There is just something cozy about Radisson blue hotel on Ozumba Mbadiwe in Victoria Island Lagos that always makes you want to come back again and again. This time, the invitation was for an exclusive viewing of classic and timeless leather accessories and the host? The unassuming yet affable and assiduous CEO of Morin.O Leatherworks, Maureen (Morin) Obaweya.
Walking into the hotel, the huge banner with Morin O. inscription all over it is the first thing I see, after which I am shown the way by a concierge. I get into the escalator and as I arrive at my destination and the escalator opens, guess who walks up to me? The exceptional veteran actress, Joke Silva, smiling warmly as she always does, “Kemi!!! Nice to see you again, you came for the ‘viewing’ too?” “Nice to see you too Aunty, yes I was invited” I replied and she responds “well I am done and off, make sure you keep in touch” and off she went after which I walked down the hall-way to the venue. Getting into the room, I couldn’t help but notice beautifully crafted bags, belts, clutch bags and male accessories too. The items were made from goat skin, crocodile, ostrich, and python to mention a few.
They were strategically positioned and I saw various celebrities and business gurus admire the bags and even placing orders. I searched around for Maureen and as I walked into another room at the same venue, there she was looking glam in her Ankara gown with details that made it exquisite. She was in the company of the principal partner of AD Consulting, Jumoke Adenowo whose bag I couldn’t help but admire, it screamed class! It was nice to also see Maureen’s husband giving her support at the event and making sure everything went smoothly. It wasn’t a day for interviews but of course we agreed on a date and what you are about to read is all we talked about.
Right from when she was in secondary school, her passion for the creative arts was evident even though she majored in the sciences. Maureen studied Pharmacy at Ahmadu Bello University and after her internship year at the Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital Kaduna, and a year of National Youth Service at the Holy Family Joint Hospital Ikom Cross River State, she went on to work in Upperline Pharmaceutical Company as an executive pharmacist. In 1992, she co founded Mauba Enterprises with her husband, a company involved in the supply of gift items and art décor that had its office at 7 Akin Osiyemi Street Ikeja where she began her career as a curator and promoter of indigenous art and craft. She curated her first art exhibition in November 1994 at Didi Museum Lagos, titled “Divine Inspiration” under the distinguished chairmanship of the then Minister of Information Prof Jerry Gana.
Obaweya founded Lifestrokes Gallery in 1995, committed to the promotion, enhancement and growth of Nigerian and African arts and crafts. The Company was located at 160 Awolowo Road and to mark the inauguration, an exhibition featuring the works of over twenty Nigerian artists was held. Since the Inception of Lifestrokes, Obaweya has organised several exhibitions at home and abroad. It was after all these that she founded Morin.O Leatherworks, an authentic Nigerian leather accessories line manufacturing high quality leather accessories for both the Nigerian and global markets.
Maureen was brought up in a close knit family where they were allowed to express themselves and be unique. “I come from a family of creative people, my mother a professional photographer, my father was a broadcaster, my siblings in theatre arts and also architecture. This influenced me to follow my instincts and passion and to enjoy and live my creativity.” She admits.
From Pharmacy to the arts? A rare move you would say but Maureen’s explanation tells it all “Even at secondary school level, I was both a science and arts student, I was enjoying and playing in both worlds, majoring in the sciences but also taking literature as a subject and participating in art related activities and after practising pharmacy for a little while, I decided to go with my passion of expressing myself creatively.” Maureen tells me.
Yes she is Maureen Obawaya but her items are labeled Morin O. Hear her relate to you the reason for the name and the ‘skins’ used. “After promoting several arts and crafts, I wanted to express my own individual creativity and settled for my preferred medium of leather, hence Morin.O. The leather we use are calf, goat, sheep leather, crocodile, ostrich, python, lizard and iguana skins. We source our leather from suppliers of high grade leather and skins from India, Italy and from exotic skin farms in Africa. Our items are made here and we source the materials both locally and internationally. At Morin O, we have the stylish and classy individual who has a taste for quality and timeless elegance in mind”. She says.
Everything comes down to the price so I asked for the range of her items and she tells me “The items are not expensive at all compared to other handcrafted and highly finished items you see on the international scene. Our prices range from N10, 500 for the smaller items to as high as N650, 000 for the larger skin items.”
Maureen says she enjoys the patronage of both men and women since they have products that cater for both however, since they have a wider range of products for women at the moment; they enjoy more of their patronage.
Be it exclusive services which include bespoke services, limited edition lines, design-your-bag and after sales services or belts, briefcases, wallets, travel bags for men and handbags, wallets, clutch purses, ipad covers, travel accessories for women and more, Maureen says Morin O is the designer to reach.
By the way, if you think Maureen is all about Morin O and no longer into her first love, Lifestrokes, then you guessed wrong. She combines both sufficiently and she has her explanation for this “Lifestrokes is also a creative and arts company and they are related in terms of the countries we visit and the people we interact with so in a sense, you get the opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. Also, we are currently reengineering Lifestrokes to boost its online presence so I can also have time to work on Morin O.” she reveals.
From her transactions with Nigerians, Maureen says Nigerians have a high taste for quality, are very intelligent in their choices even as quality and style means a lot to them. However, she has a piece of advice for you “you must ensure you get value for money therefore, timeless pieces are important because you enjoy the satisfaction of beneficial service and you will always want to go back to where your needs are met satisfactorily.” Maureen advices.
With every business comes it challenges. Maureen shares hers with me “getting people who share the same commitment to finishing and quality to work with us is a challenge. Also, nothing good comes easy or with a low price tag. To get the exposure, setting and machinery to produce items of quality, innovation and high finishing is expensive and access to the right kind of financing sometimes may pose a challenge. Other challenges include infrastructure and power”. An interesting expose I hear you say but Maureen’s final words sums it all up “Morin.O is committed to innovation and quality and we are positioned as a global player in the leather manufacturing sector, creating items that satisfy our client’s needs.”.
KEMI AJUMOBI
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