allure 17 September 2019

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INTERVIEW piracy, copy right infringement issues. The list is endless. The problem is not the buyers; the problem is the existing structure. The competition is stiff globally, from research and development, to production, maintaining ethical standards during manufacturing, cost of production, predicting trend cycle right, capital and human resources, logistics and delivery. So many 21st century issues. The remedy as far as I can tell, is not to look for buyers with a non-existent structure, don’t bite more than you can chew. Buyers will find you if you have what they want and meet their terms and conditions. There are buyers everywhere. The question should be how can we sustain and satisfy a buyer and buying conditions? If you can carve a niche, be the best at what you do, have integrity. If it’s one piece you have the capacity to produce at a certain time, let the buyers know and if you have to sell your design out rightly, give a good realistic price. If you don’t have the capacity to get a buyer, grow to that stage. Create designs that would fly off the rack. Do you think designers have knowledge of the proper workings of a fashion industry to be able to play well? I think there needs to be a clear distinction between a fashion designer and a fashionpreneur: which is an entrepreneur with the core in fashion. The question is relative and I believe it should be individual based because competition is stiff. I tell my students you can’t give what you don’t have. You call yourself a designer and you have no idea what is happening locally and globally in the fashion industry. The pitfalls, the challenges are all a misery. The designer must have a credible system in place to even begin to think of functioning. It is a trust and camaraderie based industry. A lot of Nigerian fashion designers are trying really hard to be building good brands, so I would say. If you lack a skill in moving your business or label forward, go get it, no price is too much for knowledge acquisition. It is way cheaper than the crisis that originates from foolishness and ignorance. If you are a fashion designer with little or no business skills get a manager. If you a fashion business person with no fashion designing skills, hire a fashion designer. If you are both, keep adding more knowledge. Problem arises when you have not discovered the limitations of your skill set. How do you equip the young designers you churn out? The designers that graduate form Rhoda Michaels Fashion Institute, go through an enlightening and a rigorous phase of learning. The Rhoda Michaels student is trained as a fashion designer from pattern drafting to clothing construction, bespoke tailoring, fashion illustration, colour and trend analysis, fashion media and fashion education. Each student gets a free brother LS14 sewing machine and sewing tools. So no matter what your background, you have basic tools to start a business. We have embedded the 4’cs of learning into our curriculum; our students understand the place of critical thinking, creativity, communication and collaboration. Each student is expected to be punctual for classes, strict assignment submission policy. We also have career sessions (master Classes) with notable brands and individuals who come into the school from time to time to teach and educate our students on the intricacies involved in running a fashion business. We expose them to fashion shows home and abroad, they go on excursions to different fashion manufacturing companies to see how they operate. Our graduation process is a very encompassing one which takes the young designer through every aspect of personal label creation, manufacturing process and a fashion show to launch each graduating student’s brand. We believe in empowering the next generation. We can each turn Nigeria around one person at the time. A country’s greatest asset is its small businesses. If we can create profitable and sustainable small businesses, we would have a better outcome in Nigeria. How well are the master classes helping? The master classes have truly transformed the minds of our students. Getting knowledge for me is truly phenomenal. All the speakers we have invited come freely to impact knowledge. At Rhoda Michaels we believe experience is the best teacher, the catch is, it can be anybody’s experience. We encourage our students to What I often find are clothes not properly made, no universal size measurements, samples delivery come late and no apparent business structure from the designer. learn at the feet of experts, so they can leverage on their experience. If you learn and listen well, you can avoid the mistakes and pitfalls they encountered on their journey, to accelerate yours in a concise and definitive, productive manner. We truly believe everyone is a teacher; you are constantly four persons away from your needed contact. What more can be done? So much more can be done. Government can do better. As individuals, let’s give the best of ourselves, learn our craft, know our times and seasons in business and grow steadily. Get Educated and get wisdom. You can’t miss it if you are wise. Wisdom is the perfect application of knowledge that has been perfectly understood. The understanding comes from deciphering of knowledge. How do you get knowledge by deciphering information? How do you get informed? Get Educated. It is as simple as that. The solution to so many fashion problems can be attributed to the mindset. We at Rhoda Michaels transform lives using fashion as a tool. We are all about creating business models and projects that add value first. Once the mind is working right, we can create viable sustainable solutions to help us grow as a fashion industry in a nation filled with intelligent minds. Why is it that the industry still doesn’t have a production hub? Very simple, my people have not fully comprehended that it is also a fashion business that is so profitable. In fact, as we are talking, I think I am going to start one. The potential is astronomical. Do you know how wealthy you can become with fashion hub that produces clothes and other fashion accessories for people? I deal with back end of the industry so I can tell. Aside from being a teacher, I am also a certified business consultant. I am also a certified marketer, a digital and content marketer. So believe me when I say there is market for it. A lot of designers are coming up now that are tired of production because of the stress of tailors, power issues, and the many infrastructural problems we have in the country. This is a solid business but it requires someone with the spirit of excellence and an astute mind because if mess up production, you are finished. Get the necessary skills, have integrity, have solid business projection plan and grow steadily. Learn to say no to jobs you are not prepared for. Once people realize they can make a lot of money from production, that you don’t have to have a personal label to be relevant in the industry, and are willing to do the work it entails, we would have plenty production hubs in Nigeria. As a fashion designer what is the best skill you input into your students? The cliché is to say we teach this, we teach that. We can be the best teachers but if you have a student with a terrible ideology of life, a terrible mindset or a student that has no clue who they are, or why they exist, or what their purpose in life is, all has been lost. There is nothing you teach that will have meaning because there is a zero value addition. You can only place value on what is important to you. We engage the minds of our students, we take them on a journey with themselves, and we help them discover their true identity and potential. Then their creativity is unleashed in an astonishing way which makes them unique, carve a niche for them. Then we start to teach the fashion production skills and the business skills. At that point, it all comes together to give us a brilliant and above all profitable fashion designer. What is the most important lesson you have learnt as a business woman. Very simple. Mind your business; your business will mind you. This is the most valuable lesson I have learnt. If you give your business the right nutrient at the right time, it will take care of you in bountiful ways. I focus on my focus. Get wisdom. For me Jesus is wisdom, so I listen to the Holy Spirit. He is not lazy; you have to do the work. He points me in the right direction, it is my job to now figure out and know everything concerning the new direction he is pointing me to. I study hard, read a lot of books, watch a lot of video clips, and listen to podcasts on a wide range of subjects. It is important to stay informed. I have the spirit of excellence and I truly believe in myself. In a world where there are now too many teachers and philosophers, it has become paramount to nurture my mind, so I can have a unique voice. You organize a standard fashion show for your graduates. How do you fund it without sponsors? For us, it is all about adding value to the life of budding fashion designers, putting their best foot forward, giving them a platform to shine. They are our success story. We work with the philosophy all for one, one for all. We are as good as our weakest link at Rhoda Michaels. Our Spirit of excellence shows in everything we do. We consider our fashion shows a lucrative investment in our students that will surely yield dividends. If you were starting business today, what will you do differently? I would focus on a steady growth plan and I will worry less about money or funds. I now truly believe that you don’t need money to start a business. You need a burning idea that can transcend time. I would not expand and diversify rapidly. How would you describe your style? Sporty, simple, effortlessly chic. Less is more. 10 / September 15, 2019
contestants toolz, a guest & dakore akande Cubahiro Jordy Jeff, Elizabeth Elohor & Zarad Afia Tashana Zarad Afia Tashana & Cubahiro Jordy Jeff Win Elite Model Look Nigeria 2019 frank osodi & shola oyebade By - Oscar Ochiogu Ghanaian model, Zarad Afia Tashana and Cubahiro Jordy Jeff from Burundi have emerged winners of this year’s edition of Elite Model Look Nigeria contest. Both models, 16 years old, emerged winners out of the 1,000 boys and girls who started out in the competition. The grand finale, took place last Sunday at the Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos. This year, the Elite Model Look Nigeria team, expanded its coverage to include not only Nigeria, but also other countries in West and East Africa. At the finale, the winners were not only selected based on their photogenic qualities, their personality, and their natural beauty, but also, for their potential to correspond to current fashion trends. According to Elizabeth Elohor, the Creative Director of Elite Model Look Nigeria, “we look at the height (Female 5’9-6ft and Male 6ft-6’3), size (4-8), Age (16-26years), Nose, skin, a well-constructed face, defined features and a well-defined figure.” The winners; Zarad and Cubahiro will join other national winners worldwide, and will participate in the prestigious Elite Model Look World Finale taking place in Europe, with hopes of following in the footsteps of Fei Fei Sun, Ruth Bell, Vittoria Ceretti, Greta Varlese, Benjamin Benedek, Mayowa Nicholas, Victor Ndigwe and Davidson Obennebo all discovered by the Elite Model Look contest and propelled to fame. nkiru & zinna anumudu toke makinwa Akin Faminu, kaylah oniwo & denola grey September 15, 2019 / 11
Page 1 and 2: September 15, 2019 Funeral STYLE St
Page 3 and 4: Funeral Style FASHION 1 If you are
Page 5 and 6: Women’s FASHION hat chaRt By - Je
Page 7 and 8: FASHION 3 Wear your top with jeans
Page 9: INTERVIEW Rhoda Michaels: On The Bu
Page 13 and 14: I don’t agree. Helen Paul is doin
Page 15 and 16: The MultiChoice Talent Factory Grad

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