Ibadan-based fashion designer and CEO of Datina Designs, Atinuke Smith, in this interview by Omolara Adeniyi, shares the interesting story behind a brand etched on passion and self-determination.

Can you introduce yourself please?

I’m a fashion Entrepreneur, and I’ve been in the fashion industry for upward of 28 years and also double as a business coach. I help startup businesses to find clarity, grow and improve to make their businesses better. I’m also a marriage and relationships counsellor passionate about helping women maximise their potential because empowering women makes a lot of difference in our society.

Did your passion for women shape your career decisions?

No. I believe life is in stages. Sometimes, finding a particular passion leads to other passions. I didn’t think I would be a fashion entrepreneur. I studied Communication and Language Arts. So, I thought I was going to end up as a broadcaster or journalist. However, I learnt how to sew during my service year, and fashion designing became a passion. I decided I wasn’t going to do a white-collar job, so I focused on fashion design. Along the line, women started gravitating towards me for training, and that was what led to my passion for women, youth empowerment, and relationship coaching.

Was starting out as a fashion designer easy or challenging?

Starting out wasn’t easy. There was no one to teach us the entrepreneurial aspect of fashion design. As a result, I struggled with managing my business’s finances, staffing and management, among others. I spent about 15 years going in circles, so it was very challenging.

However, the emergence of institutions like Lagos Business Schools started teaching small businesses (SMEs) about entrepreneurship. I was able to enrol for business training, and I haven’t stopped since then. Now, I have learnt about employee and financial management and how to run a business successfully, making my fashion entrepreneurship journey easier.

It’s not enough to have fashion design skills. It’s also important to have business knowledge. A lack of entrepreneurial skills will lead to going around in circles and not making notable progress. I also had challenges with funding to acquire machines when I first started. However, I was able to acquire several grants from the Federal Government of Nigeria and other associations. So, skills, entrepreneurial knowledge and adequate funding make it easier to overcome challenges and run a successful fashion designing business.

Can you highlight the basic skills a beginner must acquire when diving into the fashion design business?

Besides fashion designing skills, a beginner must have the basic knowledge of money management, staff management, and how to access the market. For example, who is going to buy what you are making, and how do you connect with them? In addition, how do you stand out from the park? These are things you need to learn as a fashion entrepreneur.

The fashion design industry is always evolving. How have you been able to stay relevant in the last 28 years?

As a fashion designer, you must always be open to learning new things every day. It will be difficult for your business to grow if you don’t continue to improve yourself. The way you are is how your business will be. So, if you want to see growth or expansion, you must continually work on yourself. Also, network and collaborate with other people to stay relevant.

What’s a typical day in the life of a fashion designer like?

A typical day in the life of a fashion designer involves coming to work, reaching out to customers and attending to them. Also, you must make sure you are available virtually and in person to connect with your customers. In a day, you must read and learn something to stay conversant with the trends in the industry and meet your customers’ needs.

What are the basic things anyone starting out as a fashion designer must have?

Be sure you are passionate about fashion and the business. Running a fashion designing business is beyond the glamour; it comes with its challenges. This includes finding skilled staff, acquiring equipment, and many others. So, be sure you are passionate and ready for the challenges you’ll encounter. It’s the passion you have that will help you get through the tough times.

Also, be sure you have enough training so you can be well-equipped before you start. You should be able to study the market too. What types of customers do you want, and how can you attract them? It’s best to choose an area because not everyone can be your customer. Do you want to focus on children’s wear? Or male, party or work wear? Choose an area and stick to it.

Let’s talk about your business, Datina Designs. What birth the name?

Datina is a Latino name, and it means a very important personality. I came across the name while reading one day and I decided I was going to be serving very important personalities. Every customer, whether young or old, is very important to us. This name has also given us the vision to know that every person we come in contact with is important to the growth of our business.

What niche does your business focus on?

Ready to wear. We do bespoke tailoring too, but ready-to-wear for males and females is what we are pushing to our global audience. Our business is located in Ibadan, but we supply beyond Ibadan. We distribute to Lagos, Abuja and outside the country.

Where can we learn more about your business?

You can visit our website: www.datinadesigns.com, or check us on Instagram and Facebook @datinadesigns. We also have a fashion school. We’ve graduated many students, and that’s our way of empowering the youths and making them financially independent. You can find our fashion school online here

Omolara Adeniyi is an avid explorer of cultures. She writes from Ibadan, Oyo State.

Ayodele Johnson

Ayodelé is a Lagos-based journalist and the Content and Editorial Coordinator at Meiza. All around the megacity, I am steering diverse lifestyle magazine audiences with ingenious hacks and insights that spur fast, informed decisions in their busy lives.