Like a well-smouldered barbecue that makes the mouth watery, Nigerian fabrics ( Sosa & Couture) is setting the fashion trends in Lafia, Nasarawa State. Esosa Erims is a study of female power.    

By Adeyi Joseph Ochogu

I waited in her office for about 15 minutes wondering how a student could be this focused at a time when many young people are easily distracted by social media. Still wondering how she is able to carry on with her studies unscathed by the burden of managing a business, Esosa Erims, the Nassarawa State-born fashion designer and the CEO of Sosa & Couture strutted in, all warm and radiant! At that point, the only image that ran through my mind was Fatima Siad, a Somali-American fashion supermodel.

After the pleasantries, the charming CEO apologised for keeping me waiting, my perception matching the widely held notion of her as urbane and down-to-earth. In her office at the campus of the Federal University of Lafia, Nassarawa State where she is an undergraduate, Esosa Erims exudes class.

Because she had some urgent deliveries to make the next day, I quickly got down to business. Itching to find answers to the burning questions that have made many students wonder, I asked: “How did you catch this vision, what informed Sosa and Couture, and how were you able to build and grow the brand within a short time while also studying? She flashed me one of her arresting, dimple-laden smiles and said the ideation of Sosa & Couture was born out of necessity, passion, threat, and the audacity of hope.

“Though Sosa and Couture is a budding brand, it’s so strong in terms of fame and popularity among students in the Federal University of Lafia, and its popularity has continued to grow by the day as I get a lot of referrals through some of my loyal customers. This all started as a dream. I wanted to do a lot more beyond being a student. As a connoisseur of fashion, I wanted to explore, using locally produced fabrics and turning them into dresses that fit into the pop culture,” said Esosa.

The creative designer who drew her inspiration from legendary global designers who made their culture a part of the trending outfits popular among young adults and celebrities said her dream is to surpass this by growing Sosa & Couture into a cross-cultural brand in Nigeria. She added that her flair for creativity and originality, and especially, the recurring crises between the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and the Federal Government, which always led to the closure of tertiary institutions in the country, aided the ideation and the birthing of Sosa & Couture.

She said: “First, I learnt tailoring because of a childhood passion of wanting to make my own dresses, and this, in turn, was strengthened by the incessant ASUU strike, which availed me the opportunity and the time to perfect my art. Today, without being presumptuous, I’m one of the most sought-after designers in Lafia and its environs. Many of my clients are mostly young adults and local celebrities who desire a touch of magic in their dresses. This makes me a multi-talented tailor, who fits into both worlds of unisex designs perfectly.”

Asked how she is able to fuse her studies with business, the creative fashion designer who is in her sophomore at the university said that the successes and the fame that Sosa & Couture has brought serve as a motivation for her to learn as this is impacting her business positively. She added that Sosa & Couture has made her more popular in Lafia and that this wouldn’t have been possible without the learning from her studies. “My lectures are well-structured and this doesn’t interfere with my business as I also find the time to study and still unwind,” she said, adding that she is an ardent observer of study-business balance and that’s why she situated her office within the campus.

Like global brands such as Microsoft and Facebook that started out in garages, Esosa’s single room self-contained serves as Sosa and Couture’s head office. You cannot miss the place as it is close to the take-off site of the Federal University of Lafia. The lodge is named House of Reps. From within the lodge, Esosa churns out great outfits with quality and designs that can compete with established designers anywhere in the world. Esosa has made incredible, breathtaking dresses from the popular Aso-oke to designs that emanate from a highly imaginative mind on ankara.

Sosa and Couture is a brand that is increasingly shaping the conversation around fashion, not just in the university enviroment, but across Nasarawa State.

Adeyi Joseph Ochogu is a photographer and creative writer from Nasarawa 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.