Everywoman boss, Debbie Ogunjobi, tells ‘Nonye Ben-Nwankwo about her style and how she became a clothier
Would you say you are fashionable just because you are a clothier?
I love clothes. I have always loved clothes. I don’t think they should be expensive too. Clothes shouldn’t be something you need to break your back to wear. I don’t think how expensive the clothes are determines how nice you look. A woman already has enough challenges on her plate and so fashion should not be a reason for her to get into debt. That is the angle I look fashion from. Fashion is not brain science. Nobody is going to be cured from cancer by wearing a dress I sell. For me, it would be hard for you to call a ridiculous amount for a dress and expect me to buy it, I will not.
Is there a difference between your style and your fashion?
Fashion is simply about clothes. You can be fashionable. Style is your brand and who you are. It will be rare for somebody to find me uncomfortable in anything. My style is comfortability in my surroundings. My home is comfortable. Your style is not just your fashion; your home is also your style and the choices you make in decor. Fashion is just how you put clothes together. Style is your brand. When people see you, what do you exude, what is your aura? Is it confidence? You can exude class and confidence but you can also exude desperation.
Are there times you go to your closet and you feel you have so many clothes?
My husband thinks I have so many clothes. But then, I get clothes for free. Somebody said she was going to dress just like me and I told her she would break her back. It is silly to compete with somebody who is getting something for free. If I had to pay for my clothes, I wouldn’t have a quarter of them. Manufacturers (I don’t call them designers) like to woo me with their clothes because they would want me to buy their stuffs and put in my shops. I have a very crazy wardrobe.
What do you find very comfortable to wear?
It depends. I have my ‘seasons.’ There are times I would just feel like wearing skirts and blouses and there are times pants work for me.
Do native attires work for you as well?
I love wearing natives but with a twist. I might make mine differently. I like to think I am graceful and ladylike in the kind of things I wear. If I buy an expensive lace fabric, I will only use it to make iro and buba, I will not ‘waste’ it on skirt and blouse. What if I get fat? Then I will not be able to zip the skirt and the attire will just waste like that.
Is make-up a mandatory routine for you?
No. I don’t always make up. I am too impatient. I did a make-over by Tara the other day and I thought I looked really nice after. But on my own, I won’t even consider doing such. In fact, I don’t even know how to do that.
How long does it take you to dress up if you have an event to attend?
At most, seven minutes unless you add five minutes of taking a shower. I was watching a show the other day and some women said it takes them two hours to get dressed. My husband would have gone out and left me if I should waste such time. I don’t use mascara at all. Most of the events I attend are church based. There might be times you would be enjoying wonderful ministration and you would just forget yourself and start crying. Tears don’t work well with mascara, so I don’t use it.
Do you have a craze for shoes and bags?
I love shoes. I may not necessarily wear my shoes but I just have them and I am happy when I know they are there. I have my shoes in boxes and I go to where they are, smile and put them back.
How have you been able to sustain Everywoman for 18 years now?
It is just the grace of God. In my personal life, I can tell you grace is the only explanation that makes sense. There are many people who would have run a business today but they are not alive to run it. I thank God for health. Nigerian women have supported me. Some of them have taken Everywoman as if it is their own. One of the character flaws I have is short attention span. That I could do something for 18 years, only grace explains it.
Why did you choose to become a clothier?
I didn’t choose to become a clothier, it was an accident. My mum died in 1996 and I became severely depressed and I went to my friend’s house who was selling some clothes. I thought the price was too high. Somebody just challenged me and asked me how much I would sell my clothes if I were to sell them. I told the person and she didn’t believe me. So I travelled to London and I came back with about 680 dresses and by the following weekend, I had almost sold them out. That was when I realised that this could be profitable. But I still didn’t decide to start a store.
When did you decide?
One of my friends was passing by Opebi and told me she saw an uncompleted building and she suggested I open a store there. At that time, there were just few clothing shops. So the person suggested I open a shop for women who want to project a brand and wouldn’t want something expensive. So I went to the owner of the building. She looked at me and said I looked wounded. I burst into tears. This woman didn’t know me from anywhere. She took me to her room and I cried for more than an hour and I fell asleep. By the time I woke up, she had called her lawyer and introduced me as her daughter and she asked the lawyer to give me one shop. She gave me the shop at a very silly price. She gave me a seven-year lease even when I had objected and told her I wasn’t sure I intended doing this business for a long time. She insisted I must do it even if it was for seven years. That was just how I started.
Were you wearing miniskirts and short dresses when you were much younger?
It would be hypocritical for people to try and reinvent history. Yes, I wore such. My miniskirts were legendary in those days. But we thank God for Christ. Even people with ‘K’ legs wore miniskirts back then in school. I am a middle aged woman, I am 45. I can’t understand women who want to mentor younger girls by condemnation. There is no way you can make an impact on them because they already resent you. You are coming from a place of judgement.
You used to wear cropped hair, why did you change?
My children hated it and my husband hated it as well. My children felt it was a disability. They didn’t even want me to be coming for PTA meeting. My son actually said, ‘My mummy only has a head.’ The teacher said she felt I was disabled or I had suffered burns or something like that. The teacher saw me and screamed. She said she thought I was just a victim of accident. When I started growing my hair, my bride price increased considerably. All of a sudden, my son’s friends in Primary Two wanted to marry me. I had many suitors in his class.
So it is goodbye to cropped hair?
Of course. I tried it the other day but my husband didn’t like it.
Are you a tattoo fan?
The Bible says you should not mark your body because it is the temple of the Lord; it should not be defiled.
So you didn’t experiment with such when you were much younger?
I didn’t. I was born in a Christian home and I knew we weren’t supposed to mark our body for any reason.
In these days of cosmetic surgery, would you subscribe to such?
No. I don’t place that much value on aesthetics. The total of who I am is not what I look like. I think people place too much emphasis on what they look like. Who determines who is beautiful? For me, it is just genetic lottery. I don’t feel the need to hold on to my youth, it is gone. I am happy it came and I don’t want to slow it down. I like getting old.
Would you remember if you made fashion mistakes years ago?
I made so many mistakes. I can’t forget the days of shoulder pads. I had shoulder pads that could reach my ears. There were times I did jerry curls that didn’t gel and I would apply so much curl activator and the hair would look so terrible.
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