Our brand is aimed to deliver high quality MADE IN NIGERIA goods - Founding partner at Anne Li Unique Ideas
By Kemi Mobuse - Thursday, May 19, 2016
Getting quality and affordable clothing, bedding and stuffs for kids in Nigeria before, is usually like, looking for a needle in a hay sack. Thank God, however, for the Made in Nigeria campaign, more and more entrepreneurs are springing up daily from all the nooks and crannies of the country. It was really obvious that; building a brand around kids is actually one of the things Nigeria needs the most.
Luckily for us though, Always Me By Anne Li is one of the few brands, created solely to cater for the needs of Children. KMB got the chance to interview one of the founding partners and she educated more about what her brand is about, excepts below:
Kemi Mobuse blog: Can we meet you?
Always Me By Anne
Li: My name is Ashim Egunjobi and I am one of the founding partners at Anne Li
Unique Ideas. The other partners in the business are Nkemdilim Begho and Ijeoma
Nwoke.
Kemi Mobuse blog: What do you do?
Kemi Mobuse blog: What do you do?
Always Me By Anne
Li: We specialize in providing wonderfully handmade colourful baby and kids
clothing, bedding and accessories such
as playmates, baby or nursing pillows, diaper pouches, teeters and so much
more. Everything we do has a touch of Africa, as we incorporate fabrics such as
Ankara into all our designs.
Kemi Mobuse blog: What inspired your going
into the fashion designing field?
Always Me By Anne
Li: It's not so much fashion in the true sense as our core speciality lies in
making beautiful pieces for babies that will be real keepsakes for them.
It was more of a chance than choice as one of our founding partners made a play mat for one of us for the birth of our first baby. The play mat was so beautiful and immediately gathered attention that we got a lot of orders before we had even really started the business.
It was more of a chance than choice as one of our founding partners made a play mat for one of us for the birth of our first baby. The play mat was so beautiful and immediately gathered attention that we got a lot of orders before we had even really started the business.
Kemi Mobuse blog: What inspired this choice
of name in particular?
Always Me By Anne
Li: The name Always Me by Anne Li which is the brand name under which our
products are retailed really comes from the idea of Babies and their parents
being able to enjoy and be free in play, learning how to crawl, sleep, read and
cuddle on quality materials at all times.
Kemi Mobuse blog: How old is your brand now
and how has the market reception been?
Always Me By Anne
Li: We officially started in November 2014 launching our range of products at
the renowned Lost in Lagos fair. Since then the brand has grown organically. We
have a broad customer base, strong following on Instagram with our handle
@alwaysmebyanneli and we actively take part in bazaars and exhibitions to
further showcase the brand. So yes, the reception by the market has been
phenomenal leading us to further expand our product offering this year to
include items such as bespoke nursing covers, maternity lounge wear and our
sensory baby products which I'm most excited about.
Kemi Mobuse blog: What major challenges have
you had to cope with since inception?
Always Me By Anne
Li: Major challenges in this market continue to be the availability of quality
materials. The devaluation of the Nigerian Naira has also been difficult for us,
as not only, have prices for materials increased but for instance, the
procurement of baby onesies which we source from the US to ensure best quality
with 100% cotton has been difficult and expensive due to the high exchange
rates.
There are really just the normal challenges entrepreneurs face but, we believe that there is no challenge that a) can't be overcome and b) doesn't teach you a lesson or two. So we keep pushing on. We're very passionate so we keep working hard to deliver quality products.
There are really just the normal challenges entrepreneurs face but, we believe that there is no challenge that a) can't be overcome and b) doesn't teach you a lesson or two. So we keep pushing on. We're very passionate so we keep working hard to deliver quality products.
Kemi Mobuse blog: What do you hope to achieve
with your brand in the next 5 years?
Always Me By Anne
Li: We hope to build Always Me by Anne Li into an even stronger brand that will
be known as the one-stop shop for baby and kids items.
In Nigeria we're very used to buying imported goods but at Always Me we aim to continue to deliver high quality MADE IN NIGERIA goods that in the long run can be exported across the continent and globe.
As we speak we have serviced customers as far as Australia, South Africa and even Canada to name just a few.
In Nigeria we're very used to buying imported goods but at Always Me we aim to continue to deliver high quality MADE IN NIGERIA goods that in the long run can be exported across the continent and globe.
As we speak we have serviced customers as far as Australia, South Africa and even Canada to name just a few.
Kemi Mobuse blog: Any advice for upcoming
entrepreneurs?
Always Me By Anne
Li: I would say this:
Firstly, Run your business like a business; this means incorporating an entity, opening an account, keeping books, paying taxes, filing returns etc.
Secondly work hard. Sometimes it's a tough and rough journey but I truly believe it's always worth it. The experience, the lessons, the customers (especially the cute kids in our case).. They make it all worth it.
Lastly, you've got to be in it for the LONG RUN! Don't start a business to make a quick buck. Start a business that will be sustainable and will leave an impact. Always ask yourself what you want your business' legacy to be.
Firstly, Run your business like a business; this means incorporating an entity, opening an account, keeping books, paying taxes, filing returns etc.
Secondly work hard. Sometimes it's a tough and rough journey but I truly believe it's always worth it. The experience, the lessons, the customers (especially the cute kids in our case).. They make it all worth it.
Lastly, you've got to be in it for the LONG RUN! Don't start a business to make a quick buck. Start a business that will be sustainable and will leave an impact. Always ask yourself what you want your business' legacy to be.
Kemi Mobuse blog: Lastly, how can you be
contacted?
Always Me By Anne
Li: All our contact information is on our website www.alwaysme.ng or on social
media @alwaysmebyanneli
You can also find our products at The Little Big Kid Company in Lekki as well as the Baby Studio in Victoria Island.
You can also find our products at The Little Big Kid Company in Lekki as well as the Baby Studio in Victoria Island.
More pictures below:
1 comments
Well done.
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