In what is set to be a major revolution in the creative designs sector, Titi Ogufere’s Design Week Lagos and Mojisola Hunponu-Wusu’s Woodhall Capital are collaborating in a partnership aimed at getting the best out of a hitherto quiet industry. Gboyega Alaka reports.
Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial capital and city of aquatic splendor is set to witness a major revolution in the design and creative industry in coming days, as renowned Nigerian interior designer and founder, Design Week Lagos, Titi Ogufere, recently announced a partnership with Mojisola Hunponu-Wusu’s, Woodhall Capital for her annual Design Week Lagos.
The partnership will execute a new show by Ogufere’s Design Week Lagos titled: The Design Den, fashioned in the mould of TV spectacles, which will afford young creatives and startup founders the opportunity of pitching ideas to judges towards securing financing options to help them expand and scale up their businesses.
Organisers say The Design Den will lead to a new era of financing and industrialisation for the design industry.
Speaking to journalists after a tour of designs on display on Day 1 of the Design Week Lagos exhibition held at the Ecobank Pan African Centre on Ozumba Mbadiwe, Victoria Island, Ogufere said the major challenges for the industry have always been access to funding and mentorship/ training, but added that advice is also important.
“Money is important because with money, you can do research, you can get people to do most of the things that you do. Why we’re doing this partnership is because in Woodhall Capital, there is a lot of structure that the design eco-system needs. We have a lot of the creativity. From just doing the tour with founder of Woodhall Capital, one of the things she kept saying was, ‘How viable is this product? How are we able to scale?’ We need products that can be scaled, that can be used for us, and also export. Because if you look at most things we have in Nigeria, the raw materials -from toothpick, to the furniture, to the screws; they’re all imported. But you can see, our people are producing these things, and if we’re able to scale, then the sky is the limit. We’ll have job creation, we’ll be able to have businesses that can thrive, and then we can grow the economy, which is very important.”
She thus concluded that this area and the area of advice, are where the partnership with Woodhall Capital becomes relevant ad critical.
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The Design Den
Ogufere explained that The Den is for designs, and the motive is on how the partnership could fund them to scale.
She said: “The Den will allow the designers to develop business plans and structure, which would then be assessed by the judges through five seasons, using various parameters. Afterwards one or two winners would emerge.”
On her part, Hunponu-Wusu said, “Woodhall would then provide funding as a loan to the winners to be able to scale their products. They would also provide access to the market; help the designer find off-takers. So, Woodhall would hold the designer all the way through, from concept to process, to design, to mass production. “
She explained that the criteria will be through open calls and careful selection. “We are selecting only five designers for the first season of The Den. The show itself would give a lot of visibility to the designers, a lot of market access.”
“WoodHall Capital (for the records) is a financial services firm. We raise international funding for banks, businesses and government. We set up a finance house that focuses on the creative industry and spotlighting it to attract funding, so it could achieve its potentials as a big money spinning sector of the economy.”
Ogufere said the idea behind the show is to enhance the creative industry and open a new vista of financing for creatives in the design industry across Nigeria.
“At this year’s Design Week Lagos, we are proud to introduce The Design Den—a first-of-its-kind initiative focused on industrialising and financing the design industry. This is not just about supporting designers; it’s about building an entire ecosystem where creativity meets capital and industry. We are unveiling our vision to transform design into a structured, investment-worthy sector that can drive economic growth across Africa,” Ogufere stated.
The 2025 edition of Design Week Lagos opened on Wednesday, February 26 with visitors treated to beauty all around – draped in exquisite interior options, magnificent furniture pieces and incredible art pieces.
From displays from greats like Demas Nwoko, to a huge installation by the Nike Art Gallery, among several others, any new comer stepping into the expansive centre would be forgiven to think this was an established gallery.
With the theme: ‘Building A Made In Nigeria Brand’ prominently displayed, even the brand-new ignition-running NORD car at the entry point showing the evolution of automotive design and assembly in Nigeria, fits perfectly into the picturesque setting.
“In Nigeria, we are rich in creativity. As you walked around, you have seen the works of people designing from dolls to furniture and rolls. To even upcoming stars that we can use in markets. If these things can be scaled and the right kind of structure can be put in place, many businesses can scale. I am really excited about this partnership, like I said, because this partnership is going to open doors that I believe will bring forth an industrial revolution,” Ogufere submitted.
Said the Woodhall Capital CEO, Hunponu-Wusu, the motive for the partnership is towards helping businesses in the design industry attract funding and investment, to increase their operational footprints and expand to different markets.
“The whole initiative of The Design Den is to give a pathway to scale. And we’re saying to creatives, bring your ideas; you may or may not be shortlisted. And for those who are shortlisted, we’re providing full advisory service, financial literacy; if you are going to scale, you need to know how to use money, how to attract money into your product, how to then deploy the funds and marry it with your creativity. Creativity that doesn’t have funding is just a concept. So how do you attract funding to your creative process? And then we help you to look at the market – your access to the market, what the market needs. We advise you on price point, giving you realistic pathway to scaling. If you can’t scale, then you cannot grow well. So we’re here as Woodhall Capital, partnering with Design Week Lagos, to say, how do we scale? How do we ensure the funding s, and the funding helps you through your process; and then you go to the market? We help you identify who your off-takers are. A lot of creatives today are actually insular; so we help them identify potentials – hotels, buildings, construction workers; and then we help them brand themselves. A lot of them are so genius in what they do that they’ve forgotten they need to advertise, brand themselves, make Instagram posts and tell their stories. Our job here is to help them understand that they have a narrative; help them story tell to potential off takers.”
Hunponu-Wusu, an investment banker with over 25 years of experience who is also the President of Woodhall Capital, Woodhall Capital Foundation, and Woodhall Finance House, said she was literally blown away by the sheer beauty, mastery and depth of designs dotting the exhibition centre.
“I saw people passionate about what Africa has to offer and bringing their skills to almost be a marketing arm of everything good and creative in Africa. And that really excited me – Everything from bedrock, to artwork, to chairs, to the various uses of pieces of wood, to conference tables, to ordering tables, to bathtubs. I am really thrilled. Heather, the ladies from Northern Nigeria, showcasing the best of everything that Nigeria has to offer in Africa,” she added.
In all, the impressive line-up of manufacturers, designers and interior makers like Taeillo, Savalani Furniture, TRT Aredo, Smart Owie, Abiodun Shonibare, Fadhi Yusuf, Tunji Lana, Donna Duke, Kofar Mata Mata Dieying Pits Kano, Chira Pottery, Aisha Kuranga, Rufus Nwoko, among others made this year’s Design Week Lagos extra special and set the stage for a mouth-watering competition for the final five to be selected for the Design Den.