Mejire Arubayi: Woodstyles is Bringing International Standards to Local Brands

Mejire Arubayi is a highly skilled and result-driven Project Development Consultant with a proven track record of delivering strategic projects across various organisations. With over 18 years of experience in Programme and Project Management, he has consistently driven business transformation and successfully implemented high-value and mission-critical systems in diverse multi-platform environments across Eu minrope and Africa. Currently, he serves as the Contract Manager at WOODstyles Limited, a renowned joinery and fit-out company committed to delivering flawless and high-quality woodwork for luxury products. 

At the just concluded 2023 Design Week Lagos, a  concept conceived to present and celebrate the best in contemporary African design across categories, Arubayi, in this interview with MARY NNAH, talks about the place for interior designing and the designers in Nigeria as well as how the industry contributes to the country’s economy amongst other issues

Tell us why you are part of today’s event.

This exhibition is put together by interior designers every year as part of the event called Design Week Lagos. We have various activities every year right from inception and the firm has been a partner in this exhibition for years back. This year, we are exhibiting a 4ft door which is meant to be a statement template for a metre-high door by 2.8 metres and meaningful minimalist storage shelving. So that’s what we have here for this year’s exhibition in our stand.

Could you tell us about your motivation and experience in the industry? 

I have been into design for the last 15 years and I have worked on private residence projects, luxury five-star hotel projects, and process designs, with a few of the very good interior architects around the world. And it’s what led me to join  Woodstyles. I feel the firm can execute the level which I can associate myself with. So that’s why I decided to work with them. It allowed me to also help improve my designs. The designs for clients depends on what they want and  I help them achieve their dream because I have been able to give them what they want and improve on my designs.

However, a lot of clients don’t know what they want, while others know exactly what they want. Sometimes they know what they want, but they don’t know how to place it. You need to know what kind of questions they would ask and be able to put things together in designs, which you will use to execute the project. That’s just basically what we engaged ourselves within the industry. I would say that some customers know what they want some don’t and it’s one of the challenges that you face while you do business.

Take us through your accomplishments as a project and design manager.

I have undertaken several enterprise transformation projects and consulting roles with cross-functional experience in a wide spectrum of industries ranging from hospitality, finance, health, public sector, retail and construction. I have been into design for the past  15 years and interior designs for hotels, offices, and private homes, amongst others. I worked on several projects in Nigeria before I joined Woodstyles Limited as a Contract Manager. It was based on these experiences that I now provide strategic direction for Woodstyles Limited while remaining a hands-on project manager overseeing projects’ needs. However, I naturally keyed into Woodstyles because it entails the kind of designs I do: high-end finishing, luxurious finishing, detailed finishing and bespoke finishing.

From your experience, where is the place for interior designers and designers in Nigeria?

Initially, we used to think interior design in Nigeria was a green field but over that narrative has changed. We had all of these experienced interior designers and interior design architects amongst others, but we did not give them a name. So, everyone is beginning to realise the importance of having an interior designer on his or her project.

Some people feel they have to import to get high-quality luxury design products. What is your take?

It will take time to change, however, the curve is beginning to tilt towards our side. The government policies have begun to help. But notwithstanding, it is expensive because we have to compete with imported goods. We will not say because a product is made in Nigeria, then it should have a mediocre standard. We want to compete with international brands and we are succeeding in doing that. So, it is like we are bringing international standards to local brands and this is done by Nigeria in Nigeria for Nigerians. More importantly, we understand the Nigerian extreme harsh weather and produce for the market accordingly, such that puts us at an advantage over those who import furniture items without considering our weather.

What are the challenges you face working in the luxury sector?

 There are quite a lot of challenges depending on how you want to look at those challenges. You understand what I’m saying…

I don’t want to generalise this because I don’t want to use what is happening right now. We feel this is just the downturn and things will improve better. We’re always positive, but that notwithstanding the flip side of this, is that for us, we are busier in Nigeria. It’s good for us in the sense that clients are not going to look outside the box. They are going to look to us to deliver items rather than import them. We have the skill sets, and we have developed some level of quality to compete with many foreign items, which is important. So to us, like I always say, an impossible challenge allows us to tell ourselves that we can do it; if not as well sometimes even better than most imports. So those are the things that are the challenges. We’ll get there also, the negative challenges of the industry which happens to everybody anyway are the cost of production, power, roads, infrastructure and everything. It’s hitting everyone, every single person.  We all suffer the same thing. We’ll suffer.

The luxury design and interior decoration industry seems to have contributed a lot to the economy of the country. So what do you think about auditing the sector, to improve on its contribution to the economy? 

We are growing rapidly. The more clients we get more job opportunities.

Every year we have some visitors to our booth, while we work to always take things to the next level, and all of that. So that’s our kind of contribution. Because the more business we get, the more people are employed and the more CSR we do for the environment. The more we pay our taxes, the more the revenue income tax, and so there’s a multiplier effect. Our stock trades 90% local context, so that’s an improvement as well. So we’re spreading the knowledge with the technical skills

Give us an overview of how you source materials.

It makes things easier when you buy locally, we have very good raw materials here but we equally get a few things abroad. Everything is manufactured here. We make videos for people to see right from where we start cutting the wood to finish. So many of those high-end items, we import them, some of the raw material content is sourced locally, depending on the projects, depending on requirements.

What’s your company’s environmental and corporate social governance strategy to ensure that your activities do not impact the environment, both in the aspect of wildlife and deforestation?

We’re not the first primary user, let’s say, we don’t feel the impacts. Also, we have a lot of corporate social responsibility. We partnered with people who are ready to go into tree planting operations.  But in Nigeria, here we do quite a lot of that as well, like World Tree Day. So we plant trees. We do a a lot of CSR, we engage the youths, train them, they do IT with us and some of them get employment. We have training schools where we train members of the community. This has a multiplier effect on staff housing. So to a large extent, CSR, as a firm we don’t joke with it because, if you don’t have a happy neighbour, you won’t have a secure and safe environment to execute your business.

Quote

We will not say because a product is made in Nigeria, then it should have a mediocre standard. We want to compete with international brands and we are succeeding in doing that. So, it is like we are bringing international standards to local brands and this is done by Nigeria in Nigeria for Nigerians