Top 10 Fashion Designers in Nigeria

There are many top fashion designers in Nigeria that have built their brands and used their skills in promoting the country’s culture to the world. These top Nigerian fashion designers do not only create acceptable designs locally but are also recognized internationally.

All thanks to these extraordinary fashion designers, the Nigerian fashion industry can boast about being one of the most promising in the fashion world.

Today, we will be showing you the best 10 out of these top fashion designers in Nigeria with their various achievements and personalities in no order of priority. Read Also: 10 Top Fashion Blogs in Nigeria(Updated)

Top 10 Fashion Designers in Nigeria

1. Deola Sagoe

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Deola is currently one of the top fashion designers in Nigeria. Since she ventured into the fashion world in 1989, she has gathered popularity among local and international figures including Will Smith, Oprah Winfrey, and so on.

She always displays her talent and skills in creating colorful and vibrant designs. The Nigerian fashion designer who has a master’s degree in finance and management rose into stardom by designing a colorful piece for her mother. Many love the design and since then she has designed a lot of beautiful dresses, menswear, polo, jeans, and so on for different customers and brands.

Deola Sagoe is also a multiple award-winning fashion designer (including the Anglo-Gold African fashion design award which she won in 2000). She also owned a fashion brand, House of Deola Sagoe under which all work gets designed and distributed.

2. Folake Akindele Coker

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When mentioning word-class and top-rated fashion designers in Nigeria, Folake Akindele Coker would be a part. The fashionista has over 20 years of experience in the fashion industry. Even though she was a lawyer with a master’s degree in petroleum, she has created and showcased excellent designs to the world as well as breaking new grounds.

She owned a Tiffany Amber brand fashion in Lagos where she was born. She has won different awards including 2009 African fashion week designers of the year, Arise Magazine fashion brand of the year, and so on. She is also thought to be the first African fashion designer to win the New York Fashion Week for 2 years in a row.

3. Duro Ojowu

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He’s also an award-winning fashion designer who was born and raised in Lagos. He later left the country to study at the age of 16. The London-based Nigerian fashion designer is also a graduate of law at the University of Kent.

Duro Ojowu Is focused majorly on styling and designing women’s wear revealing rich textures and mixed colors in his designs.

He launched his first brand in 2004 which sold all over the world. Since then he has attracted many local and international fans including Apfel, Solange Kolawole, Michael Obama, and so on. Some of his awards include the 2005 British and American Vogue Dress of the year, the African Fashion Award as the Best International Designer, and so on.

4. Zizi Cardow

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Zizi Cardow is the owner of the Zizi fashion label. She is an award-winning as well as a mentor to other designers. She is also one of the fashion Designers in Nigeria with international appeal.

She became popular in 2006 after her fashion show which she titled Jungle Renaissance. Since then she has designed and styled different types of traditional Ankara prints in Lagos for women. Her work has been featured on many media both local and international ranging from CNN to FTV to SABC to Channel OI and so on.

5. Ohimai Atafo

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Ohimai Atafo is one of the popular fashion designers in Nigeria. He was born and raised in Osun State even though he later relocated to the UK where he had his master’s degree.

Apart from his unique talent and different amazing designs, he has won a lot of awards. This is including the 2015 Heineken Lagos Fashion Designer of the Year, 2009 Hottest New Male Designer, Mode Men Fashion Designer of the Year Award, and so on.

He owns a clothing brand, Bespoke fashion Design which he established in 2007. He has also styled a lot of Nigerian celebrities including Banky W, Omawumi.

6. Frank Oshodi

Since 1989 that Frank Oshodi ventured into the fashion world, he has been able to carve a niche for himself successfully. He is currently one of the top fashion designers in Nigeria with over 25 years of experience in the industry.

He started as a model and later proceed to seek employment from Nikki Africana and Dakora. He also owns a fashion brand, House of Bunner where he has worked with a lot of models and clients including the former Miss World, Agbani Darego.

7. Lola Faturoti

Lola Faturoti is another Nigerian fashion designer with international appeal. Even though she was born and raised in London where she graduated from a University studying fashion design. She focuses on designing traditional outfits promoting African Culture with beautiful designs.

Lola Faturoti who was inspired by her grandmother who is a fashion designer is quite popular in New York City for her outstanding designs. She joined the fashion industry in 2000 by participating in Ralph Lauren’s fashion show at New York Fashion Week.

She is mostly remembered as the Nigerian fashion designer who styled President Obama in 2015 when he was campaigning for the US Presidential seat.

8. Lisa Folawiyo

Are you in need of an excellent fashion designer who Is capable of styling your Ankara to your taste? Lisa Folawiyo is the best fashion designer to go for. The Nigerian fashion designer focuses on styling Ankara of high quality to different products including jewelry, purses, and so on. The creative designer owns a fashion line named Jewel by Lisa under which she produced and styles different Ankara designs

Lisa has a lot of her designs distributed across stores in South Africa as well as a showroom in New York City. She also has many international celebrities fans including Beyonce, Eve, Tacha Smith, and so on. She is also the receiver of numerous awards including the African fashion award and others.

9. Amaka Osakwe

Amaka has a brand that focuses on styling and designing for women’s wear. Maki Oh Fashion was launched in 2010. Within its 2 years of existence, the brand has gained so much recognition both locally and internationally.

She has a lot of international audiences including  Solange Knowles, Lady Gaga, Issa Rae, Leelee Sobieski, Michelle Obama, Beyonce, Rihanna, Kerry Washington, and so on. She also presented an adire design at the New York Fashion Week.

10. Soares Anthony

Most fans love Soares Anthony’s designs because of his great talents in designing colorful, exquisite, and eye-catching designs. He’s one of the youngest rising stars in the industry. With his unique African designs, he’s currently one of the top fashion designers in Nigeria.