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Esther Ijewere

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‘I STARTED WITH ZERO CAPITAL FROM THE FLOOR OF MY LIVING ROOM’- IFEDOLAPO OKEWALE

Ifedolapo Olayemi-Okewole is the CEO of Hadassah Bridals, a complete bridal outfit based in Lagos. A graduate of Microbiology from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife and a World Bank Scholar, she relocated from England back to Nigeria to start her business, a journey she describes as tough. Recently opening a mega bridal showroom in Gbagada, she talks about her journey to the top, rising from running the business out of her living room with practically no capital and the use of the internet and sheer will to succeed. 

Tell us a bit about yourself and background?
I am the CEO of Hadassah Bridal House, one of the fastest growing bridal houses in Nigeria. The business started as a strictly online home-based business but it has grown and opened its first showroom in Gbagada, Lagos. I have maximised the use of the Internet and social media in growing my businesses. I am a World Bank Scholar having completed the Certificate In Entrepreneurial Management at Enterprise Development Centre, Pan African University under the Women X program. I am a graduate of Microbiology from Obafemi Awolowo University and I have professional experience in banking, HR and customer service both in Nigeria and the U.K.

You recently opened a new mega showroom, how did that make you feel?
Wow, a sense of relief and fulfillment. Taking a step that is higher than the last usually requires a lot of determination and energy. I am glad that this has finally become a reality. We have created a strong online presence for the brand and a lot of people want a total, satisfying bridal experience from us; this is what we are hoping to create with our flagship store in Gbagada. This business has really evolved. It has grown from our living room to this showroom that we are currently using. I remember our first bride vividly and we have since inception, attended to different brides from all over the country. Our first shop was in a shopping complex and I struggled with myself before getting there and I had less than five wedding dresses to keep on the rack. I tell you, the journey to growth can be a big stretch.

Why bridal fashion, how did you get into it and which field were you in before?
Well, the business started as a result of the experience I had when I was shopping for my own wedding. I was a young busy executive and my career at that time didn’t afford me the luxury of moving around shops for my wedding gown. I was working in a bank in Abuja and shopping in Abuja is quite different from Lagos where you can walk into Lagos Island market to shop for everything; moreover, I didn’t really have the time to do so. I bought virtually everything online. I knew at that time that there would be other people in my shoes as well. I wanted to help people shop for their bridal needs irrespective of their location. I used to work in banking, HR and customer service and I did these both in Nigeria and England.

What are some of the challenges you have faced and how did you overcome?
One of the first challenges I faced was getting customers but the Internet came to my rescue. We’ve been able to attend to different customers from different parts of the world from our little corner in Lagos. Understanding what brides wanted was also a challenge but with careful study, we gradually got around it.

What has been the highlight for you so far?
My highlight is basically the reach that we have. I am very excited every time a new customer calls or sends us a message that she found us online especially those from outside Nigeria. I have seen our products travel to different countries in the world. This year alone, I’ve had brides from Germany and the USA who came to get married in Nigeria and they got wedding gowns from us. It’s really a beautiful and humbling experience. At a point, our international logistics partners were asking us how come we were shipping wedding gowns from Nigeria to places like Switzerland and so on. This shows me the power of the Internet and how far we can reach the world.

What makes Hadassah stand out from other bridal houses?
I will say our reach. We want potential brides from everywhere find affordability at their fingertips. We have a Live chat system on our website which runs 24 hours a day. This helps us promptly attend to and process inquiries from our potential customers. We also ensure that our business has a presence on so many platforms online and this helps to boost our visibility. I’ve heard customers say they keep seeing our name everywhere; we want to be the first and most lasting impression on the minds of potential brides searching for their dream wedding gowns.

How did you raise capital to start out?
This business started with near-zero capital. Our first sets of transactions were basically pre-orders. Clients paid and we got their wedding gowns for them. We gradually grew from this till we started having wedding gowns and accessories on demand.
The Nigerian bridal business is quite saturated with a lot of substandard goods, how do you intend to maintain standards?
We always ensure quality checks on our products before they are sent to our customers. Also, we have worked with credible suppliers over the years in order to ensure a consistency in the quality of our product offerings. Even though the market might become compromised because of the economic conditions, we have decided to keep serving our customers without bias.

What should we expect from you in the next couple of years?
We are looking at the brand growing and expanding to major cities in Nigeria and across Africa. We are also looking at a boost in our supplier base so we can attend to a wider section of the market. I also see myself empowering more women to start up their own businesses and leverage the power of social media and the Internet for this. I currently do this on a low scale but I’ll be doing more. It can be a lonely road running a business especially if you are starting from home, but I want to show other women that it is possible and achievable to not only do so but scale up from there.

Interview by: Tobi Awodipe for Guardian Newspaper

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ACTOR & MBE HONOUREE BECOMES FIRST PERSON WITH DOWN SYNDROME TO GET HONORARY DEGREE FROM A UK UNIVERSITY

 

This actor and campaigner’s story is an inspiring one.

Sarah Gordy, 40, with Down Syndrome has become the first person with the condition to receive an honorary degree from a UK university.

The University of Nottingham on Wednesday honoured Sarah with a Doctor of Laws degree at a ceremony at University Park campus.

Sarah had earlier in November, became the first woman with Down Syndrome to be made an MBE.

She’s starred in British TV show “Call The Midwife” and is a very active campaigner for people with learning disability.

“If I believed all the things that people said I couldn’t do, I would not have done any [dancing, acting and campaigning],” she said during her acceptance speech

She adds: “Don’t listen to doubt… believe in yourselves.”

Sarah’s mother, Jane Gordy said of her daughter: “As far as I was concerned Sarah was going to have every experience there is and if she wants to do something, just do it.”

Watch Sarah below:

 

 

Source:Bellanaija

 

 

 

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#MONDAYMOTIVATION | ENITAN FACOS : 5 WAYS TO BEAT  MONDAY BLUES

Everyone ’s productivity is affected by your Monday Blues. “When you’re unhappy at work, it makes it very difficult for those around you to be happy, and oftentimes just one worker with a case of the Mondays can spread the doldrums to the whole team.”

Here are 5 ways to beat (or avoid) the dreaded Monday Blues:

1. Identify the problem. “The first thing to do is to ask yourself what’s wrong,” Kjerulf says. If you have the Monday Blues most weeks, then this is not something you should laugh off or just live with. It’s a significant sign that you are unhappy at work and you need to fix it or move on and find another job.  if you only suffer the occasional bout of mild Monday Blues, then you can do some things to successfully cheer yourself and others up on an otherwise dreary Monday.

2. . Prepare for Monday on Friday. “Mondays can be extra stressful from work that has potentially piled up from the previous week and, for many, can be challenging to jump right back in.

To help combat that Monday morning anxiety, be sure to leave yourself as few dreadful tasks as possible on Friday afternoon, Friedman says. “By taking care of the things you least want to handle at the end of one work week, you’re making the start of the next that much better.”

If you do have any unpleasant tasks awaiting your attention Monday morning, get them done as early as possible so that you don’t spend the rest of the day procrastinating or “feeling as if there’s a black cloud hanging over your head,” she says. “Make that uncomfortable phone call, resolve that outstanding issue, or clean up that mess that’s waiting for you. You’ll feel a lot better once it’s over.”

3. Make a list of the things you’re excited about.“We often look at the week ahead of us and think of all the tough stuff we have to do and the difficult tasks ahead of us,”  “Turn that around. Sunday evening, make a list of three things you look forward to at work that week. This might put you in a more positive mood. If you can’t think of three things you look forward to, that might be an indication that you need to make some changes.”

4. Get enough sleep and wake up early. Go to bed a little early on Sunday night and be sure to get enough sleep so that you wake up feeling well-rested, Friedman says. “If you’re only running on a couple of hours of sleep, it’s unlikely that you’re going to feel good about going anywhere when the alarm goes off Monday morning.” Although it might seem counter-intuitive, waking up an extra 15 to 30 minutes early on Monday morning can actually make going back to the office easier.

5. . Be positive. Start the week out with an “attitude of gratitude,” Kahn says. “Take time to recognize and appreciate the things that you enjoy about work.”

This starts before you even get to work. To pump yourself up on your way in to work, try listening to your favorite songs, Friedman says. “Think about the type of playlist you would create for a workout, and incorporate that same upbeat, high-energy music into your morning preparation or commute.”

When you get to the office, do your best not to be a complainer–and keep your Monday morning grumpiness to yourself, Friedman adds. “In the same vein, don’t listen to other people’s Monday gripes. Creating or contributing to a culture of complaining is no way to improve your attitude.”

 

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BUKOLA OGUNYEYE: DON’T MARRY A MAN THAT HITS YOU

Don’t marry a man who has slapped you just “once” in your relationship.

Don’t marry a man who has another lady or ladies in his life while in a relationship with you.

Don’t marry a man who has a character you are not comfortable with.

It is annoying when ladies say “He will change” . Like really?

Listen, Courtship/ Dating is a period for you to know the character, behaviour and values of your would-be Husband ( this post is for Ladies)

Whatever you can’t condone in marriage, whatever you can never put up with in marriage, don’t EVER accept it in your relationship.

Keep moving!

Having it at the back of your mind that a man will change is nothing but stupidity.

If a man will ever change, it is going to be for the worse!

One of the annoying mistakes single ladies make is saying that “No man is perfect”, “He will change” Let me marry this one”.

These are the things worthless Ladies tell themselves. It is worthlessness to settle for just any Penis ( man).

Me, I can’t deal. If you say ” No man is perfect and you go marry an idiot in your quest for marriage, be ready to face the consequences.

In 2017, we should be making a head way and be doing it differently. Enough of stories that touch.

If only Ladies can be wise.

If you are in a relationship where your so called Boyfriend or so called Fiancee is slapping or beating you, you should go have your brain examined!

We don’t want you to bring your Sob stories to us later. Please spare us that shit.

When I talk about marriage , some people with shallow brain will think I hate the Institution of marriage. No, I don’t. Rather, I hate how the desire to marry has made fools out of many women / Ladies.

I can’t comprehend it at all.

If you don’t want to divorce, then you have to be sane and open your eyes clearly now that you are not yet married to that man.

I know shit happens in marriage. I am very aware of that.

That is the reason I will always be very open to divorce and would also Advocate it anytime any day!

Some Nonsense person will say, She is advocating Divorce when she is married.

You see ehn, for that to be popping up in your brain, I don’t think your head is correct at all. #straightface

But………. can Ladies be honest with themselves when it comes to their choice of a Life partner?

Some divorce would never have seen the light of the day if only Ladies refuse to accept shit during courtship!

Many cases of divorce could have been averted.

For the life of me, how do you manage to still stay in a relationship with a “Mike Tyson”?

Some type of men should never have a single goat in their life, let alone a human being!

How do you manage to be in a relationship with a Philanderer?

I was thinking no matter the love Juliet has for Romeo, the moment Romeo, raises his hands to slap Juliet, that love must die immediately but what do I know?

Some men should never be able to get a wife. They ought to remain in their father’s house  wifeless and an object of ridicule for being Gorillas  but these set of men still get wedded every Saturday and their Bride would be smiling like an idiot all over the place. Mtcheeewwwww!

What is wrong with the brain of these Ladies? Is  that how finished they are ni? Is that how worthless they are?

The desire to have a man in your life at all cost is capable of making you become a worthless specie. It will also land you in trouble.

You can’t throw caution to the wind  and expect it not to get messy and messier later.

Ladies, if no one has told you, I am telling you now – Don’t marry a useless and Irresponsible man.

Be single. Singleness is not a disease.

Choose to be single if there are no decent guys again.

Emmmmm, they will come and tell me now ; See o! “she is in her husband’s house but she is telling us not to marry.

Issorite!

Singing in Lagbaja’s voice –

Oju re a ja

Oju re a ja

Pararararan pi ran pa, parararara pin ra……………

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#MONDAYMOTIVATION: FOUR THINGS TO CONSIDER BEFORE CHOOSING A MENTOR

Mentoring is a two-way street. I actually do quite a bit of work in the mentoring field–I am a mentor, I have a mentor, and I help train people to be good mentors. Your career is part of your life, and great mentoring changes you deeply, not just the way you work. Here are four tips for mentors and mentees alike:

Look for clues of success
Successful people are successful for a reason. People who have achieved greatness in an area of their lives are typically using great strategies. And these people tend to make excellent mentors. So when looking for a mentor, look for the clues of success. Think about what is important to you and the things you want to achieve personally and professionally. Do you want to be a better businessperson, mother, leader, yogi, speaker, writer, etc.? Start to look for people around you who exemplify the skills you want to acquire.

Mentoring goes both ways
To be sustainable and healthy, mentoring must be a two-way street. Both parties need to give 110% to the relationship. This ensures that the mentor and mentee continually learn from each other. Give as much to your mentor (or mentee) as he or she gives to you. And if you are looking for a mentor, actively seek out ways to add value to their life as well. Understand what matters most to them and find ways to contribute.

There is no one-size-fits-all
No one can (or should) guide you in all facets of your life. I actively seek out different mentors in a variety of areas in my life such as fitness, finance, public speaking, etc. For example, I’m expecting a baby girl, so I reached out to mothers and daughters and asked them to share their wisdom with me. Identify growth opportunities in your life and think outside the box.

Change your definition
A mentor is someone whose life or work you value and admire, and whom you think might be a good guide. These days, a mentor can be any age, in any field, so stop thinking of a mentor in traditional terms. Too often we limit our mentors to those “above us.” Don’t let a persons age, title, or experience pigeonhole your thinking.

 -Camille Preston

source: Fortune Insiders

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“WE NEED MORE WOMEN IN TECHNOLOGY, THE TECH INDUSTRY IS THE FUTURE” – KIKE ONIWINDE

Kike Oniwinde is the Founder and CEO of BYP Network, a platform for black young professionals to connect with each other and corporations. She has a BSc (Hons) Economics degree from the University of Nottingham and a MSc Management from the University of Florida. Kike is also a Great Britain javelin thrower who received a full track and field scholarship to study in Florida. Her past work experience includes working in sales in Fintech and front office at major investment banks including Goldman Sachs and Citi.

The idea of BYP Network came after Kike studied abroad and met talented black students. Once back in London, the lack of diversity in the workplace coupled with low opportunities to meet others in the city; prompted the idea. BYP Network has since hosted thousands of black professionals in the past year and a half in London, England with plans of international expansion. The platform has thousands of downloads and has led to Kike winning multiple awards. She has been named as a Sky Woman in Technology Scholar gaining a $33,000 grant and full backing From Sky Corp. She also won the Founders Forum ‘F-Factor’ Competition beating 200 applicants along with winning the New Entrepreneurs Foundation pitch contest. She gained over $50k in funding and was featured in the Sunday Times (A national UK paper).

Kike is a World Economic Forum Global Shaper, University of Nottingham Hall of Famer and was once named as one of the top five black students in the UK. She credits her growth mindset, big vision and tenacity for her current successes.

According to her ; “The plan is for BYP Network to be the go to platform for black professionals who want to connect locally and globally to create new businesses, friendships and careers. Representation is important and I believe this platform will empower the black community. I’ve benefitted significantly, as I connected with my American Co-founder, Adrian Claudius-Cole through BYP Network”.

The young entrepreneur whose story went viral globally shares her inspiring journey with me in this exclusive interview.

Childhood Influence

My childhood prepared me for what I do now in many different ways. I’ve only ever known hard work whether through academics or sports. What I’ve mainly learnt is the importance of perseverance as good and bad times are very cyclical. I’ve failed so much but I keep going because I’ve learnt it always pays off.

 

Meet Kike!

I am 25 years old, I’m from East London, I was born to British-Nigerian parents, I am a Libra and I have a huge desire to change the black narrative. I want to help black people around the world through technology. I am super enthusiastic – borderline naive – but it fuels me to just keep going and to ask the right questions and to stay curious.

Inspiration behind your brand BYP Network

The inspiration is simply from meeting a lot of talented black professionals along my journey, especially whilst I was a student at The University of Florida. There, I had a strong desire to meet as many black professionals as possible and to connect, so we could raise our aspirations and be around future leaders. The hope is to help the black community form the right jobs and new businesses, and just to change the black narrative by being role models to the younger generation and ensuring we don’t get left behind.

Being a  world economic shaper and  recipient of several grants

I’m very humbled that I’ve received these grants and that I’m seen as good enough to be seen as a world economic shaper. Especially when I go to meetings and I’m surrounded by so many incredible young people who all have a desire to make a difference in the world. It makes it feel like I’m on the right path and the universe is aligned with my desires. It’s more a signal that I’m doing the right thing rather than an accolade to myself. I’m just excited to keep going forward and see what I achieve.  

Challenges

Starting a business is very difficult, it poses a lot of different challenges. There are a lot more lows than highs but when the highs happen, they’re amazing. It’s not for the faint-hearted and my years of being an athlete have helped me as sports and business are very similar. Both take dedication and resilience, especially bouncing back from multiple failures. The challenges are yet to come but I’m excited by them, because once I overcome them, something amazing will come from this.   

Leaving the banking sector for Tech

The tech industry is the future. Tech is so exciting and I can use my creativity and my economist skillset to drive change within the industry. Tech connects people on a grand scale, and I’m so happy to be in this area. I hope it inspires others to join the industry, even if they don’t have a tech background.

Greatest Reward

I’m pleased with everything that happens along the journey. The reward is understanding I’m on the right path – whether that’s winning a pitch competition, or people downloading the app, or getting media attention. That’s the greatest award. My greatest award was finding a Co-Founder through the BYP Network platform – that showed me that my idea  behind setting up the platform was right, you really can find other talented black professionals and it works! 

BYP  in 5 years

Being as big as LinkedIn! We’re known as the ‘Black LinkedIn’ and I believe it will be a billion dollar company. It’s a new vertical, we’re targeting the black professional, and there are millions of us who aren’t catered to. We want to cater to them, we want to help them develop, and we want to show them that we’re a body who cares about their development , and through the use of mentorships and corporations, it could prove a world solution. It’s not exclusivity, but inclusion by combining so many elements. It’s a billion dollar company, but also one which makes a positive impact. I’m excited for the hard work and looking back and thinking “wow, here we are at 5 years old”.

Not giving up

I never feel like giving up but whenever things get hard, I have this funny saying where I say “I quit”. I say it in business and sport almost every day.  But, the truth is, I’ll never quit and I always keep going.

My Inspiration

I was inspired by some of the stories I heard from people in the tech industry.  Lots of social platform stories inspired me.  I felt like I had great ideas for the black community that nobody had tapped into. I thought, “why can’t I be as successful?” . In the black community, we don’t see many role models who inspire us to aspire higher so I looked to tech company founders who motivated me to want to do well. 

Reception since we started

The reception has been amazing from the get-go. When we launched our first ever event it sold out with barely any social media. Since then we’ve grown to a global community with a lot of interest from corporates for diversity and inclusion. The reception has shown me that BYP Network is needed and has already helped make thousands of connections. I look forward to our growth and the continue support from the community. 

 

I am a woman of Rubies

I have the ability to build something from scratch, to be bold, strong and confident, and to walk forward in my pursuit and purpose. I understand that I can break boundaries and there’s no reason why BYP can’t be great, or why I can’t be great. I want to change the black narrative. I feel compelled to go forward with this mindset and this business. 

Due recognition for women in Tech

I think that one thing I’ve learnt is, we know there’s not enough women in tech (or many male-dominated industries), and there aren’t many black people. We, as women, have to go in. We have to be strong and face the knockbacks, and people saying horrible things. You have to build yourself up and keep going. One thing I’ve learnt from my experience of working in tech is people will only give you recognition if they want to. As long as you’re satisfied with yourself and you’re achieving, it doesn’t matter. Keep breaking down barriers even when people are closing doors on you.

 Advice to young women who want to go into tech

Just do it! Don’t be afraid. Use your creativity,  and hire someone to do development if that’s not your field. We need more women in technology, and technology is the future!  

 

 

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“I TAKE EVERY CHALLENGE AS A STEPPING STONE TOWARDS GREATNESS, I NEVER GIVE UP”- DEFUNKE ADEWUNMI

Adefunke Adewumi, the founder of Black Diamonds Support Foundation, a non-profit organisation that supports and empower women especially widows and single mothers, she is well known in the slums giving hope, medical, wellbeing and educational support to indigents children, across the country. She speaks against domestic violence, rape, child abuse and molestation.

Her popularity soar high with her annual outreach, tagged “Project 5000”, a project she kicked off after the death of her philanthropist mum who died seven years ago. The initiative went viral on Facebook when she fed 5000 indigents children during Christmas and also supported them with basic school needs

The single mum of twins who holds a Bachelor’s degree in Guidance and Counselling from University of Ado Ekiti and Master’s of Arts in International Relations and Strategic Studies from Benue State university Makurdi also works with an oil and gas firm in Lagos, and also into Fabrics Retailing.

Defunke is passionate to see both children and adult live their potentials to maximum capabilities, she shares her story with me in this exclusive interview.

Childhood Influence

My childhood prepared me because I grew up seeing my late mother, Funmilayo Adewumi, as a philanthropist who cared for indigent children, widows, orphans; feeding them, taking them off the street by providing shelter for them and sponsoring them in school. She ensured that I parted with most of my things (food, shoes, cloths, bags, toys etc) to give to the less privilege and other children that cannot afford it. She denied me the luxury of life, it used to be painful initially but I got use to it. Christmas period is a carnival of sort because my mother will gather those street kids to organize party for them and make them feel like every other children.

Black Diamonds Support Foundation
The foundation, was a legacy foundation, that was established to continue from where my late mum stopped, however, she limited her philanthropy gestures to her local community, we took a step further to be a foundation that impact the lives of the less privileged, especially, women, children, the foundation has six active departments, namely: WATARA: Walk and Talk against Rape and Abuse, Project 5000 kids: Feeding indigent 5000 children during festive periods
Slums/Shanties Outreach, Medical Interventions/Emergencies, Pick A child Project/GirlChild Education Sensitization and Support for Teenage pregnant mums/babies

Inspiration behind “Project 5000”
Project 5000 was inspired after my mother’s death 7 years ago and for the first time in so long there was no party for the children. My family has been used to feeding and caring for the poor in our immediate community, so I decided to continue doing what she does and even more. I started small and ever since inception it has been growing yearly, the initial number was 500 kids and later 1000 kids. Last year I took a bold step to increase the number to 5000 indigent kids which includes the homeless, orphans and the vulnerable and it was a huge success.
Project 5000 kids is not just about feeding the children, though they were fed twice due to the long duration of the event. The children were given free medical care, school materials – bags, books, stationeries, cloths and even scholarships. It was a carnival atmosphere with lots of music and dancing to make it a memorable experience.

Who and What inspire me
The lifestyle of my late mother that I grew up to know, giving and volunteering in her philanthropic causes inspires me. Picking an homeless child inspires me, seeing an indigent child doing well in school, seeing a sick indigent child been well. Hoping that all children have equal access to quality education, free health care and total wellbeing for them to achieve their potentials without any hindrances.

WATARA -Speaking up for victims of Rape
It is an on-going project and a department under Black Diamonds Support Foundation. The meaning of WATARA is Walk And Talk Against Rape and Abuse, we are in 15 states in Nigeria at the moment. What we do basically is to speak against rape that has been in the increase in recent past, we counsel victims of rape through our counselling unit with experts and professional counselors. We also provide support for victims to get justice by facilitating arrest, detention and prosecution rapists. WATARA has since August 2017 embarked on sensitization walk all over major cities in Nigeria, this campaign has also being taking to schools to sensitize children to be aware of ways to prevent being a victim of rape and abuse. What we plan to do for year 2018 is to open up more counselling for rape vicitms, get justice for them by prosecuting more perpetrators of rape victims and bring them to book.

Challenges of running my foundation
Getting financial aid and material aid supports in ensuring success in our events, Archaic dangerous cultural norms , Patriarchy system of the indigents that forbids the girl-child education, Repeated Trainings and sensitization on health, education and general safety of themselves and children, and it seems they are adamant on their old ways of lives/mentality

Black diamonds support foundation in five years
We hope to have covered all the states in Nigeria and almost all West African countries; Benin Republic is in the pipeline at the moment. In 5 years time we hope to have our Homes for victims of rape and four skill acquisition centre for widows, the indigents, and the teenagers who used to live on the streets. We hope to have completed our home for the street babies, children and teenagers ( which include, a block of flat, a school and a well equipped clinic for them). Then the Project 5000 would have been established in the six regions of Nigeria as well as other departments the foundation is known for.

Women in advocacy and development
We are been misconstrued of our intention to meet other people’s need. People rather see us as competition meanwhile we ought to be collaborators. Some even believe we are trying to take over the responsibilities of the government. Genuine advocacy is that we are not been discourage by what people say or think but we really know what we want to achieve and we set out to achieve them. Whether we are been appreciated or not is not the main thing but ensuring that we succeed in any advocacy we set out to do.

Giving up
Yes. There are moments I feel overwhelmed, about the enormous work that is out there that we have to do, even though I know we cannot “save the world” but the fact that I consciously know there is much to do out there and little resources to get them done,, makes me cry and almost throwing in the towel, but this happens in the spur of the moment, next moment, am up again, and ensuring, gearing up our selfless volunteers, that we cannot give up now.

Being a single mom and working two jobs’

This is where I know that we carry so much strength in us, that we do not ever know, prior to my mum’s death, if I was told I can do all these things, I will scorn such a person. My inner strength came to play when I realized that all these; my job, my kids, my passion are all important to me in fulfilling purpose, I handle all with grace, and my mantra: Whatever will be be, taking each day as it comes, and making the best use of my time. To add to the list of my daily schedule, I run an online bridal asooke business as well.

Being a woman of Rubies
I am priceless, I take every challenge as a stepping stone towards greatness, I never give up. No setbacks,hurdles can stop me, once my mind is made up to do what I want to do for humanitarian purposes.

To those who are hopeless…
Never give up, pick up whatever you think you have failed, be it education, relationships, career, whatever, give it another shot. We Only fail when we accept the failure.

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“IT’S MY DESTINY TO DEDICATE MY LIFE TO HELPING THE VULNERABLE AND UNDERPRIVILEGED” – MODUPE OZOLUA

Modupe Ozolua

PrincessS Modupe Ozolua is an American-Nigerian philanthropist and entrepreneur. She is the Chief Executive Officer of Body Enhancement Limited, which pioneered cosmetic surgery in Nigeria in 2001 and aesthetic lasers in 2007. In 2003, she founded the non-profit organisation, Empower 54, which offers humanitarian programmes to underprivileged women and refugees. Princess Ozolua is active in rehabilitating women and children survivors of Boko Haram insurgency in North Eastern Nigeria, through self-employment and education for the children at the Internally Displaced Person (IDP) camps.In recognition of her philanthropy, Princess Modupe Ozolua has received many international awards and recognitions, including an award from the internationally-acclaimed magazine, Elle. Elle Magazine, South Africa, has also featured her twice for her entrepreneurial achievement as a leading “African Female Boss” and also as one of the “50 Women Changing Africa”. She shares her story with Esther Ijewere

Childhood Influence
My natural inclination towards business originated from my late mother, who was an entrepreneur to the core and owned many successful businesses during her lifetime. As a philanthropist, I come from a famous family known to be very generous to those in need. That’s how we all are. So, my passion for helping the underprivileged is no surprise to my family and friends.

Pioneering Cosmetic Surgery in Nigeria
When I started Body Enhancement in 2001, the reception was absolutely wonderful because everyone, both men and women, were thrilled to know they could improve areas of their bodies they felt uncomfortable with. Of course, some people misunderstood what cosmetic surgery was and felt it was a conflict with our valuable African culture and religious beliefs. They didn’t understand.

I did not preach against our culture or religion. Neither did my business. I am from a very traditional and religious family. My parents hailed from two Edo royal families. How could I ever encourage anyone to turn against what makes us a people? My parents and family members would have lynched me! Despite the few misconceptions some people had, the overall response was wonderful and till date, people contact my office for services. I closed Body Enhancement Limited in 2014 to focus more on my philanthropy through Empower 54.

Inspiration behind your initiative, Empower 54
When I created Body Enhancement Limited in 2001, it opened my doors to people that needed both cosmetic and reconstructive surgeries. It also made me globally known as the contact point in Nigeria for plastic surgery. In 2003, a couple came to my office seeking reconstructive surgery for the wife who had severe burns and lacerations from a fire accident. Unfortunately, they couldn’t afford to pay for it and narrated how they had made numerous appeals to wealthy individuals for financial assistance but to no avail.I found it very disturbing that no one agreed to help the woman. Then, the husband suddenly, said: “Madam, why don’t you help people like us? When you speak, people will listen.”It’s My Destiny To Help The Vulnerable And Underprivileged
Immediately they left my office, I called the Head, Plastic Surgeon in Beverly Hills and told him I was starting a non-profit project to help underprivileged people and I wanted him to put together a team of surgeons to come and help people for free in Nigeria.

Rehabilitating women and children survivors of the terrorist group, Boko Haram
In 2014, a friend from Adamawa State pleaded with me to look into the IDP crisis in the state. We went to visit North East states to see first-hand what was going on. To get a proper brief on what was going on, we didn’t only visit the IDP camps, we also took the risk of going into rural communities that were destroyed by Boko Haram. Back then, only some villagers and military personnel visited those areas. Humanitarian organisations were too scared to go there because those areas were still under the attack of Boko Haram insurgents.
Our tours enabled us to truly understand the extent of damage done by Boko Haram, and we then decided to focus on two things: Getting the children engaged through education, both in the camps and rebuilding some schools destroyed in rural communities as there were still children living in those places; and empowering the women to start small-scale businesses because we saw many young women, some 30-year-olds, with 12 children!


Testimonials
Majority of IDP camps have schools established for the children. Testimonies? There are too many but I always fondly remember a little girl, who was born with a cleft palate and was one of our beneficiaries during our first humanitarian programme in 2003.Prior to her coming to us, her palate had been operated on twice by other doctors, but it always relapsed. After we performed her corrective surgery free. It did not relapse and she began speech therapy.
Years later, her parents surprised me by bringing her to my office to say, hello! She had grown and looked so beautiful in her native attire. When she saw me, she ran and hugged me. I was shocked! I asked her if she remembered me, and she said: “Yes, I remember you! It was you that saved my life!” I immediately started crying, held her close and I thanked God for using me as an instrument to help that young lady lead a normal life like everyone else.


The narrative of the helpless people at the IDP camp
When people hear the acronym IDP, they assume they are all illiterates and poor people that lived in rural villages. Unfortunately, that’s not so! Some of these IDPs are doctors, teachers among others They were successful businessmen and women that owned large farms, houses and companies. Some of those children are extremely intelligent and had excellent grades in school before they were all displaced by Boko Haram.
If Boko Haram attacks Abuja today and we all flee to Lagos or neighboring states, leaving our homes, cars, clothes, businesses, among others, what does that make us? It also makes us IDPs because we would be internally- displaced. If we flee to Cameroun or Chad, we automatically become refugees.

Governments doing their best
Having to tackle insurgency and manage IDP camps is not something the Federal Republic of Nigeria ever thought it would experience. It’s not easy for any country to maintain IDP or refugee camps because of the many challenges involved, especially financial implications. Considering this is the first time we are facing such a huge security and socio-economic disaster, we are learning as we go. I think the Federal Government, NGOs and state governments are doing the best they can.

Challenges
Our biggest challenge is finance. Empower 54 isn’t a personal foundation such as the Bill Gates and others that are largely funded by the billionaire founders. Even the Bill Gates Foundation receives millions of dollars in donation! So, people should please be more compassionate and respectful because it could be any of us in those camps.

Your other projects?
We have some wonderful ongoing projects that we haven’t gone public with. So, I cannot share them with you just yet. However, since I personally led the joint evacuation of the malnourished children from Bama to Maiduguri for treatment, the Federal Government has declared malnutrition a national epidemic with one in every three children suffering from malnutrition. We had to tackle the issue of malnutrition beyond risking our lives to evacuate children from high-risk zones for treatment.Although very expensive, Ready-To-Use-Therapeutic-Foods (RUTF) has been medically proven to save lives of malnourished children and with extremely limited funds, we came up with a solution.This prompted the creation of an Empower 54 campaign to eradicate malnutrition in Africa with our goodwill ambassador being His Imperial Majesty, Oonirisa Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi Ojaja II, the Ooni of Ife.
We have now successfully established a small-scale RUTF production facility in Nigeria to produce free RUTF for malnourished children. It is sponsored by the Australian government and International Monetary Fund (IMF). With donations received, we will produce and distribute to malnourished children all over the country for free. That is why we need donations. How can we save lives without money to execute these projects? Please, donate to Empower 54. We are doing great projects with every penny we receive and we can do so much more with your support.

Reward
The greatest rewards I have received for being a philanthropist are: “God bless you. Thank you!” When people tell me they had no hope before I came to help them, that God sent me to restore their faith in humanity and they voluntarily pray for me and say “thank you”. What greater reward do I want? I’m sorry, but I don’t know any greater reward than that.

Never giving up
No and yes. No, in the sense that being a philanthropist is my calling. It’s my destiny to dedicate my life to helping the vulnerable and underprivileged. So, I can’t run away from that. Yes, in the sense that there was a project that verbal attacks we received made me to almost shut down all our humanitarian activities in Nigeria. But when I looked at the pictures of the beneficiaries, I knew I couldn’t do that because our obligation was to help them, not the people trying to create negative distractions.

Those who inspire me to be better
My family is my greatest inspiration, especially my late father and my son. I was a daddy’s girl. My father’s approval and love meant the world to me, and till date. Wanting his approval still puts me in check. When I think of what my 22-year-old son would say about anything I do, I quickly check myself, because I want him to be proud of me always.

The fact is everything I do affects a lot of people. I might not have really realised that when I was much younger, but I sure do know that now. I am a very family dedicated person and very close to many members of my extremely extended family.

Being a Woman of Rubies
Hmmmmmmmmm….Why don’t you tell me? (laughs). But what I do know is what makes me a woman that has gone through various stages of life and is getting better by the day. I was married at 21. I was a dutiful wife, pregnant with my son, running a home, taking care of a husband and running my first business in America. I had my son at 22, divorced at 23 and I have raised my son singlehandedly since. At 27, I returned home to Nigeria and pioneered cosmetic surgery, which put Nigeria on the global map as a destination for plastic surgery in Africa. At 30, I started an NGO, which was the first to provide free reconstructive surgeries for the underprivileged in Nigeria. Between then and now, I brought the first aesthetic laser machine to Nigeria among other things. I have been appreciated in my birth country, Nigeria, and many other countries in the world, both for my private business and philanthropy.Through it all, I have watched myself evolve over the years into a woman I’m proud of and I know I am getting better daily with the right people guiding and advising me.

Dear Woman,
Hold your head up! There is nothing wrong with working hard for success, but never be desperate for fame. Fame comes with a price and most times, you end up paying with your peace, happiness and pains, when you are slandered and painted as who and what you are not. Today, you are famous and you are celebrated by all, tomorrow, it’s going to be someone else. Don’t allow your self- worth to be based on others’ perception of who you are. Identify those that genuinely love and care about you, hold them close because as you get older, you will discover such good people are rare to find. Know you, be you and do you. Remember that, and you will be okay!

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