Author: gqSbgCfmna

On November 16th in Lagos, the incomparable Lanre Da Silva Ajayi
(LDA) marked a monumental milestone, 20 years of redefining African fashion, with an unforgettable anniversary showcase that was as emotional as it was visually arresting.

The evening stood as a powerful tribute to a visionary who has shaped the continent’s fashion landscape with
elegance, resilience, and artistic brilliance.

A Legacy Built Over Two Decades

Lanre Da Silva Ajayi’s journey began in 2005, when she launched her eponymous brand with bold
creativity and a distinctly African point of view. In the years that followed, she became one of Nigeria’s most influential designers, celebrated for her masterful use of lace, embroidery, and
couture-level craftsmanship.

Her work has been showcased across global fashion capitals, worn by influential women, featured
in international publications, and has consistently set the standard for luxury fashion in Africa.

From London Fashion Week to the runways of Johannesburg, from museum exhibitions to prestigious collaborations, LDA has spent two decades pushing boundaries, mentoring emerging talent, and telling authentic African stories through design.

This anniversary show was not just a celebration of longevity, but of impact, excellence, and evolution.

A Night of Music, Emotion & Fashion

The celebration opened with a soulful performance by Waje, whose voice set the tone for an evening steeped in elegance. The energy soared when Tiwa Savage closed the show, delivering a
captivating performance as the final looks of the Anniversary Collection glided down the runway.

The moment the designer herself stepped out for her bow, to a standing ovation, was electric.

The SSS26 “Anniversary Collection – A Tribute to Her DNA

The debut of the SSS26 “Anniversary Collection” was the heartbeat of the night, a showcase of intricate detailing, regal silhouettes, and the refined femininity LDA is celebrated for.

The runway was brought to life by a magnificent cast including Dabota Lawson, Idia Aisen, Nancy Isime, Sabrina, Aduke Shittabay, and Beauty Tukura, each adding star power and
poise to the moment.

A Documentary That Moved the Room

One of the most deeply emotional highlights was the screening of LDA’s anniversary documentary, a beautifully crafted reflection on her beginnings, the challenges she overcame, the evolution of her brand, and her unwavering commitment to her craft.

It reminded everyone present of the discipline and vision behind every stitch, silhouette, and story
she’s created.

Honouring the Next Generation
True to her belief in mentorship and industry growth, LDA used the global spotlight of her milestone
night to honor rising designers:
● Bisoye Olorunmbe (Hue_rtw)
● Ugochukwu Onukwubiri (14zeroseven)
● Garcelle Williams (Morayoasoasiko)
Each designer mesmerized the audience with fresh interpretations of sustainability, modern African
style, and craftsmanship, earning admiration and applause.

An Evening of Star Power & Industry Unity

Produced by Elizabeth Elohor of Beth Model Management, the showcase drew an impressive roster of leaders, creatives, and cultural tastemakers.

Notable attendees included Don Jazzy, Toke Makinwa, Mercy Eke, Omowunmi Dada, Chioma Good Hair, Iyabo Ojo, Osas Ighodaro, and many others, all gathered to honor two decades of LDA’s excellence.

Reflecting on her 20-year milestone, Lanre Da Silva Ajayi shared:
“Fashion has always been my way of documenting our stories, who we are, where we come from, and the possibilities ahead. These 20 years have been a journey of discipline, evolution, and grace.

“Tonight is not just about the past, but about the future we’re creating.”

She extended heartfelt gratitude to her supporters, her partners, and the media whose unwavering commitment has helped amplify her work and legacy through the years.

The evening was supported by: Lagos State Ministry of Tourism, Arts & Culture,
Johnnie Walker Blue Label, Bank of Industry, Standard Chartered Bank, Heineken, and Prive Events.

The LDA 20th Anniversary Showcase was more than a fashion show, it was a celebration of creativity, resilience, excellence, and influence. It served as a reminder of the power of visionary
storytelling and the profound impact of a designer whose work continues to define African luxury and inspire generations.

At this year’s Design Week Lagos, one of the continent’s most influential gatherings for designers and architects, Bolarin Okunowo of Chemical and Allied Products PLC (CAP) used her keynote session to raise a simple but urgent point: Africa’s built environment needs smarter, cleaner and more responsible materials.

Speaking on the theme Colour, Materials & Innovation in Our Built Environment, the CAP Managing Director challenged industry professionals to rethink the products they use. She argued that design across Africa can no longer focus on visual appeal alone, and that the continent must embrace materials that support healthier and more sustainable living conditions.

Okunowo pointed to CAP’s recent work with Dulux as an example of how the industry can shift. She discussed the company’s investment in low-VOC coatings, which improve indoor air quality and align with global green building standards. She also spoke about the Dulux Tint-Base System, introduced in 2022, which gives customers instant access to thousands of colours across stores in Nigeria.

In her remarks, she spent time on a topic that often goes unnoticed in design conversations: surface preparation. She highlighted CAP’s Caplux Surface Prep range and explained that a good paint finish depends heavily on what happens before colour even touches the wall. Well-prepared surfaces, she noted, allow colours to show accurately and last longer.

The keynote also included a look at CAP’s updated Dulux e-commerce platform. The platform is designed to make paint selection and ordering easier for both professionals and homeowners, expanding access to quality products without requiring physical store visits. For Okunowo, digital access is a necessary part of encouraging more people to make sustainable choices in their projects.

Beyond materials and technology, Okunowo returned to a theme that consistently shapes CAP’s public conversations: colour as a tool of expression. She spoke about the role colour plays in influencing mood, identity and even how people experience a space. According to her, Dulux’s long-standing research into how light, climate and culture interact with colour helps customers choose shades that reflect their lives more accurately.

Throughout the week at Livespot Entertainium, CAP hosted an interactive booth featuring its latest products, colour tools and sustainability-focused innovations. The company also held business sessions with designers, discussing topics including colour psychology, climate-responsive design and the importance of preparing surfaces correctly.

This year marks CAP PLC’s second partnership with Design Week Lagos. While the company continues to highlight its products, its presence this year felt more focused on steering a wider conversation. The message was consistent: Africa’s design future will depend on materials that are healthier, smarter and more intentional, and the industry must take that shift seriously.

The Economic Department of the Embassy of France in Nigeria recently hosted a game-changing conference that brought together the crème de la crème of Lagos’ creative and innovation scene.

Titled “From Makers to Markets: Building Circular Innovation – A Conversation with Marjory Houlbert,” the event was a masterclass in rethinking waste and exploring the limitless possibilities of circular innovation in Lagos.

Designers, entrepreneurs, engineers, and sustainability advocates converged at Impact Hub Lagos to learn from French designer and researcher Marjory Houlbert, who’s making waves in the world of circular design.

Marjory’s presentation was a deep dive into the world of waste management and innovation, with a focus on Lagos’ unique challenges and opportunities.

Did you know that Lagos produces over 13,500 tonnes of waste daily, with plastics being a significant part of it?

Marjory’s talk highlighted the potential for makers and innovators to tap into this waste stream, transforming it into valuable resources that can drive creativity, entrepreneurship, and sustainability in the city.

With the French Tech Lagos community in attendance, the event showcased the growing interest in circular innovation and the potential for cross-border collaboration between France and Nigeria.

French designer and researcher Marjory Houlbert, whose practice evolves at the intersection of circularity, collaborative making and material experimentation, delivered an insightful presentation grounded both in her experience within French fablabs and in the environmental realities of Lagos.

Opening her talk with an overview of the city’s waste landscape, she highlighted that Lagos produces more than 13,500 tonnes of waste each day, with plastics (particularly LDPE, PP, PET and HDP) forming a significant part of the city’s highly available waste streams. Some of these plastics are recyclable, while others require more advanced transformation processes, creating both constraints and opportunities for makers and innovators.

Marjory went on to define what makes a fablab an essential catalyst for innovation. Drawing on examples from Fablab La Verrière and WoMa, she described these spaces as hybrid ecosystems where digital fabrication tools (such as CNC machines, 3D printers, presses, ovens and laser cutters) coexist with a vibrant community of designers, engineers, architects and researchers.

Beyond the equipment, she insisted, the real strength of a fablab lies in its ability to connect diverse expertises, accelerating problem-solving and enabling makers to move from early concepts to reliable, market-ready prototypes. To illustrate this dynamic, she presented Flowlen, an air purification system born within WoMa.

Through the combined contributions of a fabmanager, an electronics engineer, a developer and financial guidance, a simple concept evolved into a functional prototype capable of securing public funding and scaling toward industrial production.

This example underscored the power of collaborative making: when a community’s knowledge and tools converge, makers can transform ideas into tangible solutions with real-world impact.

Marjory then shifted to the topic of industrialisation, focusing on the case of Le Pavé, a French venture producing 100 percent recycled panels from HDPE and polystyrene recovered from recyclers such as Paprec, Veolia and Suez.

She detailed the transformation process, from melting to pressing to forming large, solid panels used in furniture, interior design and everyday objects, while emphasising the crucial role of consistent waste streams and strong B2B partnerships.

This example demonstrated how waste, when paired with technical expertise and industrial capacity, can become a viable and scalable material used across creative and architectural sectors.

In the final part of her presentation, Marjory proposed a prospective model for a Lagos-based fablab, integrating local recyclers, existing facilities, digital fabrication tools and a dedicated fabmanager.

Such an ecosystem, she argued, could allow Lagos makers to transform both plastic and organic waste into furniture, objects, textiles and new materials, creating local jobs, stimulating creative industries, and strengthening the city’s circular economy.

The conference highlighted the growing collaboration between France and Nigeria in advancing sustainable and innovative approaches to design, fabrication and material transformation.

By convening experts and local stakeholders around shared environmental challenges, the Embassy reaffirms its commitment to fostering dialogue, creativity and Franco–Nigerian cooperation in the circular economy.

When basic healthcare and reliable food are still out of reach for millions, the most promising answers are often built from the ground up, by women designing
solutions shaped by local realities. In 2025, five African founders were recognized by the Bayer Foundation Women Entrepreneurs Award, supported in partnership with Impact Hub.

Their work was celebrated at The Bloom, a virtual showcase held on 19 November 2025, which gathered investors, media, partners, and changemakers to spotlight practical, scalable solutions for food and health equity.

The winners bring different tools to the same challenge: making health and food
systems more accessible, resilient, and fair. Salma Tammam of Egypt founded
REME-D to produce affordable molecular diagnostics locally, a move that has helped tens of thousands access timely care.

REME-D now supplies scores of hospitals and labs across the region and is expanding into new African markets.
In Zimbabwe, Chiedza Mushawedu runs Zimbos Abantu Healthcare on Wheels, a
solar-powered mobile clinic model that takes primary care straight into underserved neighbourhoods.

The initiative has reached thousands of patients and created local
employment while launching an affordable micro-insurance product that helps families pay for care without catastrophic costs.

Faith Koki in Kenya addresses post-harvest loss with SmartSilo, a solar airtight storage system equipped with sensors. By cutting spoilage and linking farmers to buyers and credit via her Kuza Trading Hub, she’s helping smallholders capture more value from their harvests. In Ghana, Anaporka Adazabra’s Farmio Limited combines solar greenhouses, drip irrigation, and a farmer SuperApp to boost yields and build climate resilience.

And in Sudan, Alaa Salih Hamadto’s Solar Foods uses solar drying plus IoT tools to preserve produce affordably as a lifeline for farmers and communities, especially during crises.

Across these initiatives, a pattern emerges: technologies and services that respect local context, create dignified incomes, and scale sustainably.

With backing from Impact Hub and the Bayer Foundation, the entrepreneurs gain funding, mentorship, and networks of support that turn promising pilots into
systems-changing solutions. The Bloom event made clear that investing in women innovators is not charity; it is a strategic route to stronger food and health outcomes across regions.

Reme-D Test Kit

A nanotechnology researcher turned entrepreneur, Salma built REME-D to produce affordable molecular diagnostics locally. REME-D now serves 92 hospitals and laboratories, delivering tests to over 50,000 patients per month and exporting to neighbouring markets.

For Salma, diagnostics are the entry point to care: local testing capacity shortens the path from symptom to treatment and keeps health
systems responsive during outbreaks and everyday care alike.

Chiedza’s fleet of solar-powered mobile clinics brings primary care to settlements where the nearest clinic can be 15 kilometres away.

By meeting communities where they are, Zimbos Abantu has reached over 108,000 patients and created 48 full-time
jobs. Its recent micro-health insurance product, Mukando weHwutano, addresses financial barriers to care a reminder that accessibility is both geographic and economic.

Solar-powered food dryer after the war.
Impact Hub and the Bayer Foundation play complementary roles: one provides a global network and local ecosystem support, the other provides targeted funding, technical mentorship, and credibility.

Together they offer:
● Seed and scaling capital: early investments plus follow-on funds that help
pilots grow into sustainable models.
● Technical and business support: mentorship in product development,
regulatory navigation, and market entry.
● Network access: introductions to investors, buyers, research partners, and
policy actors.
● Visibility: platforms like The Bloom amplify founders’ stories to audiences that can accelerate adoption and investment.

This mix matters because entrepreneurs working on health and food systems face technical barriers (regulation and standards), logistical barriers (distribution and cold chains), and financial barriers (access to affordable capital).

Support that combines
money, mentorship, and market access helps bridge those gaps.

The solutions on display at The Bloom event are not isolated innovations; they are building blocks for more resilient, inclusive systems.

Diagnostics reduce unnecessary referrals and speed treatment; mobile clinics reach populations that would otherwise
slip through the cracks; better storage preserves farmers’ income and local food supplies; climate-smart farming improves yields with fewer resources; and solar preservation expands shelf life where refrigeration is scarce.

Each intervention reduces loss and cost, increases autonomy, and creates jobs, all central to equitable development.

While their sectors differ, from biotech to agritech, from mobile healthcare to
renewable-powered food systems, these five women share a common approach:
solutions that are locally anchored yet globally scalable, and which place dignity, sustainability, and equity at the center.

Through the Bayer Foundation Women
Entrepreneurs Award and the Impact Hub Network, they have not only gained
funding and mentorship but also access to a global community that amplifies their impact and accelerates their growth.

The collaboration between Bayer Foundation and Impact Hub has been
instrumental in unlocking this potential. Together, they are demonstrating that the future of health and food security will not be delivered by one innovation alone, but by many, each rooted in the realities of the people it serves.

In a time when global crises can feel overwhelming, the work of these five women is a reminder that meaningful change is not only possible, it is already happening.

Selstack, a cutting-edge software platform for creators, coaches, and digital entrepreneurs, has officially launched in the United Kingdom.

The platform offers an all-in-one solution designed to help users build, sell, and scale digital products with speed and simplicity.

After establishing a strong footprint in Nigeria, where thousands of creators and small businesses have used Selstack to streamline their digital operations, the company is now expanding to the UK to serve a broader audience of digital educators, creators, and entrepreneurs across Europe. This move marks a significant milestone in the company’s growth.

According to Daniel Iloh, CEO of Selstack, the expansion represents a natural evolution of the company’s mission. He noted that Selstack is committed to helping entrepreneurs “launch faster, sell smarter, and scale more efficiently” by eliminating the complexities associated with managing multiple digital tools.

Digital entrepreneurs often struggle with fragmented systems, moving between website builders, payment processors, course-hosting platforms, and marketing automation tools. Selstack addresses this challenge by consolidating all essential digital business functions into one intuitive platform.

Through Selstack, users can build websites, create sales funnels, host courses, manage customers, automate marketing campaigns, and securely collect payments — all from a single dashboard.

The platform has gained traction since its beta release. More than 5,000 entrepreneurs joined within the first month, with 70 percent reporting faster product launches. Many users cut their setup time from weeks to days. Engagement with automated funnels rose by 50 percent, and most users eliminated the need for five to seven separate tools, significantly reducing operational costs.

Daniel Iloh emphasized that Selstack’s goal is to help entrepreneurs stay focused on growth rather than technical challenges. The platform’s results show the impact of simplifying digital business management for creators and enterprises aiming to scale.

Selstack continues to position itself as a comprehensive solution for modern digital entrepreneurship, with a vision to support millions of users across Africa, the United Kingdom, and beyond.