Ugo Udezue, founding father of AFA Sports activities
After a profession within the US as an agent for a few of the prime NBA gamers, Ugo Udezue moved again to Nigeria to finally discovered the sports activities and informal put on firm AFA Sports activities, brief for 'Africa for Africans'. He talks to James Torvaney available on the market dynamics within the native sportswear trade, the corporate's advertising and marketing and sponsorship technique, and why it was important to realize a foothold in Nigeria earlier than increasing overseas.
You initially moved again to Nigeria to begin a basketball league. How did that come about?
I’ve all the time been keen about sports activities, particularly basketball. I moved from Nigeria to the US in 1996 on a basketball scholarship and performed school basketball in addition to for the Nigerian nationwide workforce. I labored at BDA Sports activities Administration for about 17 years, the place I acted as an agent for a few of the prime NBA gamers.
I moved again to Nigeria in 2016 as a result of I needed to construct some sort of legacy. I had the imaginative and prescient to begin an African basketball league (Udezue based and nonetheless runs the Continental Basketball League, with taking part groups from Nigeria, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Ivory Coast, Benin and Togo). I didn't know something about clothes manufacturing on the time.
So when did you determine to get into sportswear and begin AFA Sports activities?
I attempted to get clothes sponsorship for the competitors, however nobody would hearken to me – they instructed me they didn't see Africa as a viable market. We wanted a model that’s native, to strengthen the native sports activities pipeline, so I assumed, “Why not simply begin our personal model?”
That’s the reason AFA Sports activities began with 'moisture-resistant' basketballs. After we began the basketball league, we observed that there have been a whole lot of turnovers (gamers dropping the ball to the opponent earlier than that they had an opportunity to shoot). The balls had been too slippery as a result of they had been designed for air-conditioned gyms and never for the new, humid environments of Africa. I went to China and designed and manufactured moisture-resistant basketballs that might take in sweat. We instantly witnessed much less turnover on account of the brand new balls.
The subsequent factor we checked out was sneakers. Many African basketball gamers have flat toes and conventional basketball sneakers don’t match them nicely. So we designed one thing for flat-footed athletes, and everybody beloved it. From there we continued to construct the AFA Sports activities model.
We had been fairly naive then. We knew nothing about design, warehousing or provide chain; we simply began researching on-line. It was fully natural. If I had identified then how a lot work it could be, and what number of buddies and alternatives I might lose, I might need been too afraid to leap off the cliff!
How would you describe the AFA Sports activities model?
Our aim is to construct a model that creates good emotions – amongst folks inside and out of doors Nigeria. I need folks to see our emblem and our model and assume, 'I need to be a part of that.' That's why our slogan is: “That is ours!”
The model itself is younger and vibrant, however we attempt to enchantment to folks from throughout the market. Our goal group could be very numerous – from 18 to 40 years outdated. We need to provide merchandise for everybody, from on a regular basis fundamentals to the upper finish of the market.
AFA Sports activities produces a variety of clothes.
Do you assume there’s a viable marketplace for high-end sports activities and informal put on in Nigeria?
The rationale you don't see many worldwide manufacturers in Africa is that there are misconceptions in regards to the goal market and the quantity of people that can afford these kind of merchandise, in addition to the large second-hand clothes market.
There’s a normal lack of information. For those who go by the official info, you’d assume there isn’t any potential market. However all of Africa is underserved. Many sports activities manufacturers depend on their workplaces in Dubai to serve the entire of Africa. The Nigerian market specifically is an anomaly: when you’re right here you’ll be able to see how a lot champagne is being consumed, how many individuals are utilizing iPhones. There are untapped alternatives.
What’s your retail and distribution technique? How necessary are on-line channels for AFA Sports activities?
We presently have devoted AFA Sports activities shops in Lagos – Lekki and FESTAC City – and Abuja. We additionally promote in Spar supermarkets nationwide and are investing in much more shops, together with in Ikeja and Surulere.
About 40% of our turnover comes on-line – through our web site, social media, and many others. Ideally, we need to deliver this to 80%. For us, digital is the best alternative. We now dwell in a society the place prospects anticipate to order and obtain issues instantly. How many individuals in Lagos need to wait in visitors to go to a retailer and purchase an merchandise of clothes?
That's why we've labored with various digital entrepreneurs on our provide chain in order that prospects can order by the web site and have their garments delivered to Lagos the identical day or on the newest the following day.
I believe we are going to see the web buying and selling house in Nigeria explode within the subsequent three to 4 years.
However it's not simply Nigeria, proper? Do you additionally promote internationally?
We ship to roughly 10 nations. We work with achievement facilities in Europe and the US to succeed in extra prospects.
There are huge alternatives for the diaspora. About two in 5 black folks in the US are Nigerian or have Nigerian ancestry. It’s not solely an enormous demographic group, but in addition very highly effective economically.
However we don't simply restrict ourselves to the Nigerian diaspora. Anybody who’s Africa-conscious, who understands African heritage, is a possible buyer. Proper now, Nigeria is driving cultural change all through the black neighborhood. We need to be a part of this African renaissance that’s presently taking place everywhere in the world.
How completely different is it working within the US in comparison with Nigeria?
It's a complete change in mentality, a very completely different perspective. In Nigeria we’re the market chief, essentially the most seen model and we are able to decide the developments ourselves. In the US we can not compete with the biggest gamers. We’ve got recognized our area of interest and we’re sticking to it.
Do you assume it was obligatory to construct a following in Nigeria first earlier than going worldwide?
Actually! Authenticity is vital – coming from Africa, being African. For those who take a look at music, it's the homegrown artists like Burna Boy who’re doing nicely and promoting out enormous arenas.
If we had began in the US and expanded to Africa, we wouldn't have had that authenticity. We’d simply be one other model. We first needed to realize a robust place within the Nigerian market.
A yr in the past I couldn’t have afforded to have the Nigerian processes operating on autopilot, however now they’re operational and the Nigerian operation is a well-oiled machine. We consider that now could be the best time to go away the continent.
An AFA Sports activities outlet.
AFA Sports activities sponsored the Nigerian males's and ladies's basketball groups, and had been additionally the official outfitters for the Nigerian Olympic workforce on the 2021 Tokyo Video games. How do these sponsorships align along with your progress technique?
Like I stated, it's crucial for us to be genuine, and one in all our core goals is to be an enormous a part of the African grassroots sports activities scene. That’s the reason we sponsor native groups and occasions. We need to take over the sports activities trade in Africa in order that we could be current in all places – not simply in basketball, but in addition in soccer, cricket and different sports activities.
It was an necessary step to be the primary African model to equip an Olympic workforce, however I don't assume we captured even 1% of the full sponsorship alternatives.
What are a few of the developments you’ve gotten seen within the sportswear trade in Nigeria, and Africa on the whole?
The marketplace for sportswear is definitely nonetheless comparatively small; informal put on is our largest market. It’s a main progress market in Africa. We’ve got our personal line we name Afrileisure – it's our tackle conventional African clothes that’s extra breathable, simpler to take care of and that you could take to the health club.
Globally, enterprise is turning into more and more casual. Even in Nigeria. The model actually turned large through the Covid lockdown, when folks now not needed to go to the workplace. Earlier than the lockdown, nobody thought it was a good suggestion to provide garments domestically.
One other factor that’s completely different in regards to the Nigerian markets is that almost all of our prospects are males, even when they purchase garments for ladies. That is completely different from developed markets the place girls spend extra on clothes. The ladies's clothes market in Nigeria is kind of complicated – we nonetheless don't absolutely perceive it.
The place are your merchandise made?
Every part we promote, we design and produce in Nigeria. We’ve got a number of factories, and it’s a mixture of mechanized manufacturing and guide manufacturing. Earlier than I began AFA Sports activities, I had by no means achieved manufacturing. It took a workforce of six folks about six months of experimentation to know how the manufacturing would work.
At one level we had over 30 full-time staff and 500 tailors. Now we’re a lot leaner and more practical: we have now about ten staff and have outsourced many actions.
Spotlight a few of the largest challenges you’ve gotten confronted.
Human Assets. Discovering the best folks and creating the best chemistry is tough. Particularly in case you are a start-up and also you miss the skilled buildings or comfy lifetime of the large corporations. Individuals typically choose to decide on the oil and fuel trade, or multinationals or banks. Startups are a whole lot of work and it may be very tough to get folks to see your imaginative and prescient.
How is AFA Sports activities financed? Have you ever raised cash from exterior buyers?
All our financing is inner. We’ve got been given alternatives, however we’re cautious about who we work with. Not solely are we in search of financing, however we’re additionally in search of companions who may also help us develop globally. We could be sustainable with out financing, however hoping to lift cash rapidly, which is able to enable us to develop quicker.
What are your plans for the long run?
Our imaginative and prescient is larger than simply promoting garments and sneakers. Our imaginative and prescient tasks a unique picture of Nigeria and Africa. We need to be the biggest sports activities model in Africa.
I see exponential progress within the coming years. Thus far we have now grown very rigorously. We’ve got by no means proven promoting on tv or billboards. Every part has been phrase of mouth. I used to be involved about whether or not our provide chain may cope. The subsequent ten years will probably be enormous. We've solely scratched the floor.
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