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Why I Went Into Fashion Business – LAGOS Designer, AWE TOMISIN



Awe Tomisin Florence is a young vibrant fashion designer and stylist. She founded Top Line Closet, a new brand on the lips of every young Nigerian. Coupled with her vast knowledge of design, she is an expert in identifying quality fabrics and processing them. Being an employee for the new Cowry Bus scheme in Lagos, Tomisin has successfully kept her business alive without allowing any adverse side effects on her job. Owing to her outstanding works, Tomisin recently won an award and was recognised by the South West Advancement Award held some weeks ago in Lagos. At the event, reporter, DAMILOLA AKANDE caught up with this remarkable woman.

She talked about how she had kept her business moving, she also shared what inspired her passion for fashion and where Top Line Closet is going in years to come.

Read excerpts.

 

Can you take us through your educational journey?

I had my primary education here in Lagos, I finished secondary school in 2010 and then went to Crown Polytechnic for my National Diploma (ND) Programme. After that, I proceeded to Ondo State Science and Technology, Okiti-Pupa, where I studied Industrial Mathematics.

I bagged my Bachelor’s degree in that course in 2019 and went on for my Youth Service in 2020.

After my youth service, I had to go into my business, although I started rough, but I had to push along by launching it in September 2021.

Being a graduate of Industrial Mathematics, what inspired you to go into fashion designing?

I have had a passion for styling since my youth. I started by selling clothes, I bought and resold clothes. One day, it dawned on me that I could actually have my own brand.

This was because I know quality when I see one, I also realised that I had pleasure in styling and designing. With this, I had that turning point in 2021 and worked more on my brand Top Line Closet. Top Line Closet has been existing since the time I was buying to resell and style for people. Looking at international brands such as Fendi, Gucci and others, I realised that they have a name and they started from somewhere. This helped my belief that if I started somewhere, I could get to the top. So, I officially started my brand. I started with T-shirts, joggers and hoodies. The feedback I got was promising since I deal with only quality materials. This feedback kept me going coupled with the support I got from my parents, siblings, work colleagues and boss.

What does your regular job entail?

For my regular job, I work with Touch and Pay Company that deals with Cowry Bus Transportation. We are in charge of producing and validating cowry cards. I am grateful to them for giving me the space to also do my business. Not all companies allow that and I would say a big thanks to my boss.

Do you get involved with the processing of your fabrics before you design them?

Yes, I do. I actually got contact with someone who imports these materials. Once I create a design, I send it to them, telling them what I expect of the fabric in terms of its components. They work on my order and send it over. I have my label tags and brands on my clothes. I am just praying that one day, Top Line Closet will be everywhere and people can proudly wear my brand.

Since you ventured into this line of business, what challenges have you scaled?

We face a lot of challenges because it is not easy. I stay up very late to create designs, which means less sleep. Sometimes, I get deadlines that may be hard to beat and express works that may come with loopholes. A client may request a dress with 2 days as the deadline, what do you do about the ones you were working on? In this business, you meet different clients with different options. In the bid not to lose customers, we had to work on logical strategies to work with customers.

With all of these challenges,. I still see myself owning a big store with a big factory. Right now, we have customers who resell our brand. I see us bigger than Fendi in the nearest future.

How do you juggle your regular job with fashion designing?

The company I work with has made it a little bit easier for me. There are times I get home very late even with the Lagos traffic. So, it doesn’t matter the time I get home, I will still do my business because it is a part of my goals in life. I cannot let it go.

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