By Gabriel Olawale

Every year, March 8 is set aside as International Women’s Day to recognize the social, economic, cultural, political and groundbreaking achievements of women across the world. The day also marks a call for unity, celebration, reflection, advocacy and action. The 2021 theme ‘Chose to Challenge’ focuses on the need for us all to choose to challenge and call out gender bias and inequality.

In commemoration of this global celebration, Elvaridah, a business development and consulting company focused on providing strategies and solutions to businesses of all sizes has embarked on a campaign tagged #ElvaridahIWDSpotlight to recognize five resilient and tenacious women who have built their businesses against all odds across different business sectors.

These women include Dr Abimbola Banu-Ogundere – Educator and Founder of Kids’ Court School, a renowned world-class elementary school in Lagos Nigeria, Eno Essien – Founder of Rheytrak Limited, a vehicle tracking and recovery company licensed by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Olori Boye-Ajayi – Export Trading Consultant and President, Borderless Trade Network, Abimbola Adebakin  – Founder of Advantage Health Africa, a company rendering technology, products and services to promote access to affordable and quality healthcare across Africa through my.medicines and my.pharmacy, Modupe Anjous – Founder of Rydal Mews Ltd, a real estate and property management company in Lagos providing bespoke solutions to property needs.

Speaking on the campaign, Nkechi Alade – Founder and Principal Business Consultant of Elvaridah stated ‘As we celebrate International Women’s Day, we are excited to recognize and honour 5 outstanding women in business through the #ElvaridahIWDSpotlight Campaign. Their doggedness and grit in building some of Nigeria’s most influential businesses is inspiring and beyond worthy of celebration. From inception, Elvaridah has been an advocate for individuals who are building their businesses from scratch. The #ElvaridahIWDSpotlight women have not only built their businesses from scratch, but they have also succeeded, blazed the trail and have inspiring success stories to tell.’

In her interview, Dr Abimbola Ogundere of Kids’ Court School said ‘The society expects that a female entrepreneur should be seen but not heard, docile, not pushful, quiet and accepting of anything that comes her way.  If you present yourself as a go-getter, assertive and bold, you will be labelled as aggressive and disrespectful or sometimes wicked. People find it difficult to accept a woman who knows what she wants, how she wants and is not willing to settle for anything less than excellent’.

She also added ‘In business, be willing to start small and give it time. Don’t rush the process. One foot in front of the other, one day at a time with intentionality, dedication, diligence and accountability, you will surely get there.’

‘Challenges are everywhere in business, not just for the women. But you determine your response to these challenges. We all know that one major challenge in business –in life is the challenge of the mind. The mind is key to our development as humans. So, work on your mind before you work on your business.’ – Olori Boye-Ajayi, President, Borderless Trade Network.

‘In business, dream and dream very big and believe in yourself. Start small, stay consistent and grow, one step at a time. Celebrate little successes and milestones and learn to clap for yourself. Take charge of what you do, don’t let people dictate for you. There’ll be challenges but don’t allow the challenge to stop the vision. Remember why you started and keep going.’ – Eno Essien, Founder of Rheytrak

‘You are good enough. Yes, acquire new skills, hire the best you can afford, get back up whenever you trip, remain prayerful and thankful for what is on your hand and keep good words in your heart and mouth. However, nothing beats self appreciation! I think if you don’t embrace YOU, you drop the ball and feel unworthy of growth and opportunities that are brought to you. God loves you as you are.’ – Abimbola Adebakin, Founder of Advantage Health Africa

Elvaridah is a business development and consulting company focused on providing strategies and solutions to businesses of all sizes. Elvaridah emphasizes the critical matters and prospects of organizations such as business growth, strategy, planning, marketing, structure, and people management across different industries.