About Us
BACKGROUND
Our story began in 1969 in Dada Victoria’s shop at 44 Azikiwe road Aba, opposite saint Joseph Catholic church. There Mr. Uche Njoku the founder of Ngolongolo Couture mastered the micro skills of tailoring and design.
At the early age of 8, he was already adept at measurement and at 11, he was versed at using the manual sewing machine. This was how the journey began.
Fast forward to the late 80s the first form of what is now Ngolongolo took shape as Jocasic clothing where Mr. Uche used his skills in distribution and marketing to sell clothes and accessories commercially in Aba sharing a shop space with the late Honorable Ossy Prestige.
From that point he got contracted by Mr. Ifeanyi Amokachi to manage Sunfen fashion with more than 100 employees at Area 10 shopping complex, Abuja.
These experiences will contribute to his knowledge of people and supply chain management.
While he was working on his fashion business, Mr. Uche was also building his professional football career, playing for Enyimba fielders at the time where he was called to camp for the national sports festival. Eventually, he would join the Eagles Men team alongside Wilson Oruma and other popular footballers to train
for Japan ’93. Mr. Uche was picked by his manager to travel to France in 1995 where he played for a short while before moving to Ladispoli in Italy, here he met Bismarck Ogbuji, the first Nigerian player to play professional football in Italy. Mr. Uche played professional football for a while before retiring and returning to
fashion full-time.
In Italy, he worked with Kalo Pinateri as a line finisher. This further allowed him to master the various soft skills of fashion design and line management and exposed him to various big fashion brands and experiences as his company planned for Milan fashion week side by side with companies like Giorgio Armani, Prada, Missoni, and Salvatore Ferragamo. It did not take too long before his entrepreneurial spirit kicked in and he executed the idea of purchasing design samples in large quantities from brands, what they called ‘campione’ in Italy, and he retailored them and sold them to his African friends. This enterprise got so large that he hired Italian tailors and rented out a space to run this operation from. From doing this, he started his own production line making his own designs and selling them to his clients.
He would soon explore the rest of Europe, traveling to Germany, Spain, and the Netherlands in the process and finally settling down in London. At this point, he decided to start a family which eventually led him to return to Nigeria.
Ngolongolo couture was started in Lagos state with one sewing machine and it kept growing from strength to strength.
In 2015, Ngolongolo Couture Limited was incorporated as a Limited liability company with the Corporate Affairs Commission and has continued to run its operations.
REDEFINING FASHION
Since then, Ngolongolo has been redefining fashion, creating outfits for the top 10% of fashion lovers within the African market. We deploy our skills in Italian design process blending it with our knowledge of the African fashion landscape to create stunning outfits that are both trendy, revolutionary, and timeless.
We have built expertise over the years that allows us to churn out designs after designs that our clients love and have positioned us as a beloved brand with our fame going beyond the shores of the African continent.
THE COUTURE PROCESS
At Ngolongolo, we take great pride in making our clients stand out therefore we go the extra mile to ensure that our outfits are uniquely tailored to their body fit and are aesthetically pleasing to the eye.
Our Couture Process starts with consultation.
A client visits our location to talk our head designer. At the consultation phase, you share with us exactly what you want while we show you internally designed samples of what is possible.
Fabric selection
We go to extreme lengths to stock the finest materials from around the world, giving you a wide selection of rich fabrics. We collaborate with you from the very first moment to bring your vision to life using the finest materials and accessories.
Bespoke Measurement
Once you have successfully communicated what you want and we’ve gotten it registered, a skilled couturier takes a fitting measurement with precise attention to body details which is logged on our digital system that is backed up to the cloud, so we never lose your measurement.
Precision tailoring
Next, we get your outfit tailored. Our highly skilled team of seamsters work on your outfit from pattern cutting and fitting confirmation to fabric sewing and embroidery, depending on the selected design. We endeavor to strike a delicate balance between speed of delivery and design customization which has made us very dependable.
Final fitting
Once your clothe is done, we invite you in for the final fitting. Our team makes sure that the outfit sits perfectly on your body and fits like a glove while giving you the ultimate freedom of mobility.
The Future
Looking into the future, we are laying the foundation for a multi-generational fashion empire. Using the 3Ps of business, people, process, and products, we are innovating daily to offer better services to the marketplace.
Join Us. Let’s build the future of fashion together.