Encomium
NIGERIA’S first make-up conference tagged Make-up in Nigeria Conference (MINC) held on Wednesday, April 30, 2014, at the prestigious ballroom of Oriental Hotel, Lekki, Lagos.
The conference featured the shapers of make-up artistry in Nigeria, amassing a combined 80 years experience in the industry.
A-list make-up artists in Nigeria, as well as internationally, shared their experience in their business with both pro and aspiring make-up artists.
Some of the speakers included, Bantricia Bastian, Bayo Babalola Haastrup, Wuraira Musa, Eni Balogun, Lola Maja-Okojevoh, Joy Adenuga, Bolanle Okusanya Feyita, Bimpe Onakoya and the convener, Tara Fela-Durotoye.
ENCOMIUM Weekly had an exclusive chat with the organizer…
Yes, it is the first of its kind in Nigeria and was a great gathering of industry shapers. I’ve been an active player in the industry for 16 years, Bayo Haastrup has been for 25 years, Bolanle Okusanya Feyita for 15 years and we have never had a platform. We have visited the same type of conferences across several continents but none in Nigeria. House of Tara, as an organization has played an enabling role in the industry since inception. It was a House of Tara initiative to foster growth and collaboration just like many of our initiatives to enable the industry.
How were you able to bring such a plethora of renowned make-up artists together?
House of Tara has always been known as an industry enabler, I also mentioned that other make-up artists have participated in similar conferences abroad and wanted it duplicated back home. As such we did not find it difficult getting the likes of Bayo Haastrup, Funmi Abeke, Bimpe Onakoya, Eni Balogun, Kunbi of Sit Pretty Makeovers, Love Olaleye and others to be part of it.
How about corporate support?
The industry is a viable one and the corporate society has seen that it is viable.
A little away from the conference, what’s your opinion of the make-up industry in Nigeria over the years?
The industry has experienced tremendous growth over the years. I believe continents have set trends abroad. The season for Africa is now, Nigeria being the heartbeat. We are setting the trend for fashion and we will begin to set the trend for make-up and this is evident in the recent trend of international brands coming to set shop in Nigeria.
Where do you see it in five years?
I see more growth and more organization in the industry. For House of Tara, we see people understanding our retail strategy better, which is a multi-brand make-up specialty store, where the customers can find a huge variety of products across different categories and also find experienced make-up artists who can service them in a way that they feel comfortable, they can tryst and then at same time be able to find products at different price points that they can also purchase.
How do you juggle career and family?
I just do what I need to do and I ask God for grace. I am relentlessly driven by my family as my first passion. Taking my kids to school, bringing them back, ensuring that I am closely interested in what happens in their lives is so very important to me. There is no point building a business for other people when your homefront isn’t co-ordinated, and for me that is the first sign of success. I am lucky to have a husband who understands the vision very keenly, he supports it with his soul and so it makes it so easy to do this.
Your words to aspiring make-up artists?
Invest in your idea, be the first to take the courage. If you have so much faith in it, you must have enough faith in it to put all your effort in it. It will encourage others to do so.
What is your definition of black African beauty?
I would say my definition of an African beauty is a woman who is not ashamed of who she is. A woman who is proud of the colour of her skin, who is comfortable being who she is.
– MICHAEL NWOKIKE
