IBARAPA FASHION SHOW IS GOING TO BE LIFE CHANGING PROGRAMME – OLASEDIDUN OLAMIDE, INITIATOR THE IBARAPA FASHION AGENDA

Asako Reporters: Can we meet you?

I’m Olasedidun Olamide Abolanle, CEO EUNIK NIG LTD and Initiator The Ibarapa Fashion Agenda (TIFA)

Asako Reporters: What was your upbringing like?

I was born on 11th day of June in the early 90s into the family of Mr&Mrs Olasedidun M.O.A of Baale Ajadi’s Compound, Lanlate, Ibarapa North East, Oyo State. I completed my primary education at Oore-Ofe Nur/Pry School in 2005 Lanlate. I completed my Secondary School at Goodness and Mercy College, Lanlate in 2011. I bagged my National Diploma and Higher National Diploma in Architectural Technology at The Polytechnic Ibadan in 2014 and 2019 respectively. I was born into the family of one prestigious fashion designer of those days Who still happen to be the incubent Chaiman of Lanlate Tailor’s association.

Don’t be surprised when i say i have 16years working experience but 3years as a brand? I was born into fashion designing, i started making a complete garment immediately i finished my primary education. But I never sew to earn money, i was doing it for fun. I sew for my friends, brothers and for my personal use till i Batched my National Diploma in Architecture. At a point, i was encouraged to embark on fashion designing But i never agreed, i said fashion designing doesn’t pay well considering how my father worked and get paid with a penny.

It was in 2017 when i moved to Ibadan for my HND, i designed an outfit for one of my lecturers and got paid with 5times of lanlate payments. It was then i realized I had been shortsighted about fashion due to our locality.

Asako Reporters: You have been in the fashion industry for a while, many people you started with are no longer in the industry, What has been your saying power?

My passion for fashion has ever been my driving force.

Asako Reporters: It’s almost everywhere that you about to organize Ibarapa Fashion show, why Fashion show and not something else? 

Well I’ll say not only fashion show. It’s fashion show and 2nd edition of Ibarapa fashion symposium. Now, as part of my vision to change people’s perception towards fashion in Ibarapa, it’s of highly essential to start with proper reorientation for our youth designers.

Part of the best ways is organizing the needed fashion forward through fashion symposium and fashion show Wich will helps designer to reach the number of audiences at same time and create a strong image in the mind of audiences and advertise their collection with the help of media . and also helps buyers to follow the trend and the collections of designers.

What impact will the fashion show have on the people and Ibarapa Community?

Social wise, it’ll help the audience to follow the current fashion trend.

Career wise: The fashion show require numbers of runway models. Do we even have any runway model in Ibarapa ? Do I need to bring down models from afar to Ibarapa when some of our youths are willing to become a professional model but couldn’t due to lack of such platform in the past? Those are the mind disturbing questions then before I decided to make the event an avenue for our handsome and beautiful creatures in Ibarapa to become a professional runway model. You’ll believe with me that this is another life changing platform from this initiative.

Economically, it’ll enhance development to other fashion Bodies in Ibarapa like make up artists, hair stylist even to some other industry like entertainment. They’ll all benefit economically from the event.

What does one need to succeed as a fashion designer in Nigeria?

A fashion designer willing to be successful in Nigeria must be very creative, consistent, possesses the attributes of a good entrepreneur, be very dynamic to upgrade, follow and forecast trend, attend various fashion event like symposiums master class and fashion show.

Looking back, what was the most defining moment of your career as a fashionista?

Well, despite the fact that I was born by a fashion designer and I grew up learning from him and sew freely for friends and families.

I’ll say the defining moment of my career as a fashionista was when I made an attire for one of my lecturers in 2018. The payment was so romancing and it changed my shortsighted mindset about fashion designing.