I used to drive past Fola Osibo, and the huge building will be catching my attention which made me keen on exploring this huge edifice
My interest was driven not because of the beauty of the building, but by the business it housed. I had once owned a salon in slimy Bariga and had the pedicure and manicure service
Nobody came. I struggled and struggled nobody came, and then one day, my barber won Baba Ijebu and left me. I had to sell all the equipment, bought a table tennis board, and donated it to the youths of Adeshina Street in Bariga
So here was this huge business taking up a prime position in highbrow lekki and doing phenomenally well.
I was interested. I was intrigued and wanted to know more. So I worked my contacts and ended up in front of Tola.
Tola is an elegant and sweetly beautiful lady. She spoke sparingly and chose her words. She was first apprehensive of this chatterbox who was asking her so many questions about her business but later warmed up and opened up
The business started in a kiosk at unilag. It was tedious hard and laborious. The errant young girls who pretended to study in that school were her first customers
But she knew she was going to go places with this business. She had a passion for nails and fingers, and they drove her burning desire to deliver first-class services and emerge top in the class.
Slowly, the market started reacting. Her business grew, and before you realize it, she had moved to the island first to Road 14 and then to the present palatial location on Fola Osibo in Lekki.
A yaba location on the serene Montgomery Road still services her pioneer market who can’t seem to get enough of her services
You should come to see the Fola Osibo enclave. The ambiance reminds you of a posh Salon once visited in the emirates.
A courteous staff first greets you and you are offered an assortment of drinks and freshly made snacks
This scared me because I felt it would impact the prices. I shdnt have worried.
Divided into the VVIP, which has super-exclusive treatment offerings and the VIP where I did mine and then the downstairs parlor, the Arcade can take over 40 finicky, posh clients at the same time.
It’s quite impressive. As I seat on the chair, the automatic chair massaging my tired back and the whirlpool swooshing over my legs as the courteous young lady battle with my very stubborn shomolu nails, I once again wonder about her humble beginnings
Did you ever have any doubt in your mind that you would grow this large? She looked at me with a smile, Duke I didn’t quaver.
I didn’t care if I grew or not. I just loved making people beautiful. The sight of well-made nails and the exotic toenails was all I lived for, she said, as she threw a smile of satisfaction.
That assertion is tied very critically with my own thought processes of being yourself, doing what you love, and filling a gap in society as the main push for self-actualization
So what stands you out, I asked?
Attention to detail she echoed.
Yes, the slightest cuticle is thoroughly examined and the perfectly curated service platforms which stand against the very best in the world, especially in their neatness remain a key selling point, especially in its neatness remains a key selling point
As I drive off, I look back at the dream of a young girl who that evening in Unilag as she shut down her tiny kiosk after a long and hard day of work would have said to herself- one day The Duke will be my client.
Today, she has more than surpassed all of her expectations, counting top celebrities and very prominent Nigerians, including First Ladies and major economic titans as her clients.
A truly inspiring story worth being retold.
*Meet Nail Arcade at Babakekere on the 15th, 16th of April and also at the Command Performance on the 2nd of May, 2022
