"The exceptional beauty and versatility of Timber and the variety and abundance that we have here. Again the skills of the makers. For me honing those skills to produce simple streamlined and sophisticated designs is rewarding."

"ALÁRA was created to be a window to the world, an authentic curation of contemporary Africa...[it is also] a symbol of my personal journey of self affirmation and belief...a fulfillment of a burning desire to celebrate and elevate a lot of what I had come across on my journeys in Africa."

"I think we needed a symbol of what is now called the African renaissance, a showpiece that is unapologetic in its approach about who we are today,...that we have people who make and consume luxury and that we have done it all by ourselves."

"Indigo is regarded as the color of love by the Yoruba people. “The pattern of Adire is the way we used to communicate in the past,”. You have to wear your indigo to show your people that you love them,"

"There’s a great appetite for consumption of luxury goods by Nigerians, but in terms of experiential retail with a concept...that is completely new...We have definitely had to educate the customer with regard to African Luxury, getting them to pay more for African goods that they have hitherto seen as craft and substandard."

"As a traditional ruler, I have several key responsibilities all aimed at ensuring the well-being and harmony of the community"

"In terms of community development advocacies, I will play a vital role in advocating for and facilitating development projects, such as education, healthcare and infrastructure by partnering with government agencies and organisations."

"Kebbi state, just like many regions in Nigeria, faces challenges in development, especially in the rural area, but the state also has unique strengths especially in agriculture. Whether it is ‘lagging behind’ depends on the metrics used in comparison, e.g., infrastructure, education, healthcare, or industrialisation"

"I have always been a well-dressed lady who respects my cultural ethics"

"The title will further permit me to now wear royal attire especially on public outings or traditional festivals and since I am a fashion designer, I can be creative about it to further beautify my culture. I strongly believe that when I’m at work in my factory or having meetings with clients in respect of my fashion business, I may not have to wear the royal attire"

"People who are close to me know how deeply rooted I am in culture and tradition. This is definitely a path I will enjoy"

"I will serve as custodian of culture and heritage while providing leadership to the community. Another important thing I will be directly involved withis conflict resolution, especially among women, ensuring peaceful coexistence and upholding traditional values"

"I would like you to join me in celebrating my cultural heritage and background as my journey as the First Female Queen in my community , this is not small. It is a big deal to me, particularly because such a title is not given to women in my area but today my people are bending rules to accommodate, and celebrate female excellence, and inclusivity in community and nation-building"

"As a culturally preserving agent in the community, I will play an important role in participating in cultural festivals, ceremonies, and practices that preserve the community’s identity. I will also serve as an intermediary between our community and the government, ensuring our people’s voices are heard in policymaking and implementation.These are the key things I will focus on at the moment"

"Winners don't quit try again this time with God."

"'Success, as we all know, is a learning curve that comes with patience, perseverance, hard work and endurance."

"I am a people person with excellent communication skills. This goes a long way with the business side of fashion. This has helped me build more relationships that have been converted to a wide range of clients over time. I tell you it is true when they say business is all about relationships. It makes a huge difference."

"In my humble opinion, my greatest achievement to date is that I am still a force to be reckoned with in the fashion industry. Trust me, building these relationships within and outside the industry hasn’t been easy. I believe this is partly what has gotten me to where I am today. This is my 17th year in the fashion industry, and it has been quite the journey. I am thankful to God for the many accomplishments and accolades I have received through the years and to my loyal customers for their continuous patronage."

"As Africans, sustainability has always been ingrained in our culture. We've practiced sustainability for generations. Perhaps it's because our fashion industry hasn't reached full maturity that we haven't fully showcased these practices."

"God himself is an artis, we can see everything he created art is everything you see."

"Education is the key to bridging the gaps in our technical skills, business knowledge, branding, marketing, and positioning."

"My faith in God and my self belief. I believe a lot in myself. You don’t have to rely on anyone and you can help yourself you can do stuff by yourself. My parents are paramilitary, so I’ve always grown up to have that mind set of whatever you want you can achieve, My dad will never help you bribe anybody, or help you talk to anyone to get you a job or a placement anywhere… So I have that self believe that what ever I want if I work hard at it, if I follow the right way and I do the right things I will get it… and I have faith in God."

"In my collection, I included one saying, “No condition is permanent,” hand-stitched into the clothing. Everyone in Nigeria believes that if you are poor today, this is not permanent. Tomorrow, you’ll be a millionaire. Everyone is so hopeful."

"I thought people would be interested, but I never expected the amount of support or the amount of press attention we received. It’s been a real blessing for which I’m truly grateful,”"

"Be 100 percent behind it because you’re going to be putting your heart and soul into it."

"To new black entrepreneurs is “to believe in your idea,”"

"Don’t lose your own goals and what’s important to you.”"

"Focus. Keep improving your craft on all fronts – technical and otherwise."

"Now I enjoy it from the bottom of my soul. Both things can be true. I can enjoy talking and thinking about business and tech and also enjoy fluffy romances with a HEA and debate celebrity fashion choices like its paying my bills."

"In my opinion, creativity is best defined with this quote by Mary Lou Cook, “Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes, and having fun."

"“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”"

"I am a creative designer that love to educate and impact others especially Teens to unleash their potentials and be a resourceful leader."

"I definitely want to continue with the modelling career path that I’ve chosen. I want to be successful enough to make enough money to start my own business."

"I've always been comfortable in my skin so I never let anyone look down on me because I am a coloured woman. I would like to accredit my easy journey to the level of education and literacy of the environment I am in."

"No matter what challenges or problems we face, we have to overcome and keep forging ahead."

"One must be ready to work very hard and be very patient with your staff to achieve your vision and dreams."

"You don’t need millions to start a business. All you need is the zeal, tenacity and wisdom from God."

"Hard work never kills anyone."

"I surround myself with positive energy so as to make each day a productive day."

"Education is absolutely important but once you are passionate about something you can’t run from it."

"Have a first degree that can get you a job just in case your passion doesn’t quite work out. Once you have that then you can chase any dream of yours."

"advances in the digital world and technology will continue to illuminate the problems and simultaneously bring people together for the purpose of acceptance, love and unity’"

"‘No’ is not really the end of growth. It’s just a way to get better."

"Growth is so uncomfortable yet so rewarding"

"A lot of people think of a ‘no’ as the end of things, or a way to beat yourself down. But then you keep going. It’s not final."

"Outcome doesn’t mean anything about your efforts."

""Part of the reason that I took on the Foot Locker role was because it was so much easier for me to come into a system that was already established, versus me having to literally build it from scratch"."

""I try to split up creative days and workdays. If I am designing something, then my entire day from start to end will just be designing"."

""In terms of other inspirations, a lot comes from music, like Ms. Lauryn Hill, Big Daddy Kane….those kinds of things have always inspired me maybe more so than actual designers"."

""I wanted to do something iconic and classic, but forward and today, so it was really created intentionally to have a fashionable element to it, but also a very practical athletic element to it as well"."