Honouring Emerging Trailblazers
Discover the 2019 winners — exceptional young founders who redefined leadership, creativity, and business excellence across Nigeria’s growing entrepreneurial landscape.
ENVIRONMENTAL, HOUSING & INTERIOR DECOR
CHINEMEREM SUCCESS (YOUSPLASH DECOR)
Success Chinemerem Onuoha is a young creative artist. She is the owner :Yousplashdecors. Yousplashdecors is an Interior decor hand-craft brand with an aim to attain sustainable development goal 8- Decent work and Economic growth through creativity. Yousplashdecors also encourages posterity of handmade art. Success believes Happiness is Handmade. Each piece of art is crafted with thought and care to ensure uniqueness and effortless results. Yousplashdecors products are made using wool(yarns) and are eco-friendly. Within one year of launch, Yousplashdecors has trained over 30 women on skill acquisition program to create a sustainable means of livelihood from their immediate environment. Success aims to create direct impact in her immediate community, offering a source of income through artistic skills, adding warmth and smiles to homes and fostering appreciation of handmade art.
EVENTS PLANNING
JUMOKE AKINBORO (JUMIE PLANNED IT)
Olajumoke Akinboro is the Head Planner of Jummieplannedit Events, a budding event company based in Lagos, Nigeria. She is an Event planner/ Coordinator/ Manager who strives to stand out and curate excellently planned, well coordinated events on different budgets while leaving the celebrants and guests with wonderful and forever lasting memories. She was first exposed to the beautiful world of events at a very young age of 6 by her mother. Jummieplannedit Events went into full operation in 2018, She recently co-started tour (individual and groups) management this year. She’s a graduate of Medical Laboratory Sciences from Babcock University as well as been licensed to practice in Nigeria by The Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria. She is glad to have found clarity, purpose and passion under 25 years with the help of God by recognizing and providing available resources and opportunities. She looks forward to encouraging, mentoring and telling how She found this path by speaking to great young minds about purpose and making hay while the sun shines as the term “catch them young” was of great help in her present life. When Jummie is not planning events, she can be found providing health.
FASHION
ADEDOYIN ADELAKUN (SHOP ADEDOYIN BY ADE)
Dedoyin Adel A fashion Designer- ShopadedoyinAde A chartered Administrator I appreciate hand skills and the art of manipulating fabrics. I have always enjoyed doing fashion. We make all sorts of dresses, wrap dresses, bridesmaids, ready to wear and custom made. Our designs are strictly sketched by us. I decided to be a fashion designer/ entrepreneur because it gives a lot of exposure, you get to meet with new people(clients) and I’m passionate about learning. I want to be assigned to tasks never handled before. What makes my business unique is my marketing strategy, my customer relationship, my prints and design.
FINANCIAL LITERACY ADVOCATE
CHIDINMA OKOLI
Chidinma is a holder of the Diana Awards 2019,she is a speaker and investor, also a nominee of the now awards 2019, some of her works has been published on bella naija to mention a few.
FOOD & DRINKS
KELECHI OHIRI (PEARL PERFECT)
Kelechi is the founder of pearl perfect cakes where she makes deserts, pastries, cakes, cupcakes and banana bread, she best describes art practice as art you can eat, love made edible.
HEALTH & SKINCARE
ADEJOKE ADETUTU LABAKE (YOUGLOW NATURALS)
Adegoke Adetutu is a certified Human Resource personnel from the University of Ilorin and an accountant from Lagos State Polytechnic, she is also a beneficiary of the Cherrie Blair Foundation for Entrepreneur Development Center (EDC) of the Pan Atlantic University. Her journey into skincare began during her schooling days with the passion to make available affordable yet effective skincare products and services for all class and to ensure good skin is achievable hence she founded YouGlow Naturals with the mission to provide solutions to skin challenges and to give the skin that soft, clear, even, smooth, doting look and natural GLOW. We are currently in 6 states of Nigeria which includes; Lagos, Oyo, Kwara and Abuja, Kano, Our products contain Alpha Hydroxyl Acid (Acid), Betacarotene, Hydraulic acid and several Botanical ingredients that REJUVENATE the skin and then gives it a better look.
HOSPITALITY & TOURISM
ETI-INYENE GODWIN AKPAN - (PHOTO WAKA AFRICA)
ETI-INYENE GODWIN AKPAN, popularly known as SIR Inyene, is a documentary photographer with a difference, and one who is very passionate about capacity building for budding photographers. He is the Chief Executive Officer at the SIR Inyene Company. This is a media house located in Lagos, Nigeria. He is also the Founder and Executive Director of PhotoWaka Africa, which is a social enterprise focused on youth empowerment, creativity, job creation and creating a sustainable value chain in the photography and creative space. The vision of PhotoWaka Africa is to develop professionally inclined, engaging and highly creative community of visual storytellers around Africa, with the bodacious mission of telling African stories through photography thereby using photography as a tool for social change. He is presently serving as the Lead Photographer for Social Good Lagos; a sub-community of the United Nations Foundation. He is also a member of the African Photo Journalism Database (APJD) and Professional Photographers of America (PPA). Sir INYENE is also the winner of the 2019 #MyNaijaMyCanon competition.
MANUFACTURING & LOGISTICS
TEMITAYO JOHNSON LALEYE (TJL SIGNATURE)
Temitayo JOHNSON-LALEYE Temitayo, (popularly known as TJL) is the Creative Director of TJL Signature, a brand that produces fashion accessories such as bags, unique jewellery pieces and lots more. In 2017, she founded TJL Signature, a leading Student Bag Making brand in Nigeria. With several years of experience as a student herself, she has learned the intricacies of durability and aesthetics in bag making, especially for school students. TJL Signature products are used all over Nigeria and countless customers can attest to the excellence of their products. A recipient of the Girl Courageous Award for Exemplary Leadership (2017), TJL is passionate about inspiring the girl child and empowering young people like herself with creative craft skills by training them at various youth empowerment forums across the city of Ibadan. Temitayo is a 300L student of the University of Ibadan. She is also the founding President of Unibadan Entrepreneurs Network, an organization poised to equip students on campus with entrepreneurial skills to turn them into 21st century wealth creators.
MEDIA & COMMUNICATIONS
NORA AWOLOWO (RIXEL STUDIOS)
NORA AWOLOWO is a visual creator and drone pilot who has work on numerous projects which includes Symphony , ladibs, route and the bay.
MUSIC
ROZ SAEED
Saeed, a nominee in the category of Music. Saeed Roz is an Artist, writer, basketball player and a dancer. Music has been a major form of expression for him from a really young age and he has managed to blend different style of music from rock to RnB to Hip Hop and even Afro pop to create his own unique Vibe. He uses his writing and singing to translate his emotions and that of people around him into Rhythm. He’s a passionate individual and this leaves its distinctive mark on all he does. Music is more than art to him…it’s his whole life. He has so far only put out short clips of his music on Instagram that a decent number of people resonate to. He intends to put out more of his music and hopes the whole world gets to hear him someday.
PERFORMING ARTS
DAMILOLA OLUWAYEMI
Damilola Emmanuel Oluwayemi a.k.a. Daminator is a 22-year-old Choreographer/Dancer and Cinematographer from Ekiti state. He is currently pursuing an undergraduate degree in Computer Science at Covenant University, and started to take dance seriously in 2013 when he joined Reflections Global Dance Ministry. In 2015, Daminator began to build video editing skills with the help of online aids and internet tutorials and In 2018, he worked on a dance project to support the Super Eagles in their ambitious quest for glory during the 2018 Fifa World Cup. In 2019, he was nominated for an award in the best performing artists category during the Wings Awards Ceremony in Covenant University and he is currently working on a #Dance4Charity project, using dance as a driving force to reach out to the less privileged. Daminator hopes to build a dance empire that will impact the dance industry in Nigeria positively and prove that people can make a good living out of dance.
PHOTOGRAPHY
SAMUEL OGUNDIRAN
Ogundiran Samuel is a 21yrs old Nigeria professional photographer who currently works as a photographer for Nigeria’s First Agricultural Technology Company. Currently he has over 3yrs of photography experience and shoots portrait, fashion, event, beauty, abstract and event photography. He currently assists TY Bello occasionally on professional shoots.
PROFESSIONAL SERVICES
EJIRO AGAMBI (JEOVIL CLEANING SERVICES)
Ejiro Agambi is the founder of JEOVIL CLEANING SERVICES a janitor supply,post construction, home office cleaning, fumigation and training company, with presence in Abuja and Lagos.
SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP
JOSHUA OKODUWA (RESTRUCTURE AFRICA)
Joshua Okoduwa is the founder of RESTRUCTURE AFRICA. A youth led nonprofit organization dedicated to eradicating poverty, improving educational resources, and improving the quality of lives in Africa indigenous communities. Restructure Africa is addressing the number of out of school children in low-income communities in Nigeria through education for sustainable development (ESD) & Global Citizenship Education (GCED). With an ambition to improve the access to blood products at the hospital level to combat blood shortage in Nigeria, he founded Love and Pint which supports patients in need of blood and encourages youth participation in voluntary blood donation. He is a Global Schools Advocate UN SDSN Youth, Young Professional Fellow – The Platform 2018, Reflex Media – Top 10 Community Development Persons for 2017 in Nigeria, YNaija 2019 New Establishment, & a nominee for the Creative Faith Academy Awards 2018. He is also a member of the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network, CivicUS and Open Source Leadership by Common Purpose UK. He believes education and health are the backbone of sustainable development of a country. It gives room for economic prosperity, peace, empowerment and opportunity for people to achieve their dreams and maximum potential.
SOFTWARE & DESIGN
DAMILARE & LEWA (EVOLVE AGENCY)
Dare and Lewa are partners who founded Evolve agency, a software design Company
SPORT
ESE OGUMA (ATHLETIC HEAT LTD)
Ese Oguma is a 21 year old CEO of Athletic Heat Ltd. One of Nigeria’s foremost Athletics news site. The pioneers of Athletic Heat Track and Field Awards, the first track and field awards in Nigeria. As well as the founders of Athletic Heat Secondary school tour, first of its kind in Nigeria. Ese Oguma is a Professional Athlete and final year Business Management student of the University of Port Harcourt. He is also the sprint double champion (100m/200m) of the maiden edition of Lagos Secondary school sports game (Ibile), he then won a bronze medal at the National Junior Champions (200m). He has also racked up a bronze medal at the West African University Games as well as a silver at the Nigerian University Games for his school.