It will be three days of glamour and luxury as Essential Interiors Magazine (EIM) in partnership with ThisDay Home+Design brings to you an exclusive showcase of Nigeria’s Premier Luxury Homes & Hospitality Exhibition tagged MADE BY DESIGN.
This premier edition of the event runs from November 4th – November 6th, 2016 at The Landmark Event Centre. It will preview a great number of valuable, exquisite and distinct luxury home & hospitality products offered in Nigeria.
Essential Interiors Magazine (EIM) is Nigeria’s pioneer-interior design magazine. In collaboration with ThisDay Home+Design, the exhibition will not only showcase some of the most valuable and unique luxury home & hospitality products for the most discerning clients, but engage stake-holders in the hospitality industry in a hard-nosed discussion, calculated to uplift their practices. This makes the event very unique as never before in the foregoing industry, would such a grand scale affront be slapped on its mediocrity with a view to transforming it.
During a press conference on 26/10/2016, the managing director of Essential Interiors and publisher of EIM, Titi Ogufere, disclosed that “luxury home and hospitality space hasn’t been an area Nigerians are into”, so this event is a great opportunity for “connecting luxury home owners and hotels with suppliers.” She further said that “Made by Design is a curated exhibition intentioned to address evident non-standard practices in the hospitality industry, while paving the way for innovation among local practitioners.” Therefore, this event “connects the market to the industry.”
Upon this significance, Ogufere also projects Made by Design to become an annual celebration, while stating how important it is for the right changes to occur here as Nigeria hosts international interior design conference next year.
Activities for the event include:
A V.I.P Red Carpet, Private Viewing and Launch of This Day Home+Design on November 4: This involves a red carpet media hosting, invitation of affluent attendees and a one-night V.I.P Cocktail, which will double as a V.I.P launch event, which will officially introduce the weekly home+design publication to key industry partners.
Exclusive Conference for Hospitality Stakeholders, Architects, Designers and Luxury Property Developers, themed “Business of Luxury” on November 5: Four panellists will speak (within 15-minutes duration each), while sponsors will have the opportunity to present their brands and products to prominent Architects, Designers and Luxury Property Developers. The conference will be anchored by Udo Okonjo, CEO Fine and Country Nigeria. Fine & Country is a global real estate brand specializing in providing a premium service through exceptional marketing and professionalism in the upper quartile of the market; its Nigerian extension was established in November 2008 by Okonjo.
Other panelists include Architect Bayo Odulami of Design Group NIG, Andrea Geday of El Alan Construction and Mosun Ogunbanjo, CEO of Wheatbaker Hotel.
Other amazing, rare and highly sought-after luxury and hospitality design products, brands, companies will feature to offer broad range of choices to real estate developers and home owners including hospitality business owners/managers in Nigeria.
The conference, according to Udo Okonjo, will raise several questions including; how to raise the standard of local business and promote them (as canvassed in other forums such as the Nigeria Economic Summit); and whether ‘Luxury’ should mean something different locally as opposed to its international meaning associating it with ‘great comfort and extravagant living’, opulence, grandeur and splendor, and so on.
Titi Ogufere reacting to the misplacement of the meaning of luxury, questions the authenticity of claims by some names in the hospitality business that they offer five-star services, when in fact, they do not quite meet that status.
The conference, according to Udo Okonjo, will raise several questions including; how to raise the standard of local business and promote them (as canvassed in other forums such as the Nigeria Economic Summit); and whether ‘Luxury’ should mean something different locally as opposed to its international meaning associating it with ‘great comfort and extravagant living’, opulence, grandeur and splendor, and so on.
In the same vein, Okonjo in no-holds barred response dismissed the question of whether this event is appropriate to be unfolded now in Nigeria, a country in recession. “Luxury does not disappear because of recession… rather it places even a higher demand on suppliers to up their game to meet international standard…now is even the best time to hold this event” Okonjo stressed.
Viewed from a middle-class perspective, Made by Design appear more appealing to the affluent, and the reason may not be far-fetched as explained by Okonjo, “we are not all at the same place in life…and cannot all be there at the same time; but we can get there at different times.” This fact of life if well appreciated, will ease the mind of those who may not have the capacity for luxuriousness, and avail them the opportunity of broadening their horizon about life’s investments by following the Made by Design discussions and presentations. Only this way perhaps, will they be able to meet their ‘aspirational goals,’ including tasteful living. When this happens, Made by Design would have succeeded in leading luxury to homes in Nigeria.
For further enquiries, contact:BUKOLA BOLU OMA08180001289 08178670562 08035683616bukola@essentialinteriorsng.cominfo@essentialinteriorsng.comeditorial@essentialinteriorsng.com
