Says CEO Jolad house of fashion, Kemi Akindele
Can you kindly put us through your educational background
Thanks for this opportunity. Am Mrs Oluwakemi Akindele nee Ayeni, I was born in Lagos but a native of Oye Ekiti, Ekiti state. Am a graduate of Osun state Polytechnic, Iree were I obtained my National diploma in Business Administrati noon and my higher Higher National diploma in Marketing. In search of green pasture after my NYSC, I worked with Intercellular telecommunications. After some years of dedication at intercellular telecommunications I called it a day and joined Standard Trust Bank now United bank of Africa, in searching for knowledge, I still made it mandatory to forge ahead in my education while working with the United Bank of Africa on part-time basis. I worked at UBA bank for 9 and half years before I resign to start my bead business.
What inspired you into banking?
Well, while growing up I have this passion for white-collar job mostly in the banking sector, I love the way they dressed when you entered into bank, their environment and everything about banking. So I always have this dream of one day I will be a banker and am happy my dream of becoming a banker came to pass.
Haven’t serve for 9 years in the bank, what inspired you into fashion business?
Destiny at work. Before I moved into fashion business, I have served for nine and half years in banking sector before I call it a quit, I served at all the branches of UBA in Ondo state within that period. As at when I left the bank, I actually had no plans of going into beading though I like handcraft. For those period I served at the bank, there was no promotion though I was enjoying my work but the issue of promotion makes me worried, they didn’t promote me. At first I taught it was because of my educational qualification and this made me to further went for my B.sc degree so that I can be promoted, yet I was not promoted, so I thought of what to do and I decided to quit my job but already had my plan B which was my supermarket, so it was easier for me to quit the banking job and face my supermarket business, so after I left banking work, I switched to my supermarket business but for some days, I was not really getting that satisfaction because once my girl display the goods, all I do is just to sit back and be pressing my BB phone, I told myself that this is not me, am this kind of person that work all hours of the days. So I asked myself what can I do that will keep me busy and at the same time fetch me money aside my supermarket, I never taught of beading. But believe God has a plan for everybody, so during my kids vacation in school, I took two weeks off and we traveled to Lagos, on getting to lagos I visited my friend Kemi who was into bead making and I fell in love with the creative part of the hand craft, so for that two weeks I develop interest in it and that was how Jolad bead started and I had no regret dropping my banking job for it.
What year did you start the bead making business?
I started my bead business in 2013 few months after quitting banking job. Gradually I included Aso-Oke stoning into it, though we are still young in the business but I will say today that Jolad House of Fashion is a force to reckon with in the fashion world in Ondo state and its environs.
So how much did you use to start your business?
We all know that starting a bead business does not require much capital, so in my own case I started with a sum of 30,000 naira only which I used to buy the materials and I blessed God who had been faithful with me in the business in the last 7 years, you see at time when I sit back and reflect on my journey, it was passion that made me go into banking job rather destiny push me into beading.
(Laughing) starting was very funny and interesting, back then I had a shop at Ayedun here in Akure. Then I will make some beads and I will be begging people to help wear my bead after making it. I even beg people to give me job so I can have little money so it won’t look as if am giving them for free. So I will say I started with free beads but today thy lord has been faithful to us at Jolad house of fashion.
How were you able to overcome that challenges?
I did that for something and I felt why not I rebrand, don’t forget I was coming from the cooperate world and I know the effect of branding, so I took the decision to quit my supermarket business and I sold all my goods, so the little money I was able to gather from there I used it to equipped myself and brand my business and this started attracting people to me and gradually the business was growing and people were patronizing us. Again I felt after rebranding and I need a targeted clients and to achieve this, I need to relocate, so I left ayedun street to Nepa market, then coming to Nepa Complex, I was the first bead merchant at Nepa shopping complex and this gave me the opportunity to market myself to my client and at the same time I was training peopel. So overcoming the challenges was with the help of God and people who believes in our brand.
How did you come about that name JOLAD?
Hmmmm, while I was searching for a unique name to use back then, the taught of combining all our names that is my children’s name, my husband’s name, and my name came up, so we just pick one letter each, that was how we came about Jolad. Aside that we are into Aso Oke, we stone aso-oke and dresses, I sell wedding accessory, so we decided to make it Jolad House of fashion.
In the last seven years Jolad House of Fashion has become a household name, how does this make you feel?
Ah... I feel on top of the world (laughs) I just want to bless God, it is not by my doing sincerely, I want to say it had been God because within a short period of time the name had gone far and am happy that I quit my banking job and took my decision for hand craft back then. I will also use this medium to appreciate your clients for believing in the brand. We appreciate and celebrate you always. Aside beads, we also design Aso oke for bride's, we sell wedding gown, fashion accessories and others.
How do you unwind?
Though I work 24hours round the clock but am more relax when am with my children. I love partying. If am working am relaxing.
