Adaeze’s story: clothing women with confidence

 Adaeze Onu is the Creative Director of Dexy Creation in Lagos, Nigeria. Her business creates clothing that makes women feel confident. She also trains women for careers in design. Our Road to Finance programme supported her to increase her financial literacy skills so that she could access finance for the first time.

“My name is Adaeze Onu. I am the Creative Director of Dexy Creation and the Principal of Dexy Creation Academy. I’m also a social innovator and a certified business mentor.

Dexy Creation makes clothes that allows women to feel confident and have a real identity. Dexy Creation Academy provides training and economic empowerment for women.  

I came into entrepreneurship because I have a deep passion for young girls and women and wanted to channel my creativity. As a child I had extremely low self-esteem because of the poor socio-economic conditions around me. But I began to sketch fashion designs, making use of paper and fabric waste. Through art I was able to improve my self-esteem and express myself. 

Female entrepreneurs in Nigeria face numerous challenges. It’s hard balancing business and family life. It’s also a challenge accessing finance and a lot of women don’t have the confidence to ask for money.  

Joining the Road to Finance programme really transformed my life and business. I found it really interesting. The facilitators were fantastic, and so were all the other women I met there. We learned about loans, grants and equity, interest rates and repayment plans. The program enabled me to totally restructure my business. I am now able to do my bookkeeping perfectly, and have a lot more confidence when it comes to financial matters. 
 
The Road to Finance program enabled me to approach financial institutions and access finance. I had never done that before, but with the increased financial literacy I had developed on the course, I was able to take that risk and it really paid off. I’ve more than doubled my production and boosted revenue. We’re now in a position where we can grow the business further.

The program also helped me on a more personal note. I’ve gained a lot of confidence. Because of this I’ve certified myself as a business mentor, so I can extend my help and advice to others that need it. It feels good to give something back to the community. That’s what the Dexy Creation Academy is for. We train and mentor young women, but we also monitor their progress and follow up with them.  
 
There’s a saying that goes “if you empower a woman, you have empowered the entire community” and I really think that’s true.