WOMEN MAKERs

A celebrated Nollywood actress, filmmaker, and entrepreneur who has built a powerful career on her own terms. A graduate of industrial relations and personnel management from the University of Lagos, she initially overcame harsh early rejection in the industry before rising to become one of Nollywood's most respected figures. She has since appeared in over 50 productions, including Elevator Baby, Game of Chess, Castle and Castle, and Fractured. Beyond acting, Blessing is the CEO of D'Esparanza Media Production, through which she has produced films such as The Recipient and Dirty Dirtier, stories rooted in real, relatable human experiences. She is also a candid advocate for women's reproductive health, having spoken publicly about her personal experience with endometriosis and infertility. With 759,000 Instagram followers and a growing YouTube channel (The Nzes) co-hosted with husband Stan Nze, she uses her platform to inspire authenticity, faith, and purpose.

A cultural strategist, creative economy leader, and the convener and founder of Women in the Arts (WIA), one of Nigeria's most influential advocacy collectives for female creatives in film, media, and the arts. Through WIA, Brenda is on a mission to create space for layered, multidimensional portrayals of women in storytelling and to build a future where female creatives shape narratives entirely on their own terms. Her flagship initiative, F.R.A.M.E. (Female Representation & Advancement in Media), launched at the Nigerian Film & TV Summit in August 2025 and is co-presented with award-winning filmmaker Biodun Stephen. F.R.A.M.E. is a pioneering incubator and accelerator program designed to equip emerging and established female storytellers in Nollywood with mentorship, training, funding pathways, and hands-on production resources. In September 2025, WIA debuted a Residency Workshop at the Africa Creative Market in partnership with the Forum for Women in Film and Television (FWIFT) Nigeria, co-chaired by Joke Silva. Brenda's work is reshaping the creative economy from the inside, dismantling limiting stereotypes, shattering glass ceilings, and rewriting the narrative of what African cinema can become.

Founder and CEO of Firewood Rice Nigeria, popularly known as Firewood Jollof, one of Nigeria's most beloved culinary brands. A geography and regional planning graduate of the University of Lagos, Chizoma was working in corporate employment when a seemingly ordinary office birthday gathering sparked a business idea. She noticed that the jollof rice being served had lost the distinct smoky, earthy taste of wood-cooked heritage food and decided to do something about it. In May 2016, she launched Firewood Jollof with her mother and sister. What began as a family recipe has grown into a 120-person operation, a household name at events like the GTB Food and Drink Fair and the Knorr Jollof Festival, and a movement to preserve Nigeria's culinary heritage. In November 2024, she hosted the inaugural Firewood Jollof Festival at Muri Okunola Park, Lagos, drawing 10,000 attendees. The 2025 edition, themed 'Unifying African Jollof', targeted over 20,000 and introduced a cross-continental 'West African Jollof' featuring ingredients from Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal, and Kenya. Headline sponsors have included Access Bank, MTN, and Nestlé. Chizoma's work sits at the crossroads of food entrepreneurship, cultural preservation, and tourism.

A trailblazing travel industry leader, filmmaker, and entrepreneur sitting at the intersection of mobility, technology, and storytelling. She is the founder and CEO of Voyage Quest Travels, a company built to solve the fragmented, frustrating experience of corporate and cross-border travel in Africa, and Switch Visuals Productions, a Lagos-based film and media company. Damilola began her career managing complex corporate and sporting travel logistics, where she identified systemic gaps in how African travellers navigate multi-city and international journeys. She built Voyage Quest to solve those gaps with technology-driven, luxury-standard solutions. Switch Visuals started in music videos and commercials before making its Nollywood debut in 2025 with the star-studded film A Weekend Fiasco (featuring Ini Edo, Alex Ekubo, and Odunlade Adekola). Currently in production is EVI, a female-led Afrobeats drama co-produced with Judith Audu Productions and backed by CcHub, Africa No Filter, and the Gates Foundation, set for release in Q2 2026. A passionate advocate for women founders in male-dominated sectors, Damilola is redefining what African entrepreneurship looks like from Lagos to the world.

A powerhouse in African fintech marketing, Eneyi brings over a decade of experience driving brand growth through data-driven strategy and compelling storytelling. As CMO of Risevest, she sits at the forefront of building trust, scaling innovation, and shaping how financial platforms connect with a global audience. Recognised as one of the Top 109 Female Strategists to Watch by Group Think UK, her leadership represents more than marketing excellence. It represents influence, inclusion, and impact. Beyond boardrooms and campaigns, she is deeply committed to empowering women in tech, championing inclusive leadership, and advancing financial literacy across Africa. She brings insight, clarity and perspective as someone who understands both numbers and narrative.

Architect-turned-luxury-crochet artist behind Hooked by Lade, one of Nigeria's most viral and beloved artisan brands. A graduate of architecture from the Federal University of Technology, Akure, she learned to crochet at age nine and rekindled that childhood passion during her NYSC year. She launched Hooked by Lade in March 2021, applying her architectural eye for precision and form to craft exquisite handmade bags, dresses, tops, and accessories. The brand quickly took social media by storm, amassing over a million followers across platforms and building a devoted fanbase nicknamed 'The Hookies'. Lade has showcased at the Houston Fashion Fair, dressed prominent Nigerian celebrities, and has been a consistent symbol of the power of craft entrepreneurship in Africa. She is on a deliberate mission to reposition crochet as a respectable, high-value art form — elevating the skill of women artisans and proving that homegrown craftsmanship can compete on the global stage.

Media personality, fashion influencer, and a woman building her brand with intention.

A seasoned marketing and commercial banking professional with over a decade of experience building and scaling high-performance teams across some of Nigeria's and Africa's most dynamic organisations. Currently serving as Head of Commercial Banking at Optimus Bank, a tech-forward national bank licensed by the Central Bank of Nigeria, Oyinade has played a pivotal role in the bank's commercial growth journey. She holds a BSc from Lagos State University and an MSc in Media and Communication from Pan-Atlantic University. Her career spans brand management, corporate communications, and commercial strategy, with prior roles at Moove, Green Africa Airways, Uber, Philip Morris International, Diageo, and advertising agencies Doyle Dane Bernbach and SO&U. At Optimus Bank, she previously served as Head of Corporate Communications, helping to define and amplify the bank's identity as a disruptive challenger brand. She was recently named to the Gerety Awards 2026 Global Executive Jury, one of advertising and marketing's most prestigious international honour rolls. A sharp strategic mind with deep roots in brand creativity and commercial execution, Oyinade represents the convergence of financial services and marketing excellence.

A a Nigerian-Austrian entrepreneur, model, author and the founder and creative director of Ziva Lagos, a ready-to-wear fashion brand built for the modern African woman. Born in Lagos to an Austrian father and Nigerian mother, Tania studied in the United States before returning to Lagos in 2013 with a vision: to bring accessible, affordable, and stylish fashion to African women who had few ready-to-wear options. After several early attempts, she launched Ziva Lagos in December 2016, designing and producing all garments locally with a team of Nigerian tailors, designers, and illustrators. The brand opened its first physical store in Lekki in 2017 and has since shown at Arise Africa Fashion Week, UNESCO Paris, Dubai Expo 2020, and the Elite Model Look Africa runway. In 2018, Tania was listed on Forbes Africa's 30 Under 30 for creatives. She later expanded into children's fashion and retail with Ziva Kids, and in 2023 published her debut children's book Sarai's Culture Day, a story about heritage, identity, and resilience for children of mixed backgrounds. She is also the founder of The Growth Forum Africa and has partnered with global brands including Coca-Cola, Samsung, Fenty Beauty, Michael Kors, and Estée Lauder. A featured cast member on Real Housewives of Lagos Season 2, Tania is also a candid advocate for endometriosis awareness.

Marketing manager of Lush Hair Nigeria, one of the country's leading premium hair extension and beauty brands under The Tolaram Group. A seasoned marketing professional, Vivian brings over a decade of brand strategy experience from her time at X3M Ideas, where she rose to Deputy Director of Brand Management, overseeing accounts across telecom, FMCG, pharma, banking, and beauty sectors. At Lush Hair, she has been central to several landmark brand moments: the launch of Lush Nova at Lagos Fashion Week 2025 (with Hilda Baci and Rachael Okonkwo on the runway), the signing of Funke Akindele and Real Warri Pikin as brand ambassadors, and the 'Pink My Salon' CSR initiative, which transforms the salons of underserved stylists across Nigeria. An alumna of Babcock University and Pan-Atlantic University (MSc, Media and Communications), Vivian is also a co-founder of Club X International, through which she planned youth outreaches and empowerment programmes across Africa, the UK, and beyond. She is deeply committed to the idea that beauty is for everyone regardless of background or location.

One of Nollywood's most celebrated costume designers and creative producers — a Chemical Engineering graduate whose passion for fashion overrode her original career path and led her to shape the visual identity of some of Nigeria's most iconic films. She is the Founder of The Rani Company, a leading costume design and styling firm, and The Wardrobe Shack, a costume rental house for large-scale film and television productions. Yolanda began her career in 2009 styling celebrities for red-carpet events, quickly building a clientele that included Rita Dominic, Kate Henshaw, and Nse Ikpe-Etim. Her debut film project was Rita Dominic's The Meeting (2012), and she has since worked on Netflix's Blood Sisters and Òlòtūré, The Wedding Party, King of Boys, La Femme Anjola, House of Ga'a, and Everybody Loves Jenifa, among many others. Her extensive credits earned her nominations at the AMVCA and AMAA, and she won Best Fashion Collaboration Film at FAME Week Africa (2024) and Best Costume Designer at the 2025 Toronto International Nollywood Film Festival for Asoebi Diaries. She was also named Nollywood's highest-grossing costume designer in 2024. Beyond designing, Yolanda mentors the next generation of costume artists, building a legacy of craft, precision, and cultural storytelling through cloth.