WURA Falade Adepoju is not a new name in the country's fashion industry. Her Vigold Creation has impacted tremendously on the scene, crowning the efforts with a fashion school. The lady, who has won several awards in the industry, tells IMELDA CHINYERE NWOSA her success story.BeginningMy love for designing started from my childhood days, when I used to watch my mother, who was a seamstress, sew; and through her, I began to design and make dresses early. Since that was the first profession I knew and practised, I developed interest in it, though I later studied Secretarial Studies.I started with one machine and a staff, but today we have 27 staff. And because of the need to educate people and develop the industry, I diversified by establishing Vigold School of Fashion. The school is expanding its courses and training to meet international standard. Apart from this, the school has so far trained over 100 people, who have become fashion designers around the world.Career changeUpon graduation, I had a stint with Alumaco Company before coming back to my first love' designing. Today, I'm grateful to God for that decision, because I am living my dream, creating new styles; daily getting inspired and making people look good.Fulfilment on the jobI would say God has been faithful to me because the job puts food on my table. But that was not my reason of coming into it. I did not come into fashion business for the money, but to live my passion. I feel happy and fulfilled seeing people admire my works and seeing my design looking good on clients. The passion for fashion was my driving force. And your stylesIt comes from the inside, you don't learn it; though I attended a fashion school to hone my skill, the style comes naturally within. There is something about creativity; as you regularly do the job with passion, you learn new things and develop new ideas. The ideas are what will lead you to new styles. WHAT is the place of Nigerian designers in Africa'Nigerian fashion is a force to reckon with in Africa; in fact, we are on top of the chart on the continent. Though countries such as Ghana, Senegal and Togo are striving hard, they can't be compared to us.And your clientsIt cuts across different categories of people' the rich, the average and even the poor. My clients included former first Lady of Nigeria, the late Stella Obasanjo; Onari Duke, wife of former Governor of Cross River State; Mrs. Arapaja, wife of former Deputy Governor of Oyo State; and Mrs. Omolola Oyinlola, wife of former Governor of Osun State and others. What's Vigold's unique selling point'It is our quality; our products speak for themselves because we put in a lot of efforts to make them. I personally supervise every clothe that goes out my office; that is how I ensure quality. We don't play with our finishing because it determines quality. Is Nigerian fashion then at its peak'No, we are yet to get there because we still have a lot to explore; many things are yet to be tapped into. However, we are looking forwards to countries such as France and Italy that have made lasting mark as the world best, but that does not mean we can't surpass them. How accepted are African designs abroad'African styles are well accepted everywhere, now, especially in the US; they appreciate the uniqueness of our styles and design. Recently, Alicia Keys, the popular American singer, was seen wearing a jacket that was made of Nigerian fabric; it looked beautiful. Very soon, Nigerian fashion will be on world top because of the way it's moving.Challenges on the jobChallenges in the industry are increasing by the day because fashion has gone global and the ante at home has been upped. We've been very successful in using local fabrics to create more adorable western styles. Designers need to be updating themselves regularly to meet with the growing trend, which involves a lot of fund and hardwork.Support from governmentThe Olusegun Obasanjo-led administration really boosted the fashion industry. The government, then, was interested in promoting Nigeria fashion and came up with the idea of sponsoring interested fashion designers to international shows. I was among the beneficiaries. The banning of foreign fabrics also helped in elevating the local once such as ankara. The banning made people to look inwards to what is available.Advice to upcoming designersThey should be passionate about the profession, develop themselves and be creative.
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