KEHINDE IYIOLA: THE ELEGANT SKILLS OF A PASSIONATE EVENT PLANNER

Glitz Focus

Fourteen years ago, Kehinde Iyiola planned her first event with little or no resources. Today, the unassuming and elegant young lady is a leading event planner with a rich clientele that includes royalties and politicians, writes Vanessa Obioha

Two things caught Kehinde Iyiola’s fancy as a child: event planning and fashion designing.
“I like craft, art and imagining things, designing, conceptualising and executing, arranging and putting things together. It is a passion for me and I do it effortlessly,” she began during a recent chat.

Her proclivity towards planning and designing can be traced to her mother. Iyiola, who has a twin living in London, grew up watching her mother make beads for customers. Fascinated by the skill, she offered to spearhead the arrangement of the beads, although she had a knack for helping members of her family choose the right attire for occasions. Having four sisters made the task enjoyable and rewarding as she would reveal later. Her planning skills were also seen in housekeeping and cooking.

Yet, when it was time for her to study at the university, Iyiola found herself in the law field. However, her organisational skills didn’t desert her. It was evident during her days at Lagos State University (LASU).
“While I was at LASU, I was a member of the Junior Chambers International (JCI) and I was very active, in terms of being at the forefront of organising things whenever there was an event involving the club.”
By her second year, she landed an ushering job with one of the high-profile event management companies in Nigeria, Elizabeth R, owned by the late Ibidunni Ighodalo.

Under the tutelage of Ighodalo whom she described as a sweet-natured woman, Iyiola honed her skills in fashion and designing. She started out making uniforms for the ushers before proceeding to design outfits for clients.
“That was never my passion,” she said. “Although I used to do some drawings. I am very creative, in terms of imagining things and deciding how I wanted anything to look, and this drew me to fashion. But all I wanted to really do was event management. So after school, I registered my company, and ended up in this business.”

Encouraged by her mother, Iyiola’s first client turned out to be her sister.
“The first job I did was my sister’s wedding in 2007, and she actually paid me the sum of N250,000 to do the job. And till date, she takes pride in telling people that she paid me for my first job.”
Explaining further, she said her sister was confident in her knowledge and skills to put an event together, despite not having the resources and requisite tools.

“In fact, I put all my efforts into that event, which was held at LTV 8, Ikeja. After my sister’s wedding, I got two more wedding events from her friends, and that was how the journey began.”
Iyiola’s elevated status as a sought-after event planner and owner of the event management company Finesse Events is dotted with trials and triumphs. Initially, not everyone trusted her with their events. She recalled a certain experience during the coronation of the Ojora of Ijora, Oba Fatai Aromire.

“I remember that while preparing for that event, the organising committee had loads of vendors that were bidding to get the job. But the then chairman of Apapa Local Government Council, Mr Ayo Joseph, (whose wedding I had also handled, after my sister’s wedding, and who has always pushed Finesse Events forward for every event), had insisted that the coronation was going to be handled by us.

“Initially, one of the members of the organising committee, Otunba Dapo Alli-Balogun, who is the Oba’s cousin, had expressed his reservation about the event being given to us. According to him, he had not seen any of our jobs. But as God would have it, we got the brief to execute the job. On the day of the event, Otunba Alli Balogun searched for me because he was totally awe-struck by what he saw. When I met him, he apologised for doubting me, and he confessed that what he saw was beyond his expectation. From then onwards, he brought me closer, took me as his sister, gave me his events to handle and that has been it. Each of my events gives birth to different other events,” she enthused.

Her breakthrough job was when she organised a birthday party for the personal assistant to the then Governor of Bayelsa State, Timipre Sylva. Both the Governor and his PA had attended a Christmas party of one of her clients and were completely blown away by the design and planning. Iyiola was immediately invited to Bayelsa for a meeting.
“She asked for an estimate of the cost. When I told her I would work on it, she demanded an instant estimated cost. So I did the quotation and she transferred the money on the spot. That was how we started the preparations and moved to Bayelsa for the event. After that event, we did all the events for the Bayelsa State government while Sylva served as the governor.”

The governor is just one of the names in the long list of her clients. Her clientele is mostly the cream of the society, high-ranked politicians and royalties. They include the Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde, Oba Saheed Ademola Elegushi, King of Ogale, HRH Appolus Chu; and property magnate Sir Olu Okeowo, to mention a few.
Her clients are drawn to her attention to detail as well as the class and elegance she brings to her event. Iyiola has perfected her skill of transforming spaces into wonderland; meeting the taste of her clients. Her diligence and passion stand her out in the competitive market of event planning and management. She attributed her staying power to her passion for the job.

“All you need to do is, project yourself well, put your best efforts in every job you get, notwithstanding the amount you are paid,” she advised. “The fact that you have collected the job, and committed yourself to do the job, you must go all out to deliver a good service. At the end of the day, it is the outlook that people will see, not the amount you were paid. People must understand that you are so privileged to market yourself in a circle of about 1500 people. So you must give it your best and ensure the event is well delivered. If the event is properly handled, you will probably be able to knock down one or two potential clients.”

Iyiola understands that not all clients are the same. There are times when her efforts are not appreciated.
“I recall one particular event,” she said. “We had handled the birthday event of Governor Makinde’s father. Some years later, the old man died and we handled the burial ceremony, which had over 3,000 guests in attendance. Governor Makinde was so impressed with the service we delivered that he sent me a cash gift to express his appreciation. I felt fulfilled because I saw the gesture as an expression of a true reward for labour. Meanwhile, there are some clients one would probably have made the same sacrifice for, put in so much effort to satisfy, and they will be unappreciative of the service one delivers.”

“In any case, the truth remains that once you get a brief, you have to go all out and deliver well, because you have a reputation to protect. There are clients who are not patient enough to see the outcome of the service you aim to deliver. They always want to interrupt the process. I always tell people that you cannot appreciate the process until you see the end result. What they see as rubbish becomes something to treasure at the end,” she stressed.

A founding member of Nigeria’s leading event management body Association of Professional Party Planners and Event Managers of Nigeria (APPOEMN), Iyiola added another feather to her cap this year. She became the owner of a multipurpose event centre, White Stone located in Ikeja. The opening ceremony pooled the classy and wealthy like Makinde and Shade Okoya, one of the wives of the billionaire industrialist Razaq Okoya, who described Iyiola as a hardworking lady during her speech.
The architectural edifice is a one-stop event space for people looking to make a bold and fashionable statement with their events. The halls are donned with glittering chandeliers hanging from the ceilings, moving headlights and exquisite seating arrangement for easy movement and accessibility. The facility also comes with accommodation for clients, particularly those coming from outside the state, a restaurant, a rooftop bar and a conference room. It is ideal for any kind of event, be it a birthday party or a wedding ceremony.

The event planner disclosed that the idea of having an event centre has always been in the pipeline since drew her first business plan in 2013. However, she gives all the glory to the Supreme One who gave her the vision — including the name — and guided her through the project.

With White Stone, Iyiola who is happily married with two children is stamping her foot in the event planning and management industry. From starting as a planning and decoration company, her services have expanded to rentals and a training school. Her dream is to see Finesse Events becoming a household name in the country.