Chekwas Okafor (Founder, Onchek) did not follow in his father’s footsteps of trading and importing textiles because, though lucrative, it impacted society less. Instead, the young man pivoted ever so slightly, but significantly.
The mini-documentary below shows how Onchek are using 100% local supply chain to manufacture t-shirts that are made from 100% Nigerian cotton, using 100% Nigerian labour.
Chekwas offers an impressive reminder:
It’s a fine day to remind you that we make very nice plain t-shirts perfect for all your printing needs – company swag, marketing campaigns, giveaways, custom designing.
If you need to print it, we have the shirt for you.
Our prices are better than imported t-shirts from China and India. Quality is much better too. 100% Nigerian Cotton.
I forgot to add that we also now a textile manufacturer— so we make our fabrics ourselves. We can make whatever quality of fabrics you want.
Okafor is convinced that his company is powering a Nigerian textile Renaissance and concludes:
The Nigerian textile Renaissance is here. If what I am doing doesn’t create the maximum amount of jobs, it’s just not interesting to me.