Segun Abiona is your everyday man but with a difference, a lover of God, with a knack for paying attention to details. Well cultured with a ready smile, despite having to wait for our unavoidable delayed arrival, he welcomed the Tour Africa team into his office which had on display very beautiful and colourful socks ready for delivery. A man with a huge drive for success, this well grounded investment banker turned fashion accessory businessman chatted with KATE ROBIN ADANIHUWAN on why he left the banking industry to produce SOCKS.
So why socks business?
I didn’t choose the socks business, it chose me, it was a divine instruction, I was working in the bank and I was doing quite well, I was beginning to build a family in England, and London was becoming the environment I could get anything I needed. At that point I was getting tired also and needed a change, I had to pray and ask God the next thing to do and then came the revelation to start the business, I actually am a fashion conscious person, I could have chosen shirts or other things, but I got that direct instruction from God.
How did it come to you?
I came back from work one of those days, I sat down on my little chair to take a rest and I fell into a trance and heard the word socks, I became more conscious on hearing the word “SOCKS” and the natural instinct in me became scared cos I thought out of everything in the world why socks, because I’m a very religious person I waited for the confirmation, it came and God said it again. So I called my wife and told her that this is what the Holy Spirit is saying. I also warn people that when you hear such things the first person you share it with is very important, because she it was who advised, that if that is what the holy Spirit said, then go on with it. So here we are today. She even left the telecoms company she was working, to become the technical director of the company.
Its obvious we are working under divine instruction because even our current collections are called the seed collection because God gave us a seed to start the business with. “the secret wisdom of God is given to us in abundance, for those who don’t have it, the ones that have shall be collected from them. So its important to know that its not just an ordinary business it’s a business that has involved a lot of attention to details, a lot of branding expertise because for me I’m a lover of art and I love branding. I am an art person and if you look at the design works you will see a measure of art. My wife is more of a technical person, we started by she using power point to come up with the designs, but now before things come to being I tend to see them in images that is where my strength lies.
Why the name Nicole & Giovanni?
Nicole is actually my daughter’s name and Giovanni is my son’s. I have two beautiful kids, I never thought about the business before I had my kids. Nicole is French, Giovanni is Italian. It means John, which means God’s favoured person. My name is Segun which means victory, so at the end of the day everything still aligns back to my name.
How old is the company now?
Its four and a half years.
What is the feedback like from the consumers?
Its been awesome, we have a unit in the US, we are registered here in Nigeria and also in the US. The business has grown, the first twenty-four months were awesome, I don’t want to add figures to it but we did amazingly well in our first twenty-four months. So well that it actually gave us the platform to reach out more and that made us know that its been really accepted, and we have our target market. Its for the working class and the executives. Without pride we have a lot of advocates, we call them advocates because they don’t only shop but they talk about the socks unconsciously because they have tried the product and are satisfied. So they tell a lot of people about it.
What’s the comparison between your socks and that of foreign designers?
We are at par with them, if not a lot better. We operate in two different regions, there is something Nigerians need to know, the foreign companies produce their socks for their environment, don’t forget that their region is always cold, so their socks are always thicker and woolly sometimes. For our own environment which is tropical, our socks are lighter because its hot down here, socks are not just for fashion, its also for health purpose, why because there are people who have very sweaty feet, and they can’t put on shoes without socks because they need something that would absorb sweat
So how much is the cheapest socks you produce?
In the range of our socks the cheapest goes for N3500, and its produced for a certain group of people, we also have for N15000, that also has its client.
What’s the difference in quality?
its just that as more socks and designs are produced, we tend to relegate some into a certain strata as new designs are coming, the technology we use in producing these things are getting better.
It’s not everyday you get to see socks on the runway, are there plans for that?
Yes there are plans, we have been a niche business from the beginning, we’ve been able to have very fantastic growth and strategy, and now we plan on having one or two more items coming up like the boxers, ties, bow ties, etc, so watch out. These are items that would make a complete gentleman. We will also be looking at things for women too. we also have for kids presently, say from new born to old age, we serve the entire family. If you notice we have a bug on our logo, which means peace, it’s the only insect a mother will see with her child and not scream, because you know it’s free from danger.
What are the challenges faced in your line of business?
Number one challenge is forex exchange,it will always pose a problem as long as we are not producing here, a lot of people will ask us why we are not producing here, the truth is we can’t produce here, its one thing you need to understand in business, if something is not your strength , you outsource it, Nigeria has an environment with no constant electricity, the machines, who will operate them, lets even say we will train people to operate them, but what happens when it goes bad, will I fly in expatriates to come and work on the machines? We have to understand that government is putting up too much pressure on us for tax, there is nothing wrong in paying tax, but paying for things that is non- existent is frustrating. A lot of businesses are still trying to breathe, and they are frustrating them. So why would I want to put in so much in an investment? Don’t forget my father is not a billionaire. I didn’t get money from anyone to start my business, it was from what Yoruba people call ajo, the igbos call it esusu, it’s the money I brought back with me on my return to Nigeria.
So how did you get funds for your upstart?
It was gotten from my savings and contribution with my banking colleagues, but recently we were able to secure a loan to expand the business. I will use this opportunity to tell people that if you have the money, fine but if you don’t have, please start with the limited funds you have, it will make you realistic with every decision you make and when you get to the point where you need to expand, don’t worry yourself too much because at that stage it will attract the kind of funds it needs. At a point, we were getting people who wanted to invest in the business, we were the ones who said no, we are not interested yet. But when we were ready we spoke to a few people and we got the needed funds.
So who was Segun Abioana before he became a business man?
Segun Abiona was more or less a sales man and still is a sales man. He started his career in a suit shop. When I finished from the university where I studied finance, I served in Oyo state, Eruwa in Iseyin precisely. In 2003 and finished in 2004. I had my first job in a suit shop, when all my friends were getting jobs in banks then, I was really worried, because I did well in school. The suit shop in question was where I learnt every nitty gritty about fashion, the few years I spent in that suit shop, before I started a proper career is what is helping me today understand when I see quality, and helps me understand when I see material composition. So I started in a suit shop, moved to a company called Bell oil and gas. From there I joined cash craft asset management, from there to Curdruffs capital, before finally moving to England where I joined Berkleys bank. From there, I came back to Nigeria to join FCMB. It was from FCMB that I started my own business. Segun used to be a well groomed investment banker, and someone who understood the stock market very well. Here I am today doing fashion, which is my calling, and which I enjoy more than what I used to do.
What are your future plans for Nicole & Giovanni?
To be number one in Africa, when I say so, I mean it because you don’t say such things vaguely, you need to act on it. We are not the only ones in Africa, but we are recognised in some African countries, there they see the uniqueness in what we do. In future, we are looking to become the biggest accessory brand that anyone can imagine and think of, like I said earlier, we are beginning to expand our offing from socks to boxers, to ties, bow ties etc.
From what I understand here, you seem to be more interested in the foreign market than home.
No, the truth about it is that, Nigeria is our headquarters, if we really wanted to do that, we could have stayed abroad, to a certain level, this place is enough to discourage you from starting anything, I’m not boasting, but judging from what the customers are saying, we have one of the best customers service in the country. We are in partnership with DHL, we make sure that your stuffs get delivered in time and that things are done properly. we also accept responsibility when we do things wrong because we are not saying we are perfect. So we are growing well in Nigeria, and are well accepted here. It’s a Nigerian business with an international standard.
