On July 4th, while the vast majority of
Americans relish their barbecue and fireworks experience, I was having the
unique opportunity of seating next to Shola, an amazing Nigerian entrepreneur
on a flight from Lagos to Dubai. We were having a mentally stimulating
conversation over a stretch of hours as Shola was heading to Guangzhou China
and I to New York, NY.
As a female entrepreneur in a male dominated business environment, Shola is truly awesome, who despite her limited formal educational background has managed to build a thriving publishing business that caters for fashion design needs of Nigerians through a fashion magazine and posters. With humble beginnings in Shomolu Lagos, she grew this business to the point of hitting marketing leadership in the major cities of the country. And as a visionary entrepreneur she was already taking expansion steps hence the trip to China. Shola was hoping this trip to China will be a game changer to the business and potentially the Nigerian fashion (print) industry.
This conversation was somewhat serendipitous because part of the reasons for my trip was for the Africa Fashion Star; an apprenticeship program for rising African fashion entrepreneurs in New York. So I was sternly watching out for parallels with Shola's story. And because I couldn’t hold back this curiosity and excitement, I decided to ask her about business model and vision for scale.
“We do have an army of photographers that gatecrash major parties in the city, taking pictures of stylishly dressed people. We then publish these designs targeting local tailors and hair salons as our end-user. Brother, you will be surprised how many people are thrilled to be featured on our magazine. We also have a few tailors and hair stylists in our network that allow us publish their work. Business is good I must say”. This was her response to my question on how the business works.
As awesome as this sounds, I couldn’t help noticing a few untapped opportunities for scale, and sadly why this business might forever remain a small business. This conversation did not just confirmed my conviction that what is holding back African entrepreneurs really is not lack of a high hustle quotient, creativity or street savvy. For these entrepreneurs to take their game to the next level and possibly hand it over to the next generation, global knowledge and competencies are absolute nonnegotiables.
Then I responded. “First off, I understand that my ideas may be far from the realities on the ground so apologies in advance. I understand these guys are eager to get on your magazine but I’d get to them to sign a release waiver form that authorizes me use their work. I might even incentivize with the perk of a potential for a modeling deal afterwards. Then I will push for an exclusive publishing deal with these tailors and hair stylists. And finally, I will consider launching a new product line of a modeling business from this enterprise”.
Initially she laughed off my idea saying “I can see you’ve lived in America for such a long time, this is Nigeria”. But gladly, after making her see some possibilities from this new business model, it dawned on her that in fact she could push a similar exclusive regional deal with her Chinese technical partners.
It was African entrepreneurs like Shola that inspired me to start LDI Africa. Entrepreneurs who in spite of the everyday challenges in Africa have managed to create their own opportunities but couldn’t still play on the global stage. This is why I am proud and very excited about the Africa Fashion Star. This platform will make it possible for rising African fashion entrepreneurs to work on Broadway and Madison Avenue New York, interacting with world’s best fashion brands. A few years upon returning home being retooled to not only launch one of the best African fashion brands but increasing the rating of African designs on the world’s fashion map.
As a female entrepreneur in a male dominated business environment, Shola is truly awesome, who despite her limited formal educational background has managed to build a thriving publishing business that caters for fashion design needs of Nigerians through a fashion magazine and posters. With humble beginnings in Shomolu Lagos, she grew this business to the point of hitting marketing leadership in the major cities of the country. And as a visionary entrepreneur she was already taking expansion steps hence the trip to China. Shola was hoping this trip to China will be a game changer to the business and potentially the Nigerian fashion (print) industry.
This conversation was somewhat serendipitous because part of the reasons for my trip was for the Africa Fashion Star; an apprenticeship program for rising African fashion entrepreneurs in New York. So I was sternly watching out for parallels with Shola's story. And because I couldn’t hold back this curiosity and excitement, I decided to ask her about business model and vision for scale.
“We do have an army of photographers that gatecrash major parties in the city, taking pictures of stylishly dressed people. We then publish these designs targeting local tailors and hair salons as our end-user. Brother, you will be surprised how many people are thrilled to be featured on our magazine. We also have a few tailors and hair stylists in our network that allow us publish their work. Business is good I must say”. This was her response to my question on how the business works.
As awesome as this sounds, I couldn’t help noticing a few untapped opportunities for scale, and sadly why this business might forever remain a small business. This conversation did not just confirmed my conviction that what is holding back African entrepreneurs really is not lack of a high hustle quotient, creativity or street savvy. For these entrepreneurs to take their game to the next level and possibly hand it over to the next generation, global knowledge and competencies are absolute nonnegotiables.
Then I responded. “First off, I understand that my ideas may be far from the realities on the ground so apologies in advance. I understand these guys are eager to get on your magazine but I’d get to them to sign a release waiver form that authorizes me use their work. I might even incentivize with the perk of a potential for a modeling deal afterwards. Then I will push for an exclusive publishing deal with these tailors and hair stylists. And finally, I will consider launching a new product line of a modeling business from this enterprise”.
Initially she laughed off my idea saying “I can see you’ve lived in America for such a long time, this is Nigeria”. But gladly, after making her see some possibilities from this new business model, it dawned on her that in fact she could push a similar exclusive regional deal with her Chinese technical partners.
It was African entrepreneurs like Shola that inspired me to start LDI Africa. Entrepreneurs who in spite of the everyday challenges in Africa have managed to create their own opportunities but couldn’t still play on the global stage. This is why I am proud and very excited about the Africa Fashion Star. This platform will make it possible for rising African fashion entrepreneurs to work on Broadway and Madison Avenue New York, interacting with world’s best fashion brands. A few years upon returning home being retooled to not only launch one of the best African fashion brands but increasing the rating of African designs on the world’s fashion map.
At LDI Africa, we connect African professionals and organizations to the global marketplace!
