5 minutes with ola-oluwa ebiti

Meet ola-oluwa ebiti, celebrity men’s wear stylist extraordinaire and an innate fashion lover who you’ll likely be hearing a lot more about in the next year or two. after getting his start at Wallpaper Magazine, ola’s freelance career took off as a stylist to some of the biggest names in entertainment. now, he bounces between styling for clients and editorial shoots. Recently he had a chat with Konye Chelsea nwabogor where he talks about his foray into fashion and his focus on menswear styling

At what point did you know fashion and style was going to be a part of your career path?

I have always enjoyed consuming fashion and culture from a young age. I would always ask my parents and my aunt to buy magazines for me whenever they travelled out of Nigeria. I still have all those stacks of magazines at my parent’s house till date. But it wasn’t until I was doing my A-levels and after a year of studying Economic and Business, that I had the courage to tell my parents I wanted to pursue a fashion course for my university degree. I went ahead to study Fashion Communication and came out with a First Class, which made them very proud, so I think it all worked out in the end.

So how exactly did you get started?

I started out interning like most people. My first internship was in the London office of the Nigerian magazine FAB back then. I think I only lasted a few weeks before I moved on to Marie Claire Magazine, and then on to The Times London Newspaper (Fashion Desk) and The Guardian newspaper (Fashion Desk) before I worked at Wallpaper Magazine for about a year. And then after that I went freelance assisting other bigger stylists and then moved on to styling on my own.

Why the focus on menswear styling?

Firstly, I really appreciate a well-dressed man. Nothing to me is so self-assured as men who are well dressed and look really comfortable in their outfit. Secondly the landscape for menswear is also changing. I feel like before there was a general way for a “man” to dress, but now there are so many ways men choose to express themselves. My styling is based on tailoring. My main aim is to soften tailoring a little and make it approachable to people my age and the younger generation.

Tell us about the highs and lows in your career so far as a stylist?

A high for me is being on set and seeing all the work and research come together. Especially if the vision is mine. A low for me is everything else that has to do with all the work after the shoot: the returns, sorting out credits and all the rest of the admin stuff. I recently worked with another stylist on the cover of ID with Solange Knowles. That was a good high. I also recently worked with a big Hollywood director, which I can’t disclose just yet, but that was also really exciting.

Where do you draw your fashion inspiration from?

Inspiration is drawn from everywhere really, but for visual mapping I look at a lot of art, especially by African and African American artists. I also research a lot into my family and their lives through stories and photographs. This really informs my way of taking our Nigerian heritage and putting it in a contemporary way.

How would you describe your style?

My style is comfortable with a lot of tailoring pieces. I love a good 70’s tailored trousers, which is very forgiving on my body shape. But when I’m working on set, I really must be comfortable because the days are long and there is a lot of running around, so a pair of jeans and white tee shirt is perfect. Sometimes, I might put on a blazer and some nice sneakers if it’s with a high profile client just to look presentable. When I’m out and about I like to be understated but fashionable. In London I love a nice coat with a shirt and some tailored trousers. I also love mixing unusual colours for outfits like beige and navy or mustard and dark green. Who are your style muses?

For menswear I would have to say Fela, Prince and perhaps Donald Glover. For women’s wear, I would have to say Solange. What do you think of the Nigerian fashion scene at the moment? Especially when compared to the rest of the world?

I think we have a lot of strong talents in Nigeria. Considering the struggles associated with being creative in Nigeria and challenges thrown at you. It really is remarkable that creatives find ways to prevail and be equal contenders to other fashion cities, which don’t have those struggles. I also believe there is so much untapped potential with our textile, craft and even the vision of narrative that can come out of Nigeria. We just need to do a good job of encouraging the Nigerian creative to go out and seek these heights.

Personally i think that fashion, especially due to the rise of social media, has become rather homogeneous. No matter where you are in the world people are starting to dress the same and losing their own personal sense of style. What do you think of the current state of fashion?

I think the Internet and social media has certainly made fashion more accessible, which in turn, almost makes everything look the same. But I am a firm believer in true talent. True talent and true style will always shine regardless of the situation. Fisayo Longe from ‘Mirror Me’ is a good example of that when looking at the Nigerian fashion blogging space.

What are some of your predictions on where fashion is headed?

I think we are headed towards a point where things will become too much. At the moment there is too much of everything: too many clothes, too many magazines, too many brands. It will reach a point of fatigue. Some will fall and some will survive. Taste will change and people will be longing for something else.

What are some of the things you love and hate about the industry?

I really love working with talented people who see things differently from you. It changes your view and how you see things. I also love having the opportunity to travel. I don’t like the how labour intensive it can be and often the logistic of organizing things. People often think the clothes just appear from thin air but the clothes come from different showrooms and brands and there are so many people after the samples you want. So organizing that can get really hectic at times Tell me what a typical workday looks like for you?

When things are busy it’s anything from prepping with my assistant or fitting with clients or meeting photographers or designers on commissioned work. The days are really long often from 8am - 10pm putting all these appointments and meetings together, because there is usually an event to attend to maintain those relationships with colleagues. When things are quiet I like to go out of London to Oxford to clear my head and research. If you could work with only 3 creatives (past or present) who would it be and why

Fela: Because his music was very empowering to the people and his use of clothing both on him and his dancers was something that went hand in hand with the message he was trying to convey through his music.

Donald Glover: He is someone in the present day I see my work being actualised in.

Lynette Yiadom-Boakye: I love her paintings of black men at leisure and would love just to add a fashion element to them. But really they are perfect just as they are.

What advice do you have for emerging designers or stylists that are looking to break into the fashion industry?

For any one starting out, my advice it to intern as much as you can so as to learn from people who’s work you really like or admire. Eventually you will get the confidence to start out on your own. Make sure you learn and keep your self-open to everything that might come your way.