SIJIBOMI OGUNDELE: Setting New Paradigm in Luxury Real Estate

Sijibomi Ogundele is a man of vision who is currently living his dreams. For six years, the Managing Director/ CEO of Sujimoto kept knocking on every door of opportunity that would help fulfil his mission. His experience at the initial stage left a bitter taste in his mouth. With self-conviction, perseverance, and resilience, he has since surmounted his failure and conquered his world. Today, Sujimoto, a company built out of the abundance of vision, has set a new paradigm in luxury real estate. As the estate mogul turns 40, Funke Olaode discovers how he conquered his fears to carve a niche for himself, building a multibillion-naira empire

Sijibomi Ogundele, Chief Executive Officer of Sujimoto, just turned 40. At 40, Ogundele, who relied on his dreams to fulfil his set goals, has continued to resonate in Nigeria, Africa, and the Middle East as one of the youngest investors in real estate. His look may be modest, but his ambitions are taller than the Burj Khalifa. With a current project portfolio of over $450 million, Ogundele is not slowing down anytime soon. He has risen above his current environment to start planning projects in the Middle East. Despite the economic barriers and challenges, the 40-year-old entrepreneur keeps filling his glass with new and more challenging projects in Africa and in Dubai, Miami, and Turkey.

Born in the Agege area of Lagos and nurtured within the four walls of Oke-Arin Market on Lagos Island, Ogundele, without parents with deep pockets, had to rely on ‘himself’ to achieve his tall dreams.
“I wasn’t born with a silver spoon. I was born into a corporately dynamic family where my father worked 9-5 as a manager, and my mother was a full-time entrepreneur.

“I grew up on the streets of Agege. I grew up in Oko-Oba, a neighbourhood where only two households had a generator set in a street with over 19 houses, so I made a decision that I was never going to be poor. Poverty has remained a major driver for me, I have always consciously driven myself to excel and surpass my last big success. I attended state-owned schools – Oko-Oba Primary School, Ijebu-Ode Grammar School, Model College, and Anglia Ruskin for my Law Degree.

“As the son of a woman who happens to be a trader, I was nurtured within the walls of Oke-Arin market, which was filled with enterprising Igbo traders—and that influenced my passion for business,” he narrated.
Ogundele as a young man has done this and that in his four decades of existence. Age, they say, is just a number, but turning 40 is significant.

He said, “Turning 40 is a landmark age; not many people make it to 40, but here I am, strong and healthy. I remain grateful to God for bringing me this far and for enabling me to win the ovarian lottery in the first place. I am profoundly grateful to my mother, who took the time to nurture me and impacted my life-changing principles that have brought me thus far. The mother that God gave me is a diamond in the coal.
“For me, 40 is significant because it is the end of one era and the beginning of another. Our parents gave birth to us and planned most of our first 20 years. Then life plans the remaining 20 years. So for me, one of my greatest responsibilities is to take full charge of the next 40 years if God gives me the privilege.”
For Ogundele, having a pedigree can open many doors of opportunities, but the race to success lies in succeeding in the game of life.

“Success is not served a la carte. It is a buffet! You have to go for it! Coming from an influential family or having the right connection with people at the top is not a bad recipe for success, but it is not a guarantee! I was not born with a silver spoon. I had no spoon at all! My mother always says that if I go to school, work hard, and stay committed, I would be able to build a successful business.
“Life has taught me that your location does not determine your allocation, and the only remedy for success is hard work and an annoying spirit of never-giving-up.”

But were there major events that shaped his childhood and upbringing that pushed him to be focused? “Yes,” he said. He added, “I will say winning an ovarian lottery and been born by a champion like Idayat Adebukola. My mum wakes up by 4 am, sleeps by 10 pm, and will see her working, calculating, and counting her goods on weekends. Growing up in a business environment like Oke-Arin dominated by Igbo traders helped shape my interest in entrepreneurship and my drive for success. I watched my mother move from being a small trader to become a major distributor for Nestle.

“Through the exposure to open market principles, I learnt some vital business lessons such as integrity, negotiation, nard work and a passion for what you do. I also learnt the art of persuasion from my mother because to her, no means nothing. She has a unique ability to persuade customers to patronize her, and as a result, I learnt that anything I set my mind to do, I can achieve it. She also taught me that my growth or stagnation in life is dependent on my capacity to dream big or small.”
Ogundele grew up in the slum of Agege, but his vision to be liberated from the shackles of poverty has been a propeller that constantly drives him.

“Poverty and the desire to make an impact have been my driving force. Acquiring wealth is ultimate, but for me, your neighbour is hungry. Of course, your chicken is not safe. So, a rich man in the midst of the poor is also poor and has been enslaved with mental poverty. At the tender age of five, my mother would wake us up very early in the morning while my mates are sleeping, and she would say to me: ‘Ajaniogun wake up, wake up! Ise l’ogun ise.’ That meant ‘Ajaniogun, wake up, wake up! Hard work is the cure for poverty.’ During the holidays, while my friends were busy playing Nintendo and going on holidays, I would have to resume work at my mum’s shop in Oke-Arin, gradually learning the ropes and charting the path for my future. My mother’s words have been my driving force.”

Since he stormed the Nigerian scene, Ogundele’s company is constantly in the news. Sujimoto, built out of the abundance of vision, has set a new paradigm in luxury real estate.
“We studied projects from France to Italy, Dubai to New York, and we decided to beat the best. For the next 10 years, our vision is to remarkably rebuild and turn Nigeria into a world-class country when it comes to luxury edifices. We are holding this vision dearly and working on it firmly,” said the mega-entrepreneur.

“I always say that we shall lower our standard for no man, and I mean it. That means that from the foundation to the chandelier, compromising quality is not an option. When we started Sujimoto, we founded it on two fundamental principles, Integrity and Quality. Combining these two philosophies, we know that the sky is the limit.”
In few years into a luxury construction behemoth in Africa, the visionary entrepreneur, a rose that grew from concrete built Sujimoto Group, focused on building extraordinary luxury edifices in premium neighbourhoods across Africa. Reeling out his achievements, The Sujimoto boss said that he is living his dreams without playing to the gallery.

“About six years ago, I declared my intention to redefine luxury living in Africa, starting from Lagos. We started with just six staff members and one project, but today, we have numerous projects in Lagos, Abuja, and Dubai. We are taking Abuja by storm with a luxury residential tower, QueenAminaBySujimoto. It’s the tallest residential building in the North, Sujimoto Diamond City (SDC), a 38,000m² development in the middle of Victoria Island and the S-Hotel.

“We are also looking at developing a new estate of 520 exceptional luxury villas. We also have a world-class 6-in-1 Mall coming up in the heart of Ikoyi; and our Sujimoto Dubai Project. All set to launch officially in 2021.

“We have built our team from 6 staff to over 200 professionals comprising a team of international and local experts, over 100 skilled individuals, putting in approximately 584,000 hours of hard work annually. We have adopted a client-oriented customer addiction perspective to feed our clients’ ever-evolving appetite, putting integrity and value creation over profit maximization. We’ve made Home Automation the minimum standard for luxury development and brought the immersive experience of an IMAX Cinema to the comfort of customers’ homes. Above all, we have added value to customers, developed and changed the lives of our staffs, and as a brand, we have grown from an Iroko tree to becoming a forest.”

Like every businessman, Ogundele had had his ups and downs.
“When I started six years ago has been the most difficult period of my life. Since I wasn’t born with a silver spoon, I had to prove myself three times over, work harder three times, and keep proving myself over and over again. Life will always challenge you, but as a man, you must be courageous.

“Courage is not the absence of fear but the ability to transform your challenges into opportunities. When we had challenges with the Lorenzo Project due to the recession and the crumbling economy, people said nasty things about us because we were bold and audacious enough to challenge the norm with our big dreams. “Sujimoto would have been a thing of the past if we didn’t persevere and see every disappointment as an opportunity. While it is good to have big dreams, ensure your passion is twice as big because life will test you. When the chips are down, the bills are not paid, and the salaries are due, the only thing that will keep you going is the genuine love and the passion you have for what you do.”

Speaking further on how he confronted his challenge and put the naysayers wrong, he disclosed, “The year 2016 and 2017 were probably the most difficult and challenging periods of my life. I had conceived and developed the biggest project of my life, over $90 million, to build the tallest residential building in Sub-Saharan Africa – the LorenzoBySujimoto.

“I invested all my money, time, and passion into this project. Unfortunately for me, as a result of the economic downturn, my Saudi Investors pulled out. The economy was so bad, and things became very tough. I had to refund over 450 million to off-takers out of 11 off-takers. I will never forget three of our off-takers who said, ‘Go ahead. We are with you,’ especially Dr. Greg.

“On the verge of almost giving up, I visited him crying, and he told me his own story and encouraged me to move on. After that meeting, I immediately reassessed my plans, reviewed all my decisions, identified my pain point, and made the much-needed adjustment.

“Riding on the wings of criticism and media backlash, I found courage again and conceived the GiulianoBySujimoto project in Banana Island. Twenty months after, the Giuliano has metamorphosed from a proof of concept into a proof of product! It is home to music entrepreneur, Davido and was fully sold out six months before completion. We have some projects that will revamp all sense of mediocrity in the luxury real estate industry, and we plan to complete all these projects before the end of 2023. Some of them will be completed next year.”
Giving tips on how to build a successful business empire, he said, “First and foremost, integrity is a must-have. It is the currency of my business – saying what you mean and meaning what you say. On many occasions, when I say something, I make sure I uphold that promise. Even if it results in a loss, we will take it as a debt of integrity.

“For us at Sujimoto, quality is our business, and our model is entrenched in diligence. We always think about how we could do things faster, better, and cheaper. We think customers first, employees second, and myself third.”
Ogundele started as a young man, and he believes with the right vision, diligence, the sky will be the limit for any youth who dare to dream and erase the entitlement mentality because “no one owes us anything but ourselves.”
He explained, “If we don’t make a sacrifice for whatever we want in life, what we want will become the sacrifice. I have travelled all over the world, and trust me when I say that Nigeria is the biggest ground for uncommon opportunities. This same opportunity is what brings foreigners to our land and make them billionaires. Nigeria is the only land where the Lebanese man starts as a trader and becomes an industrialist, or the Indian starts as a storekeeper and becomes a manufacturer.”

For Sijibomi Ogundele, his life has been on a roller costal. Any regrets? Regrets?
“None! I see every event in my life as an opportunity for learning and improvement. Every setback has been a strategic way of God setting me up for greater opportunities,” he stated.