and needed.
In a world that constantly asks women to be less, Loud insists on more. And we’re listening.