Some of the top, young and passionate stakeholders in West Africa’s biggest constellation of printers and print professionals – Somolu in Lagos State, South West Nigeria have decided to take the bull by the horns to organise themselves to deal decisively with issues bedeviling their profession such as unwholesome business polity, unhealthy business rivalry, and dangerous unethical practices that are prevalent in the industry.
Coming together as a Team of dynamic, forward-looking and avid Printers within Somolu and environs, WHERE To Print met the squad (even in a scorching afternoon sun) while on the mission to not only get the buy-in of their colleagues within Somolu (popularly called The Home of Printing in Nigeria) but most importantly, to get the most accurate and sustainable business intelligence that will drive the overall agenda of making printing profitable again for all.
The Team – made up of Godwin Esho (Creative Affairs), Seyi Oludare (Spot Colours), Muiwa Sowunmi (Platinum Media), Bala Abdul (Print & Pearl), Seyi Sogbamu (Detailz Graphix), and Benjamin Dare (Benco Production) believes that laying a strong, vibrant and profitable foundation for Somolu should start with compilation of clear-cut data and documentation to aid the developmental agenda.
It is no gainsaying the fact that the Printing & Allied Industries in Nigeria have largely been affected by man-made and unscrupulous practices mainly due to lack of unity, indiscipline, and price war among practitioners. These combined with issues such as arbitrary high prices of consumables/ media, price war, indiscipline, red-tape and high interest rates on loans, job loss, redundancy and other HR issues chiefly as a result of unwholesome business practices and capital flight of printing overseas. WHERE To Print gathered that others blights in the industry include; epileptic public power supply with exorbitant tariff, substandard consumables & parts with undervalued materials/ substrates, and non-governmental support – just to mention a few.
However, the pacesetting Team believes that issues affecting print & allied businesses in Nigeria can be nipped in the bud in no time, starting with intelligence gathering: to collate census of every print firm that can be used to identify the strength and capacity of Printers in Nigeria while positioning the industry for sustainable growth and development. According to Mr. Esho, the benefit of the exercise is for the overall benefit of Printers; “This exercise is designed to help us (as Printers) to identify where all the equipment and skills are located within our own locality so that we can form clusters within each sub sectors of the industry to address any issues of concern and ensure our businesses are not only profitable but also sustainable”. He thereafter enjoined his counterparts to come together and align with the project ultimately aimed at making printing profitable again by fighting common enemies of the profession; “It’s now time to walk the talk by putting our words into actions” he expressed.
When asked why members of the Team were doing the data gathering themselves and not allocate the responsibility to their staff, Mr. Esho answered that it was better to conduct the exercise personally as the respondents would not only take them seriously but it was also an avenue to meet their colleagues in the industry in order to rob minds together on actionable way forward to grow and develop the industry.
WHERE To Print gathered that the exercise, powered by Chartered Institute of Professional Printers of Nigeria (CIPPON), was not only to determine the population of Printers in Somolu but also to aid ‘Self-regulation by Clusters’ idea of the Institute in a bid to ensure CIPPON’s efficiency in its advocacy programmes and responsibility as the industry’s regulatory body.
To get on board and be counted among Print & Allied Practitioners in Somolu, get in touch with any of the following Team members:
· Godwin Esho – 0803 343 5375.
· John Oladipupo – 0802 844 0589.
· Seyi Oludare – 0802 353 5364.
· Muiwa Sowunmi – 0803 323 6648.
· Bala Abdul – 0802 313 7895.
· Ahamed Owodunni – 0808 066 6656.
· Gokay Oludare – 0802 304 3201.
