Okeisolobrugwe Clifford Ikpikpini is the founder/chairman/CEO of Ogoo Leather Goods Limited, a full grain cow hide bags and fashion accessories manufacturer, headquartered in Igando, Lagos. In this interview with IFEOMA OKEKE-KORIEOCHA, he speaks on why the company have chosen to sell the products at the airport duty free store in Lagos with plans to move to other duty free stores in future. He also speaks on challenges of sustaining the business.
As a young start up, why did you decide to position your business visibility at Lagos airport duty free store ?
Our goal is to become a premium international leather goods brand, as such we believe retailing our products in places of high international activities is the best way to achieve this goal, which is why we chose the duty free areas of international airports.
What was the process like securing a space at MMIA duty free store ?
Shockingly seamless, just apply to the Managing director/Chief Executive and hold your God tight. We bless God All-Mighty for rewarding our efforts and also thank Rabiu Hamisu Yadudu, the former MD/CE of FAAN for granting our humble request for a space at the duty free area in the new terminal 2 Murtala Mohammed international airport Lagos state Nigeria, we sincerely would appreciate meeting him personally to thank him.
How affordable is it for a start up to set up store at the Lagos airport duty free ?
Sincerely it isn’t cheap but compared to other retail outlets with high foot traffic, it’s cheaper.
Any plans to expand to other duty free stores in the future ?
Yes, by God All-Mighty’s grace we intend to expand to all Nigerian international airports duty free and become FAAN’s biggest tenant, we also intend to expand to other foreign international airports duty free.
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Tell us about the Ogoo brand ?
We’re a solely handcrafted made in Nigeria full grain cow hide bags and fashion accessories manufacturer, all our products comes with 5 years warranty
Why do you think an average travellers should patronise you brand, especially as he has other things feeling his eyes at the duty free ?
Our quality is unmatched so they’ll be getting huge value for money. Also we’ve introduced the Ogoo points, these are reward points customers gets whenever they shop from us which they can use to either shop from us again or at selected outlets/retailers to get discounts.
How long have you been in the market and what challenges have you experienced as a start up ?
I’ve been in the market for over 3 years, our biggest challenge is getting people to give the brand a shot, that Nigerian stigma of assuming top quality can’t be made by Nigerians in Nigeria.
As a leather bag brand, how do you source for raw materials ?
All our leathers are sourced from Kano in Nigeria.
With the high cost of commodities now, how do you strike a balance between cost, quality and pricing?
We don’t mass produce our products so this gives us the necessary time needed to make sure we give only the best products at the best price.
