Threading the Needle: Untapped opportunities in Nigeria’s yarn-making industry

In an ever-busy tailor’s shop in Lagos, a young man leans over a neatly folded stack of fabric. His eyes scan the patterns and textures until they settle on a fabric known locally as Senator. The material has become synonymous with elegance and prestige, a staple in the wardrobes of Nigerian men who aspire to make an impression. As he hands it to the tailor with instructions for a well-fitted agbada, he might not know—or perhaps doesn’t dwell on the fact—that the fabric’s journey began thousands of miles away in the mills of China or Turkey.