I started sewing inside my room –Mrs Amadi, CEO, Fit Beautifully Concept

Mrs Toyin Amadi always had love for the fashion industry. She is a trained clothier. But never ponded on the potentials of making clothes for a living. Hence, after bagging a diploma in Accountan­cy, she waltzed off to kickstart life as a career woman. She got a job in a bank. Starting out as a banker, the smart dress sense of bank workers made many in her neighbourhood to envy Mrs Amadi. Whenever she leaves her house for the of­fice, many in the figment of their imagi­nation believed that she is having it rosy working in a bank, where money rolls endlessly into her bag. But inside the heart of this woman lies deepseated dis­satisfaction. The job is not making her happy because she yearns to spend qual­ity time with her family. But her job is denying her that. She kept making plans to leave the job, yet kept procrastinating on when she would do that.

However, the tragic loss of one of her children made her say ‘enough is enough’. “I worked for about three years in a mer­chant bank before I now decided to be on my own and start up. I decided to go into business because of the too much stress and poor pay package of bank work. Again, I wasn’t having enough time for my children. Along the line, while I was still planning to quite banking, I lost my second child via a domestic accident. I blamed myself for that incident rather than the housegirl I left my children with, because I know that if I was there that day it wouldn’t have happened. That made me to dump paid employment to start my business because I knew it was through running my own venture that I can afford to enjoy more time with my family and manage my time betters,” she said.

So she went back and dusted the tailoring skill she had dumped for a banking job. By that singular move she realised where her passion really lies and plunged head-on into fashion business. She further discovered her fascination for making uniforms and seeing professionals and school children appear in well-fit uniformed wears. Thus Mrs Amadi went on to set up her company- Fit Beau­tifully Concept, a thriving uniform making venture.

For eight years she has been producing uniforms for corporate and academic insti­tutions. Therefore, she would gleefully an­nounce to any that cares to listen that this line of venture is very lucrative. “It is a profitable business. At least I earn enough to pay my workers and cater for my family. I started small, doing the business inside of the room in my house but I now, I have ex­panded to a bigger location. Also, I started with just one worker now I have eight regu­lar workers, and the pressure of work gets much we go contract more hands to assist.” So what makes this venture thick?

Almost all businesses and schools have prescribed uniforms. This shows how big the market is for production of uniform wears. A business consultant, Emma Njoku highlights the viability of this business, “If you don’t have the entrepreneurial guts to go into the importation of wears; then you can set up a small scale textile firm that will specialise in sewing uniforms. The demand for uniforms is on the increase in Nigeria; from the crèche to the labour market, uni­forms are highly in demand. Every parent will one way or the other pay for school uni­forms. Many of these schools will not allow their students to make their uniforms from an external source. All the uniform needs of the students must pass through the school. Again, since school children grow fast, this is an opportunity for you to increase your business every time a new session starts. Hence, there is so much money exchanging hands in this school uniform business that I believe a smart business person should take advantage of”

The key to excel in this line of enterprise is striving to make your mark in this industry. Hinting on how to make it in this business, another consultant, Lanre Adesola disclosed that planning is key when floating any brand. “First and foremost, when you start planning to have your own uniform store, you should be clear right at the beginning whether you intend to design or only supply uniforms. Depending on your decision, you can now determine your start-up cost, personnel to hire and marketing activities.”

He adds that it would be wise for a begin­ner to choose which segment of the market they want to focus on between uniforms and school uniforms store.

Going into work uniform production will cater to a wide range of industries – overalls for janitorial, heavy industrial, mechanical, automotive and engineering jobs, labora­tory coats for medical professionals, service uniforms for security personnels, fast food crew and retail vendors, suits for corporate employees to name some. “You can also of­fer embroidery services to attach company logos, company tagline, nametags, or other important information that the customer wants to put in the uniform,” says Mr. Ad­esola.

Another advantage stating this venture is that its initial startup cost minimal. Also, one could start and operate from home without much hassle. Mrs Amadi intimates further: “You can run your work uniform store by selling and delivering uniforms directly to company offices or over the Internet. Many companies are giving the job orders for their uniforms to a specific supplier. Once you get an account, you can create loyalty from that company as long as you satisfy their stan­dards and delivery dates. I still have clients that have remained loyal to our company since eight years we started up.

Also, you will need to search for uniform distributors or “hire your own sewing staff to fulfill the orders that you will acquire. You should also pray to God to bring you dedicated and hard working staff. Always try to get best from your workers by trying to be their friend. That is way, they would appreciate working for you”, Mrs. Amadi adds.

Mrs. Amadi, who claims to be having a ball sawing uniforms, vowed that no tempt­ing job offer would ever make her to dump the brand. She argues that depending on the government to provide jobs is like build­ing castles in the air. “I have always told youths especially girls that Nigeria has got to a stage where nobody should look up to government to create employment. I tell the girls never to depend on their husbands for their upkeep. They must strive to be in­dependent because when both parties are doing well, the family is happier. So, it is good to have your business so that life can be better.

She adds: “I prefer doing business to be­ing in paid employment because it gives me more time, opportunity to put my passion into practice. And I have come to realise that pay jobs cannot put all the food you want on your table. But when you have your own business, you get more determined and put in every effort and then get to the top,” she trumpets.