Businesswomen From Nigeria

""I am a politician. All my life I have made choices. I am into Nigerian Politics and … I will ensure it is clean.”"

""I give it to the illegitimate administration of Mr Tinubu. He has gotten defeated people fighting themselves instead of fighting him … Imagine the fight is over who are being killed rather than that citizens are being killed.”"

""When we talk about International Women’s Day, I don’t want a day. I just want to be treated with respect, I want equality, equity and justice. That’s really what we want. Because at the end of the day, this whole International Women’s Day has been turned into some performative thing …”"

""There is no government in Nigeria. Terrorists have a field day!”"

""Peter Obi has more hope in 2027 than there was in 2023. … Nothing has been put in place. Nigerians must realise that the 2027 election is a fight for our lives.”"

""You can now call me JOBLESS with a capital J! … I have a lot more time on my hands now, and I will be devoting it to NIGERIA! Welcome To A New Dispensation.”"

"Sub-Saharan Africa has the world’s smallest number of motorized vehicles but the highest rate of road traffic fatalities, with Nigeria and South Africa leading the pack. Trauma has become a silent epidemic in Africa, an epidemic that will only spread as the economy grows. More and more Africans are buying cars and working in heavy and dangerous industries. At the same time, infrastructure is poor, safety laws lax, and cars badly maintained."

"The joy of walking around or riding around their neighborhood and playing with their neighbors, which is often difficult in a city as densely populated as Lagos."

"Any society that failed to harness the energy and creativity of women is a huge disadvantage in the global world."

"We must be begin to clean our mindset so that young women will believe that they can attain the highest potential."

"I did not want to have another charity setup and rely in fund fund rasing to create impact."

"True success is about a passion to create a better world, live a life that you can look back on and be truly proud of."

"We take pride in being the first Nigerian indigenous company to do this...We are training more people to go into the air ambulance sector and I think our paramedics now have a huge amount of management skills. I just think that we need to start thinking outside the box and be more confident in the concept of African innovation."

"The recent floods, droughts, and locust infestations that have plagued most of the continent over the past few years reinforce the reality that climate change can completely reverse the advancements in the agriculture and food ecosystem unless urgent action is taken. As entrepreneurs in the food and agriculture landscape, we must all become climate champions, driving behavior change in our companies, communities, and the broader ecosystem, as well as embracing innovations and technologies that support climate adaptation in Africa."

"If you can find a way to combine your passion for making a difference with your desire to live a life that you can be proud of, you will be well on your way to finding true success."

"As young girl, it is important to be focused. The young girl should not fear. The Holy Bible has fear not written in it multiple times."

"We have to provide mentorship, practical role models to serve as experience for our girls. It is not just about education."

"I am an Igbo woman and I have learned over to years to be able to work alongside my husband because I know that, together we can rise."

"Find creative and strategic ways to retain your customers by engaging with their staff at all level."

"Small is not beautiful in business. Build businesses that scale. Deliberately establish business models that scale."

"Focus on one business idea at a time. Perfect the model before adding on the next one."

"Every day is a roller-coaster ride of emotions in the life of the entrepreneur. My survival strategy is to take it one day at a time."

"Build a support network with a few other trusted entrepreneurs to share war and success stories with, otherwise, it becomes a very lonely journey."

"“We don't need aid, we need partnerships. We cannot continue to be a beggar nation. I have always believed yo shouldn't give the man the fish,but teach the mangiw to fish and he will be able to take care of himself and others“."

"“West has taken and borrowed a lot from Africa…now it’s a renaissance: we’re claiming back what is ours and we’re adding value to what is ours, making it globally acceptable and globally appealing”."

"“We know that Africa has potential, all we need is investors – either local or foreign – to come on board with money and partner with us and take it all the way up there. If Burberry, Armani, or Prada, instead of coming to look for inspiration, actually partnered with the craftsman or designers to do a line, it would be a world-class hit”."

"“Being a Nigerian was no limitation for me because I just thought, well you haven’t seen me and there’s loads more like me”."

"The West has taken and borrowed a lot from Africa… now its a renaissance. We’re claiming back with is ours and we’re adding value to what is ours, making it globally acceptable and globally appealing"

"African designers need to celebrate their cultural roots and fashion history in order to become globally competitive"

"I try to fuse African cultural style with a modern approach to design. I love the dynamism of creating modernity out of something that is steeped in history. I think it’s what gives my collection such a cultural mix"

"I didn’t choose fashion, it chose me, ... I think the only way I’ve managed is because I know fashion was my destiny. African designers face so many challenges, producing collections and working hard to rise above the manufacturing infrastructure problems. For me, it’s about rising to the challenge and I think it’s made me a better designer. I feel I produce more intelligent clothing as a result"

"African bespoke is different from European bespoke, in that Africans are very much more endowed in very specific areas. My challenge is that I work with a lot of lumps and bumps, which almost turns me into a type of cosmetic surgeon. Except that I’m not cutting you up or anything, it's just that I do a lot of things with fabrics and accentuating, to create that perfect hourglass shape"

"When I started out, it was with a certain philosophy, because at that time it wasn’t cool to look African. Africa wasn’t on the map as it is now. … There was nothing really happening in terms of African fashion going global, or Africans being able to make a business of African fashion outside of the shore of Africa. So I went into it, sort of, to prove a point and to say ‘Listen. We can do this. We can add value.’ And to also bring the attention of the world to our own native abilities"

"I just had this can-do spirit. I was just so convinced that my product was so genuine and would no doubt conquer the world"

"Developing my own fabrics is essential for me. Every time you do it, it’s fresh; the drawings, the process of making Adire, starting with indigo and then just making music with colour and patterns, 'fabric jazz'. I wanted to play with floaty fabrics this time. It was just my mood. Of course I’m still in the throws of my love affair with Aso Oke which is still a huge feature in this collection."

"Fashion chose me, and I believe that it did because I had been sent to impact African fashion as it relates to the world. It’s not just me; it’s my family"

"Family plays a huge part in our business because it’s the cornerstone. We do everything together, whether it’s deciding the theme for the season or what each feature of every look that will form the collection we are working on might be"

"Everything is done in-house. From the conceptualisation to filming campaigns, everything is always completely done by the it-girls.” Their orientation of family extends to their clients, “We get so involved with clients, we want [our clients] to be a part of our family as much as possible"

"The real core of our business is God. So, if we have different opinions or a strong opinion about one thing, the final opinion we seek is His. It’s what holds us together as one and what has made us stand so strong in the face of every challenge that we’ve faced"

"The more passionate you are about the world (and your business), the more likely you are to succeed."

"You’ll find true success when you are passionate about improving the world and using your skills and talents to make a positive impact. And, to be honest, it’s impossible to hide the fruits of passion."

"Mentorship to me is to continuously figure out how i can add value to the lives of my mentors so that those relationships will be sustainable."

"I have a very different definition of mentorship, to me, it means 99 percent of giving to a person."

"One of the most interesting things that happened to me when starting the business was the realization that all my academic medical training and the prestige that comes with the title of being a doctor was not enough."

"We have a mixed-pool of more than 20 aircraft that we use for different types of evacuation, and about 30 staff all employed in different capacities with us and branches in three major cities in Nigeria."

"I would always push women towards more of learning the datasets behind anything that they’re trying to build, get information on it and, if you don’t have it, let’s talk with partnership organisations to see what information they may have. And if they still don’t have it, this is where you come in to build a solution that incorporates some of that."

"Technology makes you have to think outside of the box.” On how tech drives innovation and problem-solving in business and society"

"Be your own hero.” — From a statement featured as her personal motto on her Twitter cover photo, reflecting her philosophy toward personal drive and achievement"

"The key. Is oering things that make that type of impact towards their careers. And the end result is seeing some of those girls and the things that they've accomplished within their chosen eld or their entrepreneurship journey. And then being able to mark that as well. This was impactful. This made a dierence. And I helped make that dierence, so my job is complete, because now I have essence of self gratication. And that feels really good."