Igunma Osa-Jean is a designer and CEO of Olode and Thread. In this interview with Yetunde Oladeinde, he opens up about his humble beginnings, experiences with leather, designing sneakers, exploring Benin’s arts heritage, and how studying engineering inspires the things that he does.
Tell us about your experience as a designer.
When I started, being a fashion designer it wasn’t as glamorous as it is today. There were mostly local tailors and a handful of people who had made a name for themselves in the vocation, most of them no longer in the industry. so we didn’t have the prospects of untold riches, a long fruitful career, or anything like that. I can’t remember any kid back in primary or secondary school who said they wanted to be fashion designers when they grew up. Tailors were for the most part the black sheep of the society and extremely few educated people were happy to take on that role. That was a long time ago and a lot has changed since then.
One of the things I set out to do in my own little way was to alter the perception that designers weren’t reliable or professional in how they conducted business. It turns out that trying to proffer a solution to that challenge was a lucrative endeavor. I haven’t looked back since.
I have transitioned from the guy who wanted to make ends meet by selling local handmade leather goods out of my laptop bag, to running a brand that stages fashion pop-ups in Los Angeles, Atlanta, and New York.
It’s been a lot of work and I’ve met a lot of people. I think that’s my favourite part of being a designer – meeting people. I can’t possibly imagine sitting behind a desk doing a 9-5. I like to go out. The very thought of scouting new fabrics, and conceptualising new ideas or designs thrills me.
What inspired you to go into the sector?
Honestly? I needed a job. I have always had an eye for details. Growing up in Benin, once I got to the age where I could make my outfits, I was amazed at how difficult it was to get a tailor/designer who could make me the quality of outfits I wanted. Then there was the issue of ordering clothes and getting them months later, which tailors are kind of renowned for in this part of the world.
At the time I experienced all of this, I didn’t do much about it. It just sort of crept into my subconscious, knowing there was a void there that needed to be filled. I did a lot of sciences in school, so I couldn’t have imagined I would be the one to fill that gap. I wanted to be a doctor the first time I wrote JAMB. I couldn’t be any further away from that dream now, seeing how I turned out. Looking back, I’m glad I failed JAMB that year.
I collected music and fashion magazines around the time and I had moderate drawing skills. So, I was immersed in the culture and it was a time when hip-hop and fashion were very intertwined, hence streetwear was quite influential. The likes of Marc Ecko, Akademiks, Enyce, Mecca, and Girbaud, were massive then. so I would listen to hip hop and wear fake Meccas and Sean Jean in the day, then read GQ all night and learn about the work Hedi Slimane and Ozwald Boateng were doing at more prestigious houses like Dior and Givenchy.
I started sketching sneakers and even emailed some of my works to Ecko and LRG. The internet was just becoming a thing in this part of the world at the time and I would go to cybercafes miles away from where I lived just to check my email to see if I got any replies. One time I got a response from LRG. A gentleman called Osa, who ironically was my namesake. He didn’t offer me a job or anything like that though, just some sort of thumbs up. Since there was absolutely no avenue to explore the manufacturing of the sneakers I designed, I settled for making leather slippers. That was a low-hanging fruit that ushered me into the world of fashion.
What are some of the achievements and challenges?
I don’t know if I have achievements. I don’t see my work like that. I started 2 decades ago by myself with N3,500 and today I have an operation with some twenty-something members of staff. Those are real people with real jobs who serve other people and that’s something I take delight in – serving people. So I guess I can say we have been blessed with the opportunity to create something with which we have created a connection with so many people.
As for challenges, they’re replete albeit not peculiar to me. It’s the same challenges faced by young people doing business in Nigeria or anywhere else in the world.
I mentioned I started with N3,500, there has never been any point in my business where I had any sort of external injection of funds into the business. I have had to grow it day by day, Naira upon Naira and that can be VERY challenging. Not having the requisite database or well-documented archives to learn from is a serious challenge in the Nigerian fashion industry or at least it was when I started. Then there’s the issue of government policies and how it affects our work in real-time.
Take, for example, the ongoing dollar conundrum. Like I said earlier, that is something we’re all dealing with as a collective but it hits differently when you’re one of the people that need to source forex directly to import things.
The good thing about challenges though is that everyone has them and managing them circumspectly can separate you from the crowd. Challenges are good. I’m a Nigerian, challenges don’t scare us. If the fight is fair, we will win.
What is your assessment of the performance of Nigerian designers?
Nigerians are some of the most clever people on earth and I don’t say that because I’m a Nigerian. The industry is growing very fast and the number of players is increasing by the minute. As you would expect, there are a lot of fantastic designers out there. When you go around, it’s easy to notice a preponderance of Nigerian talents in other African markets and they’re highly sought after in these markets.
You studied Engineering. What did you do with it and how does it inspire your designs?
I didn’t go through with studying engineering. I dropped out after a year and a half or so. I wound up studying business and later on fashion. Fashion is engineering for the human body. Both are technical, wired around numbers, and require a lot of attention to detail if it’s to be done correctly. I would say my time studying engineering helped me develop an obsession with accuracy and the need to keep things simple. The best designs are not easy, but they are simple. It takes a lot of work to keep highly technical things simple.
You started with leather goods, what was the experience?
I love shoes! After sketching a ton of sneakers and realising there wasn’t any chance of having them designed locally, I decided to start manufacturing leather slippers and slides. I found a gentleman who had a small factory around the New Benin area. I gave him my designs and he churned them out nicely. They were pretty good and people liked them. I started with 2 pairs, and gradually built it up from there. In no time, I had bags of leather slippers. Meanwhile, he had a hard time keeping up with production, so I’d spend hours with him at the factory helping out because we had delivery deadlines to meet. That was how I learned shoemaking.
A few years down the line, then president Olusegun Obasanjo banned the importation of leather which my business relied heavily on. The quality of the local alternative was subpar so that affected sales significantly. That was what informed the decision to evolve into clothing as I had earlier collaborated with a friend who made clothes and he in turn sold my slippers since both items were complimentary. I figured for every pair of slippers I sold, the same customer was interested in buying maybe 2 or 3 outfits. There weren’t any eureka moments to it. It was common sense, I was in the wrong business, so to speak. I started a clothing line the right way.
How does the Benin artistic and rich heritage inspire you?
You’re correct. The Benin artistic heritage is very rich and it inspires even people who are not from there. When the British force raided the city in the 1897 punitive expedition, they didn’t spare the people but spared our art on a large scale. It says a lot. We are a people whom God has blessed tremendously. We have proven to be prolific craftsmen over time and I think that still runs in our blood to this day. So it’s not just the external influences but the very fact that I am from there that reflects in my work.
At what point did you diversify to Women’s clothing?
That was in 2017 and I did so for a few reasons. Whenever I’d make clothes for my male clientele, their wives would get mad at me for leaving them out. I figured I was leaving money on the table since I already had a potential customer base just sitting there. I also noticed a lot of tackiness in the women’s clothing I saw around. If the clothes fit very well, which a lot of women seemed to be more concerned with, designers could get away with poorly finished work or they just threw embellishments at it. I thought I could do better. Plus I was kind of getting bored with men’s fashion anyway. Womenswear is more adventurous and has unlimited room for creativity as opposed to menswear, where finesse and accuracy are the things you look out for. I don’t think a man’s clothes should be over-designed. It takes away from the sophistication.
officially, we released our first women’s campaign with our Rainy Season 2020 collection. Currently, we are releasing the first Olode and Thread traditional wedding collection – Dry Season 2024. It’s a project I’m very excited about. It’s a complete collection comprising menswear and womenswear.
What are some of the changes that you would like to see in the country today?
Over time, we Nigerians have become inveterate cynics and you can’t blame us. Past experiences have heavily shaped how we perceive people in leadership and government and we pretty much channel all that negative energy towards the entity Nigeria instead of the politicians we have problems with. I’d like to see Nigerians have faith in the country again. If we could speak more positive words about our country, that would be a start.
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When politicians fail us, it’s not the country that has failed us, why curse the country? Words are powerful. The politician has a last name and it’s not “Nigeria’. They do not own the country any more than we do.
I’d like to see hope restored, especially with young people. A lot of our great minds are being lost to the Japa syndrome currently and it’s very painful. our education is in shambles and the level of ignorance is dangerously high. Personally, that’s an area I have thought of investing in – helping young people learn science and math. I always say math is the language of God and you can do anything if you are proficient in it. unfortunately what you hear today is “school na scam”. It’s a horrifying prospect, knowing this is the generation we’re handing over to. Something’s gotta give and I don’t think we should sit idle and wait for it. We have a responsibility to do something, every one of us. Each one teach one, they say.
Did you have mentors at the beginning? What has been their impact?
Physically? No. I wish I did, I bet it would have cut my journey in half. I quickly resorted to books when I couldn’t gain access to the type of minds that could help me cut my path in the fashion industry.
The first fashion book I ever read was Obsession; The Lives and Times of Calvin Klein by Steven Gaines. I couldn’t put it down. This was around 1999-2,000. I didn’t have a lot of people around me that had done what I wanted to do so I found mentorship in books. In fashion school, the first book that was recommended which I still find invaluable to this day is, “The End of Fashion; How Marketing Changed the Clothing Game Forever”. What I couldn’t have in people, I found in books. I have avoided a lot of pitfalls in the business just by studying people who have done it on the highest level and learning from their mistakes as well as ingenuity.
If you had to change something in the sector what would it be?
Put some structure to it. The fashion industry in Nigeria is all over the place at the moment and even as an individual brand, it can be effortful making the most of opportunities without proper organisation on an industry level. The fashion industry is very lucrative and improper organisation can hinder investments which is necessary for scaling. We can’t keep operating on this level. We have the market, we have the creative minds, and the connection needs to be made at some point with the products. There are several components in the fashion industry; garment manufacturing, pattern making, designing, marketing, etc. The fabric business in itself is an industry. You’ll be taken aback when customers ask you if you cut and sew as a designer. They think that validates your work. As a Nigerian designer, you’re the entire value chain by yourself and it doesn’t make a good case for specialisation. At any rate, the industry is a relatively young one compared to what they have in more organised settings like Europe, America, and Asia. So, I’m confident things will fall in line eventually.
What advice do you have for young people about the current challenges in the economy?
Stay hopeful. If you didn’t get it today, tomorrow is another day to try.
What lessons has life taught you?
Good things take time. Stay prepared, opportunities will come.
