Taiwo and Kehinde Okunoren own the label, Okunoren Twins. In this interview, Taiwo talks about their foray into fashion
Q: Did you start the clothing business for monetary gains?
A: No, we did not. It was a need that we recognised. If a young man goes into a business because of the money, he would keep going from one business to another. Money should never be a primary purpose but think of being a solution to people's problem.
Q: How did it all start?
A: It started 12 years ago when we were in the university. We were selling ready-to-wear shirts from the United Kingdom and United States. For every five shirts we sold, people would return three for fittings. They complained that either the sleeves or chest was too big. With that, we understood that people were actually moving from big clothes to fitted clothes. We acted accordingly.
Q: At what point did you start making your own clothes?
A: We got fabrics and gave them to the tailor that used to make the fittings for us then. We also gave him a sample of one of the shirts we used to sell and told him to copy the shirts. He did it and it was better than the Thomas Pink he copied. The shirts were sold off the same day they were ready. Since then we have been in business. But we did not concentrate on shirts; they were easy to get. We decided to focus on suits.
Q: But many tailors make suits in Nigeria.
A: There was nothing like British bespoke tailoring for men's suits in Nigeria. We introduced it and it has been on since then. Almost every stylish man in Nigeria wears a one-button suit with a cut-away in the front; a royal blue suit or caftan shirts. One button with cut-away fronts is conventionally for tuxedos and morning coats. You would never see one button on a traditional suit. We brought it from the morning coats into the business suits. On a close watch, one would not see a single vent on our suits. Nigerian men have buxom buttocks; that is why single vents are not good for them. But the double side vents make them look slimmer and taller.
Q: What grew the business in 12 years?
A: Innovation. We keep bringing new things. We started from being a bespoke tailoring brand to a retail brand and we still have plans for expansion.
Q: What did you study in school?
A: Initially I was studying business administration and later moved to advertising. But my partner did public relations. We never got training in fashion; we learnt on the job. The skills were innate. We just realised on time at the age of 19, that we had those tendencies.
Q: Would you advise patent for fashion products?
A: We live in a country where there are no laws governing these things. Things have to be protected for brands to make money from their invention because hardwork must have gone into it.
Q: How did you handle the competition while growing in the business?
A: We designed ourselves and we were market driven. When a designer is not market-driven, then he is just designing for himself.
Q: What were your initial challenges?
A: The typical one was trying to convince people. We started at 19 but what helped us was the fact that we were innovative and consistent with what we did.
Q: As designers, do you also style people?
A: People wear our clothes, and it is the style we create that they wear.
Q: What aspects of the fashion designing process are you involved in?
A: We started as creative directors but now that we are expanding, we are delving into the production part of it as well. We will no longer be designing just for retail stores only; we will be producing in large quantities too.
Q: What has been your major achievement in 12 years?
A: Our greatest feat would be our backward integration, which is moving the brand from a bespoke tailoring company to a clothing company. Right now, things are more structured and independent. If we decide to retire from fashion, that will not be the end of the brand. We have production facilities and we produce for our brand and other brands. It is a separate arm of the business and it takes on contracts and orders from anyone. We have received a royal warrant from the Ooni of Ife to be the official clothier of the king and his court.
Q: What is the difference between the bespoke and retail line?
A: Bespoke is basically 100 per cent made by hand. We take the measurement and it is hand-sewn. Retail design is ready-to-wear and off-the-rack. It is already made and we just make alterations to fit the client. Some designers do not know what a bespoke suit is. They think it means just custom-made; bespoke has to be 100 per cent made by hand. They are not made in Nigeria; what we have in Nigeria is made-to-measure. No designer in Nigeria makes a bespoke suit. We make bespoke suits but they are not made in Nigeria. We cannot get that quality here but we are training people to make them. Even our buttonholes are made in Italy. Our suits compete with those in London because they are made by the same people on Savil Row.
Q: Do you get your size conversions abroad like other designers?
A: Yes, we do the same. We get size conversions from abroad and use it to make the suits. But we do alterations because our arms are usually longer than what we get abroad and we make those adjustments into our suits.
Q: How have you managed not to split?
A: We are partners in the business and we do things together. We understand our parts in the business and we do it. We have to be together to run the business.
Q: Do you have a fashion school?
A: We cannot do everything at the same time. We want to grow the business further, but we take interns every year. We have a pet project where we train African artisans where they learn and hone their craft.
Q: Some designers put foreign labels on their products in order to sell them.
A: They have the talents but do not have the mindset of branding. If they have knowledge of branding and proper packaging, they would not need to put a foreign designer label on their products. They need to build their brand and take advantage of it. There are two sides to it, the production and retail bits. The only way they can profit from the retail bit is by building a strong brand. They need the right advice on branding.
