Encomium
THE fifth edition of ELOY Awards (Exquisite Lady of the Year) held on Sunday, November 24, 2013, at the Red Carpet Event Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos.
Glamorous attires were paraded by celebrities. ENCOMIUM Weekly had a chat with the organizer of the award, Tewa Onasanya on the success of the show and what next to expect in years to come.
How do you feel about the fifth edition of ELOY Awards?
It feels wonderful and great. We are grateful that our event wrapped up this year. We are very happy that we made this year’s edition a reality. Thanks to the crew of Exquisite magazine who worked hard to put out a good show.
How will you rate this year’s award?
Every year it keeps getting better. The first one in 2009 cannot be compared to this year’s award. It was a gorgeous event. The hall was beautifully decorated, there was make-up to touch the faces of the people, it was nice.
Will you say it was a huge success?
The Exquisite team passed. They tried, so I will say yes, this year’s edition was a success. It is not just about making money from it, it is about making an impact.
How much did it gulp?
The event cost millions of naira, thanks to our sponsors who stood by us. We had Lagos State Internal Revenue Service, Hello Foods, Luxury Hampers, Genesis Delux Cinema, UBA, Barleys. We are so grateful to all who stood by us.
How were the awardees selected?
We have an ELOY year. It starts from December to September; within that period, a lot of people will send us names of nominees for the next award. We also have criteria. Awardees must be doing well in their chosen fields, they must be making impact and encouraging other entrepreneurs. We also give the privilege to fans and well wishers to cast votes for their desired nominated candidates.
What were the challenges you encountered during planning?
Trying to reach some of the nominees. It was quite difficult to get some of them but eventually, we scaled through. We were able to either get their e-mail or phone contacts. Getting sponsors was another hurdle. It was an event we couldn’t do by ourselves alone. Thank God, we eventually found like minds that sponsored us.
What are your plans for next year?
Next year will be bigger and better. We gave away 20 awards this year; next year, we are giving our more awards. We are creating more categories of awards by God’s grace. It is definitely going to be bigger and better.
Can you recall how ELOY started?
ELOY Awards was inspired by the need to get other women know what the next woman is doing, how she is making an impact in her own chosen career. One of the winners of this year’s award was Dr. Joel Odumakin. We will publish a story or an interview about her in our next edition. We want people to know her story, how she fought for a lot of voiceless people. We also gave an award to Mosunmolu Umoru, she is a farmer and she is doing great as well.
ELOY Awards is a celebration of women. It is meant to inspire others. We also found out that most awards are given to men, so ELOY Awards is basically for women. We also had household food category; everything is centred on the woman, anyway. That is how it all started.
Any financial reward?
All the winners went home with their plaque and Barleys. Maybe next year, we will incorporate financial rewards with it.
– SHADE WESELY-METIBOGUN
