Toasts as Milolar Women Fashion, Hair & Skincare Store Opens in Magodo

Ayodeji Ake

All routes lead to Magodo, as a leading women’s fashion brand, Milolar, opened a new store on CMD road, Lagos.

The women’s lifestyle store was loaded with mouthwatering women’s ready-to-wear fashion designs, quality and skin-friendly hair care, skin care products, and top-notch fragrances.

Addressing journalists at the launch of the new store recently, the Creative Director of Milolar Group, Damilola Otubanjo, revealed the thrive on staying in the fashion business in Nigeria despite the ups and downs after seven years of establishment.

She said: “We are opening our new store on CMD Road Magodo. Our store is the epitome of beauty in the lifestyle business. What we do is clothing for women. We also have products for skin care, body mix, and fragrance. Our products are complementary because they work together to beautify women, which is what the Milolar brand stands for. We have been around for seven years now and this is our third store.

“The area is planned and has a nice location. We believe we have several customers in this axis and we are bringing the Milolar brand close to them. Yes, we know the digital store is much easier to access but the physical store is also needed to validate the brand.

“Building a brand in Nigeria has been tough and not an easy task. It takes blood and sweat, dedication, and passion. you must love what you are doing and must be consistent. You must be able to maintain your principles and values. The major problem we have in Nigeria is not money but people. finding the right people who can appreciate the level of quality invested in the brand.

“For me, I’m dealing with scalability. So if anyone can make Nigerian wears into the international market and scale properly then the sky is your limit. I love what I do and vice versa. Another thing is that it’s very hard to get funding. you can only get funds from customers, friends, and family who know the value of what you do.”

Unlike other brands, Milolar is not only concerned about fashion but belongs to the school of thought that skin beauty, healthy hair, and good smell complement a good fashion design.

“We have hair care, skin care, and body spray. Our skincare product is mainly for beautification, skin maintenance, and a bit of brightening and makes the skin glow. Clothing a woman with shabby skin doesn’t compliment the design. Again, a lot of women battle with their edges and hair issues, so we do complimentary hair care.

“Our clothing is just for women. I thought of designs for men but I realized the brand speaks for the women and that has been my strength,” she said.

Speaking further, Otubanjo, spoke about apprenticeship at Milolar and revealed why she rejects materials and designs from customers.

“Some people do bespoke but I focus on ready-to-wear designs. We don’t accept fabrics and styles. Through that, we have been able to manage customer satisfaction and avoid disappointment. when a customer brings you the material and design and it doesn’t show up as much as expected, you are going to lose your customer and brand reputation. knowing that women can be very difficult to please, I deliberately avoid complicating the process. so what you see on our shelves is what you go for.

“In terms of apprenticeship, I have a factory where we train people. I don’t charge people who come for training. I believe what is important is passion and dedication. so not meeting the task calls for eviction from the training. I believe there is no amount of money you can give me that can make any difference.”

The queens’ maker also said she is stopping at nothing until her brand gets space in the international market.

“Milolar is going to be a global brand. I’m very optimistic and driven about it. I don’t have it all figured out but I take it one step at a time. I want to see my brand making waves in the international markets,” she said.