Brands
April Wind Couture Transforms From Solo Startup to Fashion Powerhouse
April Wind Couture grows from one-woman fashion start-up to global-ready brand, defying Nigeria’s tough economy with Ankara-focused innovation
April Wind Couture is rewriting the fashion playbook in Nigeria—rising from humble beginnings to become a globally-aware brand with over 30 staff and more than 40 machines.
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Built on resilience, strategic thinking, and a deep love for Ankara fashion, the brand’s success proves that growth is possible even in the face of Nigeria’s harsh economic realities.
Founded in 2017 by Uwem Asibeluo, April Wind Couture began as a one-woman operation—cutting, sewing, selling, and even cleaning.
Initially focusing on ready-to-wear Ankara outfits, she quickly realised the capital needed was too steep.
She pivoted to bespoke tailoring, using clients’ fabrics and measurements to keep the business afloat.
Everything changed during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020. With reduced walk-in traffic, Asibeluo leaned into the brand’s original ready-to-wear vision.
By investing in digital marketing—especially Instagram—she was able to attract new customers and scale without a physical storefront.
“Instagram became our lifeline. Customers started ordering without stepping into the shop,” she said.
By December 2020, April Wind Couture experienced its first major sales boom.
This momentum led to an expansion in 2021—more staff, a rented two-bedroom flat as a production space, and dedicated roles for logistics and customer service.
But a sudden notice to vacate pushed her to complete and relocate to her own unfinished property—a tough decision that laid the foundation for long-term stability.
Today, that space houses a fully functioning production hub, employing over 32 people and serving customers across Nigeria and internationally.
Asibeluo’s choice to focus on Ankara was not only personal but also strategic.
Drawing on her background in economics, she recognised Nigeria’s unique advantage—affordable, high-quality labour and easy access to fabrics.
“My mother wore Ankara only on Sundays. I wanted to reimagine it as daily wear—versatile, stylish, and global,” she said.
April Wind Couture now produces high-demand, well-finished Ankara pieces like kimono jackets, blending tradition with contemporary fashion.
Social media continues to be a key driver, connecting the brand to clients in the US, UK, Canada, South Africa, and France.
Despite success, daily operations face huge obstacles—especially the unreliable power supply.
The company spends ₦39,000 daily on diesel to run essential equipment like rhinestone machines and industrial irons. Sewing machines rely on solar energy.
“Whenever we plan expansion, the first thing we think about is electricity—not even staff or machines,” Asibeluo said.
Still, the brand has managed to maintain quality, meet deadlines, and grow sustainably.
Every design is first produced as a sample, ensuring consistency in production and customer satisfaction.
Asibeluo’s five-year vision is ambitious. She plans to open branches in key countries where demand is high and eventually establish a fashion school to train young designers and create jobs.
“We want to keep Nigeria as the production hub. This way, we grow the brand and contribute to the economy,” she said.
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She also hopes to collaborate with iconic Nigerian brands like Odeva Nigeria and Lisa Folawiyo Studio—names she deeply admires for their innovation and longevity.
Mbappe China sponsorships have ended after Dongpeng and Mengniu dropped the football star over alleged remarks about a meme featuring Mao Zedong
Two major Chinese brands have ended their sponsorship partnerships with French football star Kylian Mbappe following the circulation of a video in which he allegedly joked about former Chinese leader Mao Zedong.
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Beverage company Dongpeng and dairy producer Mengniu announced the decisions on Tuesday, citing concerns that the remarks had offended Chinese national sentiment.
“Our company firmly opposes and has a zero-tolerance policy towards any behaviour that offends national sentiments,” Dongpeng said in a statement, announcing the immediate termination of its partnership with the Real Madrid forward.
Mengniu, China’s largest dairy producer, also confirmed that it was ending its collaboration with the 27-year-old France captain.
“With immediate effect, our company is terminating all cooperation with Kylian Mbappe,” the company said.
Mengniu added that it opposed words or actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people.
The decisions followed the circulation of a video in which Mbappe reportedly described the funniest internet meme he had seen as one featuring his face edited onto that of “some guy — I think he’s a Chinese dictator”.
The comment appeared to refer to an online meme depicting Mbappe as Mao, who led the Chinese Communist Party and died in 1976.
However, the authenticity of the video could not immediately be verified by AFP Fact Check.
Mao remains a sensitive figure in China, where jokes perceived as disrespectful towards the former leader can provoke public criticism.
Mbappe had been popular among Chinese football fans, attracting millions of followers on Chinese social media.
He is also nicknamed “Guigui”, a Chinese translation of “Turtle”, linked to an internet meme inspired by the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
Dongpeng had used AI-generated images of Mbappe drinking its sports beverage in advertising campaigns shown in China during this year’s World Cup.
The controversy also attracted attention on Weibo, China’s major social media platform, where the termination of Dongpeng’s partnership with Mbappe became a trending topic.
Some users supported the companies’ decisions, arguing that the alleged remarks crossed a line, while others called for Mbappe’s image to be removed from the beverage company’s products.
Chinese football outlet Dongqiudi criticised the reported comments in a statement on Monday evening, describing them as offensive to China and its people and saying they had hurt the feelings of Chinese football fans.
The incident follows Mbappe’s comments in September about another internet meme depicting him as a military dictator.
In an interview with French sports newspaper L’Équipe, he said some memes were intended as harmless fun but expressed discomfort with comparisons to historical figures responsible for widespread suffering.
“There’s a part of it that’s funny. You can tell that, for some people, it’s all in good fun. But there is another part that’s a bit less funny because of the damage such people have caused throughout history,” he said.
“Being compared to individuals who murder others, or who have brought misery to millions upon millions of people — well, I don’t think I’ve ever done anything like that in my life,” Mbappe added.
The controversy comes amid a history of disputes involving international sports figures and politically sensitive issues in China, including Taiwan, Tibet and Hong Kong.
In 2023, former NBA player Dwight Howard sparked criticism on Chinese social media after referring to Taiwan as a country in a video featuring Taiwan’s then-vice-president and current president, Lai Ching-te.
In 2019, a social media post by Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey supporting Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protests prompted a backlash in China, including the suspension of sponsorship agreements and a year-long withdrawal of NBA games from Chinese television.
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The latest episode highlights the commercial risks international athletes can face when remarks or online content are perceived as crossing political or cultural sensitivities in major sponsorship markets.
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