By Ayo Onikoyi

A Lagos based Fashion Academy has inducted 21 new graduands on entrepreneurs, Fashion Designing and capacity building.

Princess Kelechi Oghene, the Managing Director (MD) GMYT Fashion Academy while given her remarks advised the new graduands to pick up new identity of a well structured profession.

“Today is not just your induction. Today is the beginning of a new identity.

Many people think they came here to learn fashion.

“You came here to build a future. You came here to develop capacity, discipline, con-fidence, and opportunities that can change your life.

“So as I speak today, listen beyond the words. Because what you do with this season can shape your next ten years,” she said.

According to her, the academy was not built on theory and from my life experience.

The MD said that personally she went through the struggles many creative entrepreneurs faced today.

Oghene also advised the newly graduated students to understand the importance of structure and acquiring the fashion skills.

“I was operating in an industry where many people wanted only fast skills, not deep learning, quick results, not real growth.

“low talented people who wanted fashion on the surface, at not the discipline required to build excellence.

“Because in life everything is designed for results either positive or negative.

“We are not interested in keeping you busy but in helping you grow professionally and that’s why some people come here and become transformed because when structure meets willingness progress becomes inevitable,” she added.

Oghene the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the academy added that over the years the fashion academy has empowered thousands of students for self reliance.

We have seen students start with fear and leave with confidence, seen beginners become professionals, seen learners become employers and that is what happens when people submit to the process,” she said.

Oghene urged the new graduands to structure their knowledge towards achieving set goals and objectives.

According to her, people learn a skill, keep it to themselves, and once they leave, the value leaves with them.

She noted that she experienced betrayal, setbacks, poor systems, and even people working against her vision.

“I worked tirelessly-mornings, nights, weekends, nonstop. Yet the results did not match the effort.

“That is when I learned that effort without systems can become suffering.

“I was working hard but I knew hard work alone was not enough. That journey is one of the reasons I wrote my book Ungrateful Souls -a survival guide for entrepreneurs built from real experiences.

And through it all, I learned something powerful, talent was never the real problem, the real problem is lack of structure, discipline, mentorship, and business thinking,” she said.

The CEO appealed to them not just to train their hands but to transform their mindset positively adding that fashion is bigger than clothes.

“If all you gain here is to get fashion skills, you have missed the bigger picture, because fashion today is bigger than clothes,” she added.