When Victor Madu envisioned his brand “For The Leaux” in May 2016, he had his eyes set for the stars. Now, almost two years later, with the help of the For The Leaux Family, he is aiming even higher.
In recent months, For The Leaux has been able to catapult itself from a little-known fashion brand to a movement growing larger day by day. Madu, the sole founder of For the Leaux, credits his recent growth largely to social media success. “We’ve been hitting social media relentlessly,” he said in a recent interview with Affinity, noting that the brand has “made it a point to reach out to a variety of people to increase diversity and make everyone feel included.
For The Leaux focuses their marketing on Twitter and Instagram because of the young and diverse audience. Chief Marketing Director Ogochukwu Akamelu joined the brand one year after its start in May 2017. He runs all of the brand’s social media accounts and is constantly brainstorming genius marketing tactics with Madu. “When you put the two of us together, it really is dangerous,” Akamelu said. Marketing ideas are so common between the pair that Akamelu even said they “should probably sell” the ideas they ended up scrapping for better plans.
One of the most exciting and popular mindsets of For The Leaux is their commitment to the community and the For The Leaux Family.
As the brand has grown, Madu has seen it as his own family, saying one of his favorite nicknames for the brand is “For The People.” Charity is an intrinsic element of the company, as they are always grateful for loyal fans and are always looking for ways to give back. Madu and Akamelu often participate in #CashAppFriday, giving away cash to followers and fans, and the For The Leaux Online Store occasionally goes 100% free of charge, if you are quick enough to catch it. (The pair even hinted at more chances to give back, lightly mentioning creating a For The Leaux Scholarship and donating more and more profits to charities.)
Part of the For The Leaux collection
Madu strongly believes that his company is more than just a company, but a movement.
Madu believes in the power of his fan base and followers to “do as much as we can in the community.” Akamelu said that one of his favorite things is seeing the smiles on the faces of satisfied customers and he frequently reposts pictures of those happy customers on their various accounts. For The Leaux and its fan base continues to grow, and is managed excellently despite the busy schedule of the two college students.
On managing time, Madu said it “was probably one of my biggest issues when school began, but as the days and weeks went by I gradually adjusted.” He now enjoys the schedule, saying that it’s “extremely overwhelming but exciting at the same time; every day feels like a documentary.”
Akamelu credits his successes to prioritization and focuses on achieving his goals, along with constantly improving the brand.
The pair both believe that it’s easy to be motivated about the brand because they are passionate about it. “I give the brand all of my effort throughout the day without wasting a second because this is something that I really enjoy, so why not work hard?,” Madu said. Akamelu remarked simply that his motivation comes naturally, and that “when you want it more than anything else, it tends to keep you going.”
Madu noted motivation as being an important quality in aspiring designers. “If your motive isn’t something that would allow you to endure all of the sleepless nights and early mornings then you need to re-evaluate your aspirations.”
On the entrepreneurial side, Akamelu says that a true entrepreneur will always find a way to make it work. Passion, determination, and perseverance are among some of the most important qualities for a young entrepreneur to have.
For The Leaux is, more than anything else, for the people.
Make sure to follow @NerdyNigerian97 and @Goat_Vicc on Twitter so you never miss a deal or drop. And follow ‘For The Leaux’ on Instagram and Twitter!
All Images Courtesy of Ogochukwu Akamelu and For The Leaux
