Munira Shonibare is the Chief Executive
Officer, I.O furniture. She is also the President of the internationally
affiliated Interior Designers Association of Nigeria. For her, one
achievement is a stepping stone to more opportunities.
With over 26 years in the business of
furniture manufacturing, she says she has not reached her peak yet. “I
have never thought of retiring,” she reiterates. “I am somebody who
likes to raise the bar. Also, I am a curious person and I like to
constantly explore. I am always asking, ‘What can one do next? Where is
interior design going? Where is our lifestyle going? Our lifestyle 25
years ago is not the same as what it is today. There has been a lot of
improvement in technology. Every day, there is something coming up that I
have to learn about. I am not going to say I have reached my peak.
Life is changing and so are people’s needs. We are also constantly
trying to come up with furniture to adapt with the changing lifestyle.”
That is putting it succinctly for a
woman, who, thanks to her privileged background, has been to almost
every country and witnessed several cultures in the world since when she
was a baby.
“My father was in the foreign service,”
she recalls of her background. “I was born in Okeene, Kogi State but I
attended schools in several countries. My father’s job as a diplomat
took him everywhere and wherever he went, we went with him. I spent my
formative years in different parts of the world, watching and learning
from different people. I like to think that I took the best of the
various cultures I had been exposed to all my life.”
Apart from for her love for furniture and
the art, she explains that her upbringing also instilled strong work
ethics and other sterling qualities in her. “I grew up in a very
disciplined, very strict and structured environment where I was taught
that hard work pays off. My parents taught us to be responsible for
our actions and space, be hardworking, truthful and honest in our
dealings with people. You find out that when you are all these things,
people find it easy to relate with you. It is easy for them to sit down
with you and engage you in business because they recognise that you can
be trusted,” she says.
Shonibare holds a first degree in Textile
Designs from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. She studied Interior
Design in Florence from 1982 to 1984; worked briefly in an architectural
company in Nigeria before venturing off on her own. Expectedly, her
father kicked against her career choice. Her strong resolve, she says,
was too strong to break.
On her love for the art, she says, “I
have always loved art and I am fascinated with the environment. I think
our space and environment has a direct impact on our sense of
well-being, behaviour and mood. If you wake up in an environment every
day that is dirty and depressing, the chances are that you will be
depressed. There are scientific researches to back the claims that your
environment has direct impact on your productivity.”
The furniture maker, who established her
company in 1987, talks about initial challenges. These, she opines, were
necessary since every challenge births new strategies and life lessons.
“I learned that when you need a job, you have given it your best and do
everything that you need to do, if you still don’t get it, and then it
was not meant for you. If you are chasing 100 things, you will not get
the 100. If you get 60 out of 100, then you have done extremely well.
It is about looking at the percentage; if you score above 50 per cent in
anything you do, you have done extremely well. I call it the 80/20
rule. If you are 80 per cent successful by any definition, you have an
excellent record. You are not meant to get that 100 per cent according
to mathematical standards,” she enthuses.
Along with challenges, she also counts
her blessings as her company continues to thrive in spite of the poor
economy. “My belief is that every human needs a roof over their heads.
Aspiring to own a home is not a luxury. However bad the economy may be,
people still need to own nice things and live in clean and modern
environment. Nobody says you have to decorate all your spaces at the
same time; you can phase it- do the kitchen first before bedroom and
other places. That is how it is done in developed countries.”
At 55, her face is devoid of age lines.
Asked how she achieved that and she chuckles before briefly letting out
the secret: “Like most African women, I think I am blessed with good
genes. But I drink about two to three litres of water a day. I exercise
regularly, and I try to eat properly. I don’t worry and stress about
things I have no control over and I don’t dwell on the past.”
On how she juggles business and family,
the wife and mother of three has this to say: “When I get home, I don’t
discuss work. When I am at work I don’t discuss home. On relaxation, I
think I am very lucky because I love what I do. My work is my hobby. It
is relaxing. I also love spending quality time with my family.”
A very stylish socialite, Muni reveals an
unexpected aspect of her style: “I love black and white because I am
lazy. You cannot go wrong with white and black. If you are colourful,
you must have shoes and bags to match but black and white can go with
anything,” she quips.
Not done yet on fashion, she opens up on
what she can never be caught dead in. “I will never wear a mini skirt.
Accessories? I love bags, shoes and jewellery. These are the fashion
accessories I can spend money on. I am not a designer freak but I buy
things because I like them, whether they have names or not.”
Married to Supo Shonibare, she recounts
their initial meeting and the reason why after many years of marriage,
he still occupies a special place in her heart. “I met him in London
at a function organised by a friend. He is a first class gentleman and
doesn’t pretend. He would not see a lady carrying luggage without
helping. I just thought it was rare for a Nigerian man to be like that.
At home, when we are leaving the house together; he would open the door
and wait for me to go out first. At the time we met, I was not living in
London but he was living there. I was living in Kaduna and I had
travelled to London to attend an event. My husband, till tomorrow, is
the perfect gentleman,” she adds.
SOURCE: PUNCH
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