Hey beautiful people, it's been a while and I hope y'all have been good! It's a lovely friday morning over here and I have a brand new inspirational interview with one of the most celebrated creatives in Nigeria.
At such a young age Ore Osoba has broken down barriers and boundaries in the Nigerian fashion industry and literally built one of the most sorted after Luxury leather bags company in Africa ''COZ" from scratch to the very pinnacle on which it now stands , as the Creative Director of COZ he has achieved outstanding recognition's for the brand worldwide and seems to have only begun. I was so pleased to have been able to interview him and super excited to be able to share it with you guys, have a good read guys.
DVF: Tell me about yourself and background?
Ore: My name is Ore Osoba, I am from Osun state but I grew up in Abuja.
I'm the last
child of four kids, I have two sisters and a brother. I'm a first class graduate of
computer science from the North American university, republic of Benin
DVF: What was growing up like for you? Any childhood memories you are fund of?
Ore: Growing
up was great, it was pretty good for me , I grew up with my mom and siblings,
my dad had a very demanding job so he was always travelling , I'm very
close to my sister Busayo, she is like my best friend and I remember that from the time when I was
little I would always help her pick her outfits when she was going out .
I grew up with a lot of love and my hard working mum ,
watching her work so hard inspired me from a little age , my mum was
working three jobs and would come pick me from school and then when we got
home she would still be able to cook and wash my uniform , she is truly an amazing woman.
My favorite child hood memories are learning how to cook, my sister
Busayo thought me that as well as spending time with my sisters and my mum . I
was not really the social type in high school, I was always making
sketches of outfits and writing songs in my free time
DVF: Who
is Ore Osoba? How would you describe yourself?
Ore: I'm a fashion lover , I
like to think outside the box, I could be shy but designing is my escape from that, I don't like to follow rules , Ore Osoba tries
to help everyone out and tries to be there for everyone. I like to be
good at every thing I do and I love to work .
DVF: When
did you discover your love for fashion and the exact path in fashion you wanted to go into and when did you actually
begin to chase after your dreams?
Ore: I
always loved fashion from a little age , I decided to go into it fully
in my 3rd year in the university, I didn't want to work for anyone, I wanted
to start my own company and of cause it had to be fashion related so my
best friend Adanna Ngwube and I decided to start coz designs .
DVF: When you began, what were the beginning stages like for Coz as a new brand in the industry?
Ore: It
was pretty difficult because there was a lot of things I had to learn ,
I was used to designing what I liked but I had to get used to designing
something for everyone , designing something for everyone to fall in
love with and when I started a lot of people liked my designs but didn't believe
in made in Nigeria products .
I started by begging people to buy my
products and giving people my products for free and to be able to go from that point to now exporting my products
to 16 different countries around the world . GOD has been and will always be faithful .
DVF: What inspired the brand name "COZ"?
Ore: The name Coz is gotten from the initials of my partner and I C- crystal , O-Ore and Z- Zachary (my English name )
DVF: Tell me about "COZ" and what the brand is all about?
Ore: Coz is a luxury leather brand that makes exquisite unisex bags and
purses that satisfies their fashionable customers, every piece is a
masterpiece from illustration to the finished product, carefully made
with attention to detail.
DVF: So tell me , when you are designing a bag ,what are the top five major things you keep in mind?
Ore : Simplicity, confidence, class , stylishness and structure
DVF: You
mentioned earlier that your brand is unisex. So
what are the differences in process when designing for men versus when
designing for women?
Ore: Whenever I'm designing I imagine the person I am designing for and
the character I want the bag to play, so it's almost the same process in
designing for a man or a woman .
DVF: For instance, a particular bag design is out of stock and a customer
wants it, do you design again for the customer or if the design is out
of stock, it's a wrap for that design?
Ore: Yes I would design for the customer, all our customers are important.
DVF: And
if in such a case you do want to make the design for a customer, how long
does production take and how long does it take for the bag to get to
the customer?
Ore: Three working days to get to the customer
DVF: What are the distinctive qualities you believe your bags acquire that stands them out?
Ore: My bags are suitable for all style, they are portable and the leather speaks for itself
What is your favorite and most satisfying aspect in the whole process of production?
Ore: Sketching and putting all the pieces together .
DVF: Is
COZ going to continue being just purely a brand focused
on luxury bags or should we expect more from the brand in the future?
Ore: Expect more
DVF: So being in the fashion industry in Nigeria for a while now, what has
been a really high point for you in your career and in the success of
the Brand and what time would you describe as a really low point and how
were you able to come out of that funk?
Ore: When I first started a lot of people looked down on me due to my age
and I was new in the game so I was bullied a lot , I remember going for
fashion shows and been bullied back stage but I believed in my designs,
worked hard and prayed harder and the high point to me was when we
started shipping to different countries.
DVF: What advise will you give to someone who would like to start up in the industry as a luxury bag designer?
Ore: Work hard, pray harder , GOD first and the fashion industry is not as easy as it seems .
DVF: What kind of person owns a COZ Bag? (When you're designing what kind of customer do you have in mind )
Ore: A Classy, fashionable and stylish person
DVF: What
has been the coolest feedback about your Bags that you have ever
received? And whenever or if you ever receive a bad feedback or review
how do you respond or handle it?
Ore: A customer from New York asked me "are you sure they are made in Nigeria?" (laughs) , when I get bad reviews what I do is I listen and learn from my
mistakes .
DVF: Tell
me about your latest collection "New religion" and what the
difference is between this collection and the previous collections?
Ore: New religion is very personal to me ,when I was designing new
religion , I was at a point in my life where I was adjusting to fame and had to deal with fake friends and losing old friends.New religion is
a lot more emotional and the very bag is telling a story .
DVF: In 2016, you were awarded with the most enterprising young entrepreneur and the award was presented to you by the Governor of Kano state, what was that like for you ?
Ore: It was really great , I didn't expect it , it was amazing , I was so grateful and I still am .
DVF: Speaking of you tell me what fashion means to you and how you would describe your personal style?
Ore: Fashion is all about putting the little pieces together , it's a way
of expressing yourself , my personal style is comfortable , fresh and a
bit edgy.
DVF: What do you do for fun? how do you let loose when you need a break?
Ore: I watch movies, I like horror movies, I play video games with friends and I like to eat out , not the clubbing kind , so I don't attend parties much
DVF: You run a luxury brand ,so tell me what are the three luxurious things in your life that you can't live without?
Ore: My car, my phone, I'm always on
My phone lol and my Coz bag
DVF: Where is your dream travel destination?
Ore: Maldives 🇲🇻, I love the views and it looks so calm
DVF: What is the craziest thing you have done this year?
Ore: Lol the craziest thing I have done was to walk the streets of my neighbourhood in my briefs
DVF: What is your favourite colour?
Ore: Red
DVF: Which of these do you do, sing in the shower, eat loudly or snore?
Ore: Sing in the shower
DVF: What is the one thing you are scared of that others can easily ignore?
Ore: Chickens 🙈
DVF: What kind of songs do you listen to when working?
Ore: Songs from Rihanna and Adele but mostly Rnb and blues
DVF: What movie would you recommend to a friend and why?
Ore: Game of thrones, I love how smart the mother of the dragons is
DVF: Okay to more serious stuff what other successful fashion designer bag brands out there do you look to for inspiration?
Ore: Fendi and Chanel .
DVF: What has been the most challenging aspect of being the creative director of the brand?
Ore: Trying to satisfy every customer , it's really not easy but it's been a great ride.
DVF: Lastly what should we expect from the brand? What do you see in the future of COZ as it's creative director?
Ore: Coz Is taking over , more designs , more shows, more stores world wide
DVF: Thanks alot for this interview and your time.
4 comments
Amazing, you're such an inspiration Ore Osoba
ReplyDeleteLovely Interview Davis... this is Christy
ReplyDeleteNice bags. Cool Interview
ReplyDeleteThanks alot Alphie
Delete