Lagos Cocktail Week 2019

Workshops by Renowned Professionals, Networking & FUN! Lagos Cocktail Week 2019 Was a Success

by Event

It is often said that one should not mix business with pleasure. But at Lagos Cocktail Week 2019 (LCW), this rule was broken for a great cause, as hospitality industry practitioners from all over the world, and cocktail enthusiasts converged for 2 days of learning, networking, and loads of fun!

The Lagos Cocktail Week kicked off with a fun and spirited Bar Crawl on the 11th of October, with influencers and celebrities on a ride through popular bars in Lagos sampling various drinks and cocktails, courtesy Fayrouz. On the ride was Bam Bam, Denola Grey, Zina Anumudu, among others. The bars visited were Atmosphere Rooftop, Nok by Alara, and Brass & Copper.

On October 15th, the Bar Crawl continued courtesy of Johnnie Walker. The brand’s mixologist, Berg Baboyan, thrilled cocktail lovers with his eclectic creations, as they took an exhilarating journey across LCW partner bars.

After the Bar Crawl, the main event took place from October 16th – October 17th at the Balmoral Hall, Federal Palace Hotel. It was an especially memorable event, as the founder of Lagos Cocktail, Lara Rawa’s cocktail services company, Eventi Cocktails, celebrated its 10th year anniversary.

Some memorable sessions during the event include the  “Coffee Lifestyle Meets Cocktail Hour” panel, that featured industry leaders including Fikayo Durosinmi-Etti (MD, Café Neo), Adeyinka Tekenah (Founder, Happy Coffee), and Toluwalope Omidiji (Founder, 19.8 Drinks & Cocktails), who spoke about innovative developments pertaining to the subject matter in the Nigerian market.

Another memorable highlight was the practical workshop on New Trends in Mixology by Malika Saidi of Amsterdam-based Bartending Academy, “Bols Bartending.” During her session, attendees got to learn firsthand, the art and science of current and future mixology trends.

During the Marketing & Branding session, some renowned experts shed light on techniques mixologists and entrepreneurs in the industry could use to differentiate their brands in the crowded marketplace.  Franklin Ozekhome (Group Strategy & Planning Director, Insight Redefeni/Publicis One), Idiare Atimomo (Co-founder, Up in the Sky LTD) and Oluseyi “SDJ” Jolayemi (COO SwiftThink LTD), who were panelists, shared invaluable tips, which attendees found very useful.

The workshop on Creative Ways to Style your Mobile Bar, was a very practical session, as right in front of us, Yewande Rwang-Dung of Saro Events, styled a bar to show some easy ways to go about it, and make setups more attractive.

Business of Photography’s DIY Photography session was a huge hit! Facilitator, Kola Oshalusi, showed attendees some tips and tricks on how to create spectacular images for food and drinks photography with the use of a mobile phone camera and strategic lighting techniques.

In addition, the panel about the Future of the Nigerian Event Industry was quite thought-provoking. Funke Bucknor (CEO, Zapphaire Events), Bola Okolie (CEO, Bonix Drinks), and Gbemisola Ope (President, APPOEMN), shared their insights about the current state of the industry, preferring innovative means of advancement.

Lagos State Commissioner for Tourism, Arts & Culture, Honourable Shuli Olufunke Adebolu, was also present at the event.

Nini

Sisterhood & Speaking Truths in a Safe Space! Dr Nini’s Women’s Health Awareness Foundation’s “Preparing for Pregnancy” Event was a Success

by Event

Did you know? Preparing for pregnancy starts even way before you are ready to get pregnant or married. Decisions we take on a day-to-day basis throughout our lives could impact our health, and in turn, fertility.

Even though Nigeria has one of the highest birth rates in the world with 37.3 births for every 1,000 people or an average of six children per woman meaning more than 7 million new Nigerians are born every year, an estimated 25% of couples still suffer from infertility. And due to factors like societal stigma, cultural pressures, lack of knowledge and financial constraints, many do not opt for assisted reproduction.

On Sunday, September 29th, Dr Nini’s Women’s Health Awareness Foundation held an event tagged, “Preparing for Pregnancy, ” as a means of educating women about fertility.

The event was attended by women who desired to know more about fertility health in general, newlyweds that desire to have babies sometime soon, and people who had been trying to conceive for a while.

During this event, Dr. Nini advised on certain reproductive health disorders that affect fertility, common habits that could affect conception, complementary therapy that promotes fertility, supplements, nutrition for optimal fertility, and a number of techniques to help get started on steps to take when trying to conceive.

Special guest speakers were also present at the event, including TV Host, Dolapo Oni-Sijuwade, who shared her personal experiences with her pre-pregnancy journey. Certified Holistic Health Care Practitioner, Oluseye Aderonke, shared her wealth of knowledge about boosting fertility health through plant-based nutrition and specific herbal remedies.

Attendees also got a chance to share their experiences, questions, and concerns pertaining to preparing for pregnancy.

The event was proudly supported by REVIV Health, Fertyl Life by Dr. Nini, as well as media partners: BellaNaija, Media Room Hub, SoTectonic, OloriSupergal, Wives & Mothers, and ZUMI.

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Tosin Rufai CEO of Teefal Studios Featured on Cover of Guardian Woman

by PRPress

Tosin Rufai, CEO of Teefal Studios, describes herself as a proud female Muslim photographer breaking numerous cultural barriers by being in this field.

In the mostly male-dominated industry of photography, Rufai is making her mark as one of the top female portrait photographers in the country- with a specialization in child photography.

With degrees in Psychology and Sociology from the USA, another degree in Business Management from Shanghai University, China and a Master’s degree in Rehabilitation Counseling from Texas, USA, Rufai moved back to Nigeria to explore new opportunities. After venturing into several fields, she found her calling in photography and with rigorous training and several professional certifications in photography under her belt, Rufai is one of the most-sought- after child photographers in the country.

In this interview with Tobi Awodipe of Guardian Woman, she talks about her journey into the world of photography, her struggles with conception and infertility and how this experience ushered her towards her true calling.

Tell us about your journey into the world of photography?
I came back to Nigeria from the USA for my NYSC after my studies. Shortly after, I moved to South Africa for a year to pursue some interests but my parents wanted me to move back to Nigeria. So, I applied for a job at NLNG as they were recruiting at that time, but I was not shortlisted at the last stage unfortunately. My mom’s friend then advised me to go to makeup school and I reluctantly enrolled, but I was more interested in the sales aspect so I went ahead to open a full service beauty lounge where I also sold makeup products. I went to Bio Sculpture in Dubai to learn how to do gel nails and it was included in our services. Thereafter, I decided to get a website done so people could order makeup products and perfumes directly and so I got a camera to take pictures of my products for our website. The photographer I employed to teach me the basics then advised me to look into photography because of the quality of pictures I was creating, even as a beginner. I did not think much of it but I realized I could not put my camera down after the class and the more I researched about it, the stronger the passion for it grew. I then decided to go for further training and the rest as they say, is history.

Why child photography and how is it different from the photography we know?
I started out as a beauty and fashion photographer. Being a Muslim, I started feeling uncomfortable working with semi-nude models and sharing those images online, so I decided to specialize in child and family photography when I had my son. My style is also classic and timeless and I did not see that in the industry, so I decided to brand myself to cater to people that appreciate classic portraits. I also love working with children because they are innocent and beautiful souls. It also amazes me how rapidly they change and it is a privilege to help document that.

You moved back to Nigeria from the USA. How has this experience been like for you?
It was rough at first especially when I became an entrepreneur because I quickly realized the work ethics in Nigeria is very different from other places, but things have gotten much better. Most of my clients have also lived abroad or visit frequently so they understand my business model and that makes things easier.

What are the challenges you face in this line of work and how are you overcoming them?
The biggest challenge is when some potential clients complain about pricing and undervalue my work. I have learned that everyone is not my client and that is perfectly fine. The other thing is lack of access to quality prints and frames. I order albums for my premium clients abroad to solve that issue.

What has been the highlight for you so far?
It has to be when I launched my fairytale package. We create customized magical backgrounds for clients. We can pretty much bring anything to life and those photos can be used for personalised storybooks, too.  It was exciting sharing what I had worked on for a long time with everyone. It was well received and has become our most popular package now.

Most people think one doesn’t need special training to be a photographer. Do you share this opinion?
Photography is an art that requires some level of skills if you want to be well recognized and respected. Personally, I believe one should attend extensive training in any field one decides to go into, the moment you decide to do it professionally. You have to invest in yourself and your brand. I personally attended several trainings and I keep learning more.

Read the whole story on Guardian.ng

The Nation

Talk Show Host Jo Maxwell Talks Women’s Empowerment, Career & More in Flair Magazine

by Press

Ibijoke Maxwell Odedina is the host of the Jo Maxwell Show which focuses on the achievements of Nigerian and African women in the Diaspora.  She also has a background in Accounting & Finance, and is an IT specialist. In this interview with Yetunde Oladeinde of Flair Magazine, she talks about the inspiration for her talk show, capturing the achievements of women in the diaspora, challenges and more. 

What inspired you to start your talk show?

I saw a gap on the screen showcasing the achievements of black women. So, I felt that as a Nigerian I would like to bridge this gap and show that Nigerians in the UK are doing great. Unfortunately, we are not doing things together and collaborating to maximise the opportunities available. For the show, what we did was to bring men into it because of the feedback that we got. As long as we want to be feminists, we still need to carry the men along. It’s been received well and it has also opened my eyes to new areas and opportunities.

I would also like to say that I am more than a talk show host because I do other things to motivate and inspire other people. I am also the founder of PEP (Passionate Empowered Professional) Network. PEP is a network that brings together black career women living and working all over the UK and from around the world. It is first and foremost, a connective and inspiring network, as well as an avenue to sell your brand, receive advice or ideas and be inspired and motivated by like minded business/career women.

What we are doing here is to bring together like minded women to connect, do business, work together and add value to lives in different ways.

A lot of times, we talk about empowerment but a lot of us do not understand what empowerment means. We have people who have helped to find jobs and connections for each other here. Most of them haven’t seen themselves for about 10 years and they live in the United Kingdom. It is really refreshing and we leave all our worries and network. It’s been great.

The intention is that at some point, the network would be in different parts of the world. I am the founder and I have other women who are helping to push the vision.

The theme Press for Progress covers a lot and I believe that as women we should come together and learn to add value to the things that we do. The talk show is a screen for the black women in the Diaspora; we actually don’t have a lot of that. We often get featured once in a while. And even when we get featured, it is about the bad stuff. I am also doing some documentary about how people have gone from nothing to something great. The intention is to capture the full lifestyle of a woman from different angles.

Read more on The Nation