Mohamed Dia (born 5 August 1973 in the

Sarcelles Sarcelles () is a Communes of France, commune in the northern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero#France, centre of Paris. Sarcelles is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Val-d'Oise Departments of Franc ...

) is a

Franco Franco may refer to: Name * Franco (name) * Francisco Franco (1892–1975), Spanish general and dictator of Spain from 1939 to 1975 * Franco Luambo (1938–1989), Congolese musician, the "Grand Maître" * Franco of Cologne (mid to late 13th cent ...

Mali Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...

an designer of sport clothing (sportswear and streetwear), founder of the M.Dia brand. In 1999, he founded M.Dia, a new brand of sport clothing with his own savings in Sarcelles, in the outskirts of Paris. French popular rap groups such as

Secteur Ä Secteur Ä was a 1990s French rap association based in Sarcelles, France and named after a sector in the region. This music collective was created by the Ministère AMER, and artist Kenzy became its producer-manager. The association was made ...

or Ministère AMER supported him and spread his brand wearing his products. That attracted the attention of French mass media which soon depicted him as a role model for youngsters from impoverished neighborhoods. In 2001, he signed a license with

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

and created a new textile collection: ''NBA by DIA''. That allowed him to enter the American market and then to open his first shop in the United States in 2004. In 2005, he also created his own record label, ''Dia entertainment'', along with

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

group

Ärsenik Ärsenik is a rap group based in Villiers-le-Bel, France, founded in 1992, and made up of two brothers, Lino (Gaëlino M'Bani) and Calbo (Calboni M'Bani), whose family is originally from Congo. Career Ärsenik started as a band in mid 1990s. ...

. He now owns a French sports clothing brand with a 16-million-euro revenue (nearly 24 million dollars) as of 2007.

References

External links

M.Dia Website
1973 births Living people French fashion designers Malian fashion designers French people of Malian descent Shoe brands Shoe companies of France Clothing companies of France Companies based in Île-de-France Products introduced in 1999 People from Sarcelles {{product-stub