Rita Okoye
Kemi Adeyemo is a young Nigerian Fashion designer based in Lagos. She got her BSc. in Biochemistry from the University of Port Harcourt She is also a Pattern Drafter and Fashion illustration graduate from M.E Fashion School. Just last year, March 2018, she kicked off Jane Uati brand after grabbing her first university degree. Now, she is a year old in business and waxing stronger. In this interview she speaks on her inspiration, lessons and achievements after one year in the Nigerian fashion industry. Excerpts:
What’s the inspiration behind your brand? How did it all start?
My mum has always been my inspiration. During my growing up days, I watched how fashionable she was, the way she mixed and matched her outfits, she always had an accessory on, be it her head band, fascinator, etc. I loved it and that actually drew me into fashion. The idea of becoming a fashion designer and starting my own brand, kicked off during my university days (University of Port Harcourt). While I was in Year two in 2013, the urge became too much and I wanted to start in 2014 but the course I was studying in school was too demanding, I couldn’t juggle both. So, I decided to wait until I finished my schooling to dive into it fully. I graduated in 2017 and decided to start but I still wasn’t stable, I was shuttling Port Harcourt-Benin-Lagos. I needed to be stabilised to start. So, I moved to Lagos in March 2018 and started Jane Uati in 2018.
What inspired the name Jane Uati?
The name ‘Uati’ is an Esan name (Edo State). You would agree it’s a very unique and beautiful name. “Jane Uati “ is actually my mother’s name. I decided to name my brand after my mum because she’s my rock, I adore her and she inspires me.
Who’s an ideal Jane Uati woman?
An ideal Jane Uati woman is industrious and creative, she dresses herself with strength and she is a confident woman. At Jane Uati, we cloth you to feel strong, confident, comfortable, bold, sexy unique and classy. Our pieces make you not just an ideal woman but you feel like it.
What’s your creative process like?
My creative process starts from me doing my research, this I do all the time even at my free time. I research about new trends, what’s hot at the moment. Then my creative instincts kicks in and I start imagining how things would come out if put them together. I try to make my pieces with the thought that modest is the new beautiful. I sketch sometimes to bring my ideas to reality. After which I produce my pieces.
What’s your greatest challenge running a fashion brand like yours in Lagos, Nigeria?
The light situation; it’s really very bad and it affects our productivity.
Being in the Nigerian fashion industry, what would you say is the greatest lesson you’ve learned?
I have learned a whole lot in my short period as a fashion designer/entrepreneur. I would say dealing with people is by far the greatest lesson I have learned. Prior to Jane Uati, I didn’t know how to be patient with people. I usually just don’t have that time, but when I started my brand, I had to learn how to communicate and listen to the needs of my clients. I can say I’m pretty great with communication and managing people.
What’s the grand plan of your brand?
Jane Uati is focused mainly on making Afrocentric pieces to promote our African prints, mixing them with other fabrics and making them look contemporary. We also do contemporary wear without Ankara prints too. My goal for my brand is to make it a worldwide known store where you can get both our Afrocentric and contemporary pieces as well at a relatively affordable price. We are currently working on our website and app to cater for our Uati women across the globe.
How supportive can you say the Nigerian fashion industry is of young designers?
There are lots of support I have received personally from brands in the Nigerian fashion industry as a young designer. I was opportune to showcase my designs on TVC’s “Wake up Nigeria” earlier this year, that really exposed my brand to a wider audience. There are also many online blogs that carries my designs all the time (Asoebibella, Ankarazone, Ankarawoman, Ankarastyles to name a few). These blogs have been a great support to me as a young designer. There are also competitions where young designers pitch for start-up-funds and are awarded with money to support their businesses.
What’s your greatest achievement so far as a designer?
Seeing the joy I bring to the faces of my clients, it’s a feeling on another level.
How do you balance work and your personal life considering how busy you are?
Fashion designing is a very time consuming job as deep thoughts are put into it. I’d say planning really helps in putting a balance, know when to take a break and creating time for the other side of life. Like they say, all work and no play makes Kemi really monotonous.
What do you do to relax after all the work?
I’m a movie kind of girl, so I watch movies most of the time, read books, and fashion magazines.
What makes you happy as a woman?
Many things make me happy, but the best of all is fashion; it makes me very happy.
Do you have a skincare regimen and what’s it like?
No, I don’t really. I love oils a lot though (Almond oil, coconut oil & carrot oil).
What’s the one thing you can’t do without as a designer?
The Internet.
Who are some of the celebrity women that have inspired you in the course of your journey as a designer?
Firstly, my mum, like I said earlier, she’s a very fashionable person and that was a big influence from childhood. Then Anna Wintour, Diane von Furstenberg, and Janelle Monae.
If you are to turn back the hands of time and start all over again, what’s that one thing you would change and do differently?
Nothing really, I love all the stages I passed through. I am where I am because of those lessons.
How affordable are your wears?
Very affordable because we use only quality fabrics, zips etc to produce these clothes and sell them at a very affordable price. We offer affordable luxury pieces.