Zongozan, new African boutique, brings Ghana’s culture to New Haven’s Whalley Avenue
By Mark Zaretsky, Staff Writer
June 21, 2024
NEW HAVEN — The interior of Zongozon, is a wash of bright colors and different textures, including multi-hued Ghanaian veils, African print skirts, dashikis and a wide array of gold-plated jewelry.
The vibrant clothing and jewelry in the brand new African boutique in a Yale-owned storefront at the base of Whalley Avenue reflects the rich culture of owner Mariam Jafaru’s native Ghana.
It’s meant to be “a gateway for African culture to really be seen,” Jafaru said as she welcomed more than 40 people — many of them friends and relatives — to the new store Thursday afternoon.
“The shop is yours,” Jafaru told the people assembled in front of her. “You are always welcome.”
It’s a sentiment echoed in the name itself, which her children came up with. Jafaru said they named Zongozon after an expression from their culture that means, “All are welcome.”
Jafaru and her family began the search for a location during COVID — and throughout the process, “the family was very much involved,” she said.
Jafaru and Samu are Ghanaian Muslims. They moved to New Haven from Toronto in 2002. They have five children and both also work jobs as registered nurses — Samu at Yale New Haven Hospital and Jafaru at the Whispering Pines Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in East Haven.
They live in Guilford now but lived a couple of blocks from where the store now is when they first came to New Haven.
“I used to walk to the Green with my two kids on Whalley Avenue all the time,” said Jafaru, who was impressed then by the culture and diversity of people she ran into along the way. “That’s what always has drawn me to New Haven,” she said.
So when the family sought a place to locate Zongozon, Jafaru looked for a spot that would reflect that diversity.
“I wanted a place full of people of diverse backgrounds … so I can share my ideas and rich culture with as many different and unique people as possible,” Jafaru said.
She found it at 43 Whalley Ave., in a building directly between Popeye’s and the Sushimizu Japanese restaurant and across from the Courtyard by Marriot hotel.
“We were planning to do this from 10 years ago,” said Jafaru, wearing a colorful red and orange dress with purple accents. She spoke after a series of welcoming and congratulatory speeches. Among the people toasting the new venture were Mayor Justin Elicker, Yale Associate Vice President for New Haven Affairs and University Properties Alexandra Daum and Jafaru, herself.
There also was a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the new venture.
On Thursday, immediately after the festivities, the store’s interior was full of family and friends —some as from as far away as New Jersey — eating cake to celebrate the opening.
Zongozon is likely one of the first boutiques in New Haven bringing the beauty and color of Ghanaian culture to the city, let alone to the edge of downtown.
Jafaru’s husband, Samu — a member of Ghana’s Hausa ethnic group who emigrated from Ghana to Toronto in 1987 — said he is impressed with how much work his wife has done to get it going.
“I am part of it,” Samu said, adding Jafaru “did 90 percent of the work.”
“We’re so proud of her — she’s a very hard worker,” said Safira Iddriss, Jafaru and Samu’s daughter
Iddriss’ husband, Mohammed Isa, said Jafaru is a leader in the local African community.
“She is like a mother to the whole community,” Isa said. “She’s been a source of solace for a lot of people.”
Daum said people shouldn’t be surprised to see Yale University renting one of it’s downtown retail spaces to a locally owned shop with an ethnic niche.
“We’re really interested in bringing independent entrepreneurs in,” she said.
Looking around at all the colorfully dressed Ghanaian women and man gathered for the occasion, Daum joked that “we should have a best-dressed award.”
Elicker welcomed Zongozon to the community.
“This is really an exciting moment,” he said. “New Haven is hot. It’s hot right now temperature-wise, but it’s also hot from an economic development standpoint.”
He said the city is growing but should do so inclusively.
One good way to grow is by partnering with new “women-owned and Black- and Brown-owned businesses,” he said.
He said spending money at big box stores goes out of town, but that same dollar spent at a locally owned business, such as Zongozon, is instead circulated within the community.
Elicker hailed Jafaru for being willing to invest her money in New Haven.
“You’ve taken a risk to become a small business owner,” Elicker said.
“I love the direct connection that you have with Ghana,” he said, pointing out that some of the goods sold at Zongozon are produced locally, but it’s also supporting craftspeople in Ghana.
Zongozon, 43 Whalley Ave., is open 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays. Parking is available in lots at 56 Broadway and 40 Dixwell Ave. in addition to on-street spaces along Whalley Avenue.
