1

2

I N T R O D U C T I O N ..................................................................................... 4

B R A N D A U D I T ............................................................................................ 5

B R A N D D E V E L O P M E N T A N D S T R A T E G Y .......... 18

B R A N D P E R F O R M A N C E & M E T R I C S ....................... 25

C O N C L U S I O N ............................................................................................ 28

Appendix 1 ................................................................................................................ 35

Appendix 2 ................................................................................................................ 37

Appendix 3 ................................................................................................................ 38

Appendix 4 ................................................................................................................ 40

Appendix 5 ................................................................................................................ 42

3

4

I N T R O D U C T I O N

Maki Oh, founded by Amaka Osakwe in 2010 is a Lagos

based luxury fashion label with designs steeped in

culture and with ancient spirit and meaning at its

core. The brand’s designs have strong feminist

undertones, inspired by the female form and

sensuality. They also seek to bring to the

forefront traditional dyeing techniques and

Nigerian fabrics, in particular Adire (Appendix 1).

Maki oh endeavours to promote sustainability by

utilising this fabric as the signature of the

brand. It is believed that Maki Oh found the last

person still carrying out the traditional handmade

process. They reinvented it for their brand using

silk as opposed to cotton (Menkes, 2012).

In 2012 Maki Oh debuted during New York Fashion week

and since numerous editorials have been written with

Maki Oh being heralded as a brand with extraordinary

potential by publications such as Vogue and the New

York Times.

The brand has garnered support from many prominent

personalities including, Michelle Obama, Leelee

Sobieski, Beyonce, Rihanna and Lupita N’yongo.

The Maki Oh design ethos

challenges prevailing notions of

beauty and analyses cultural

norms through a womanist lens

Amaka Osakwe

5

B R A N D A U D I T

Brand Inventory

&

Brand Exploratory

6

B R A N D I N V E N T O R Y

Key milestones | Achievements

2012 began showing at NYFW

ARISE Young designer of the year award

Stocked at New York Based Maryam Nassir Sayed

2014 LVMH Young Designer Semi Finalist

First African Designer invited to the White House celebration of Design

7

B R A N D E L E M E N T S

Brand name and Logo: The name is a play on the

first name and surname of the founder Amaka Osakwe.

The logo is simple and effective utilising all-caps

which aesthetically symbolises boldness and

authority. The typeface portrays an amalgamation of

modernity and ancient African symbolism.

The logo however is not prominent on the pieces and can only be seen

on the inner labels.

Products: Maki Oh offers shirts, trousers, dresses, skirts, shorts,

jumpsuits and jackets.

Signature print: Adire used in every collection

Pricing: High end pricing in line with the luxury fashion sector.

$520 $1, 520

Ancient Ghanaian Symbols NKYINKYIM and NEA ONNIM NO SUA A, OHU (Koutonin, 2013) Modern and minimal font, Montserrat (montserrat.zkysky.com, 2012)

8

Communications: Maki OH has little

online presence. There is an

Instagram page, which is updated

somewhat regularly and a Twitter

account that has not been active

since 2015. There is no website,

Facebook page or blog.

Each season, Maki OH’s latest

collection is featured on Vogue.com

with images of each piece and a

short editorial.

In addition to this, there are a

number of artistic videos online

corresponding to Maki Oh

Collections, these are featured on

Vogue.com, YouTube and Vimeo.

9

Promotion: At present, Maki Oh has not carried out any marketing

campaigns or advertising.

A large amount of Maki OH’s publicity stems from celebrity clients

wearing pieces to functions and events. Recently Maki Oh obtained

product placement in Beyoncé’s latest visual Album LEMONADE.

BEYONCE AMANDLA STENBURG

SOLANGE

LUPITA N ‘YONG’ O

MICHELLE OBAMA LEELEE SOBIESKI

10

Stockists: Maki Oh has only been stocked in four places. Two

showrooms/concept stores and two niche online retailers.

ALARA - Lagos (Currently)

Maryam Nassir Sayed – New York

(Previously)

Oxosi.com (Currently)

Totokaelo.com (Previously)

11

Brand Characteristics:

The brand identity centres around three main themes

The juxtaposition of African traditional design with western

silhouettes

Utilising African fabric and dyeing techniques to promote

sustainability

Feminist undertones

The Brand Personality Framework developed by Aaker (1997) provides

insight into the human characteristics associated with a brand. This

is key to differentiating a brand within its product category as

well as understanding how brands are perceived and the types of

consumers they attract.

The two dimensions of brand personality that Maki Oh exhibits are

excitement and sophistication. This can be gleaned from press

releases regarding Maki Oh often utilising words such as “dazzling”

“stunning” “exciting”, “sleek”, “charming”, “quirky”, and “chic.

Brand Personality

Sincerity

Down to earth

Honest

Wholesomness

Cheerfulness

Excitement

Daring

Spritedness

Imagination

Conteporary

Competence

Reliability

Intelligence

Success

Sophistication

Class

Charm

Ruggedness

Masculinity

Toughness

Figure 1 Brand Personality Framework (Aaker, 1997)

12

Competitors:

Appendix 1 details the profiles of Maki OH’s key competitors. These

are other African luxury brands with a similar price range and

design style. These brands have also made a global impact and

particularly in the US where Maki Oh is gaining traction.

Figure 2 shows that Maki Oh is at present the most exclusive of the

brands within its category and on the high end in terms of pricing.

Figure 2 Competitor Perceptual Mapping

Exclusivity Mass Market

High Price

Affordability

13

In relation to these competitors, Points-of-Parity (POPs) and

Points-of-Difference (PODs) have been highlighted in figure 3:

PODs

- Use of a signature material in all collections (Adire)

-High Profile clientele

- No advertisments (Niche/Luxury Strategy)

- Focus on reviving traditional fabric dying techniques

- Consitent brand theme -feminism

POPs

- Afrocentric design with western motifs

- Showing at major fashion weeks (LFW NYFW)

- Premium Pricing

- Multiple stockists

Figure 3 POPs and PODs (Keller, Sternthal & Tybout, 2002)

14

B R A N D E X P L O R A T O R Y

Primary Research and Analysis

15

BRAND EXPLORATORY

To understand the current brand situation primary research (Appendix

2) was conducted in the form of a survey with qualitative and

quantitative questions. There were around 50 participants and all

participants were people between the ages of 18-55 who stated they

had an “interest in African fashion”.

The research highlighted that Maki Oh has very low brand awareness

5% of respondents were able to recall Maki Oh when asked to

list 5 African fashion brands with no prompt.

20% of respondents selected Maki Oh as one of the brands they

had heard of when presented with a list of 7 African fashion

brands.

Maki Oh was the 4th most recognized brand on the list of 7

10% recognized the brands clothing when shown pictures of

celebrities wearing it

38% of respondents recognized the fabric Adire when shown a

picture of it. Only 3% were able to state the name of the

fabric.

As can be seen from the data gathered Maki Oh has very low brand

awareness with low ease of recall and recognition of the brand and

its products.

When respondents were asked to describe what they associate with a

luxury fashion brand common responses included:

In addition to this, respondents were asked to choose from a list of

features associated with luxury items, which features were most

important to them.

The top 3 were:

1. Style

2. Craftsmanship

3. Quality

EXPENSIVE | EXCLUSIVE | STYLE | UNIQUE | ELEGANT | CLASSY

16

Resonance

Judgements

Feelings

Performance

Imagery

Brand Salience

Critical concerns

From the data gathered and as

can be seen in figure 2 Maki

OH’s critical concern is a lack

of brand salience.

From a psychological perspective

the word salience describes the

ability of an item to “stand out

from the background” (Guido,

1998). This transcends from

psychology to business in that

it is the crucial first step in

creating sustainable brand

equity.

Maki Oh should take steps to

showcase the uniqueness of the

brand and its products against

competitors (Rosenbaum-Elliot,

Percy and Pervan, 2015).

Figure 4 Brand Equity Pyramid (Keller et al. 2012)

B

R

A

N

D

E

Q

U

I

T

Y

17

Opportunities

There are also a number of opportunities that Maki Oh can

capatalise on.

Consumers associate craftsmanship with a luxury item they

would buy. Maki OH’s branding focuses heavily on craftsmanship

and fabric dyeing techniques

Maki Oh’s impressive clientele list presents promotional

opportunities and potential for further brand exposure

Maki OH’s signature

fabric is recognizable

to consumers and in

relation to competitors

Maki Oh is the only

brand with a consistent

signature look.

Research has shown that

consumers tend to favor

brands that are seen as

Sustainable or

environmentally

responsible (Charter,

Peattie, Ottman, &

Polonsky, 2002). Maki Oh

has a strong focus on

sustainable production

methods.

Exclusivity was a word that consumers mentioned when

discussing the attributes of luxury brands. Out of all of the

brands, Maki Oh is the most exclusive as finding out where to

obtain products is extremely difficult (Appendix 5). This can

work in Maki OH’s favor if leveraged properly.

18

B R A N D D E V E L O P M E N T A N D S T R A T E G Y

19

Figure 5 Example Video Campaign Promotion

Maki OH’s primary issue is at the level of Brand Salience.

Maki oh should maintain its base in Lagos but focus on expanding

within the US market beginning with New York, a fashion capital.

Maki Oh can also tap into the recent sociocultural movement amongst

African Americans and multicultural peoples of being increasingly

concerned with ancestry and social issues and growing ethnocentrism

(appendix 4).

There are 2 strategies suggested revolving around brand aesthetics,

symbolism and identity.

1. Integrated Marketing Communications - Focused communications and increased online presence

Maki Oh should create a visually appealing website. Whilst the brand

may be ensuring exclusivity is a part of their positioning, it is

important that there is a place where information about the brand is

gathered in one place.

a. Avoid traditional advertising – Maki Oh seeks to maintain

its niche and luxury positioning therefore traditional

advertising is not necessary. Advertisement can be carried out

by seeking out suitable situations for product placement i.e.

music videos, films and sending out products to celebrities

that the brand would like to be associated with (appendix 3).

b. Video campaigns – In addition to

videos promoting new collections,

these videos should continue to be

artistic in nature, focusing on

humanistic advertising - promoting the

ethos of the brand and not just the

products.

Communications should focus on meaning

The meaning of a brand is an important

aspect in consumer decision making as

often consumers look for brands whose

meanings tie in with aspects of self

(Belk 1988; Ahmad & Thyagaraj, 2014).

Therefore, all communications should

revolve around:

Feminism

Ethical fashion

African culture and heritage.

Promoting the notion of the

“Maki Oh Woman”

This will ensure that Maki Oh

communicates the brand identity. As

consumer purchases are non-

dichotomous, these videos will appeal

20

Figure 6 Experience Realms (Pine & Gilmore, 1998)

to both rationale and emotion by

displaying brand products and themes

that consumers can identify with.

(Meenaghan, 1995).

2. Tap into the experience economy

Brand experiences have great economic benefit to a company and

brands must become increasingly aware of creating engaging

experiences that will in turn increase revenue (Pine & Gilmore,

1998).

The Experience Realm Framework (figure 6) enables an

understanding of the types of experiences brands can create and

how it affects the consumer.

An experience can combine one or more realm and for Maki Oh the

entertainment, aesthetic and educational realms can be utilised to

create consumer engagement.

21

Figure 7 Example invitations/flyers for Maki Oh events

Figure 8 Example event venues

a. EVENT TYPE 1 - Invitation only social events

Entertainment and Aesthetic Realm | Passive absorption and immersion

For a luxury brand, the experience

is fundamental as consumers seek a

brand that relates in some way to

their lifestyle. Experiential

marketing follows Schmitt and

Simonson’s (1997) expressions to

impressions framework and creates

tangible and interactive

experiences, reinforcing the brand

identity (Atwal & Williams, 2009).

Maki Oh can host private events

with targeted guest lists.

These events should:

Have a cohesive and compelling theme, design and pieces available

for purchase. Should not give the

impression of a sales event but an

engaging experience to provide

consumers with a strong impression

of the Maki Oh brand identity.

Have consistent cues – beginning each event with “Welcome to the

Maki Oh Experience” or a similar

phrase to set the stage for a

unique experience (Pine II &

Gilmore, 1998)

22

Figure 9 Memorabilia + Photo (Photo edited from fashiontographer.com, 2013)

Be heavily photographed and shared on social media to create intrigue

and desire in consumers, tapping

into those who see their “desired or

ideal self” in the event (Solomon,

Bamossy, Askegaard, & Hogg, 2006).

Obtain press coverage in publications that will reach the

target market, i.e. Vogue, Nylon,

Vanity Fair, i-D etc.

Provide meaningful memorabilia –branded bags with Adire samples.

Maki Oh can utilise a photo booth

with a catchy hashtag. Photo

booths have become increasingly

popular at high-end events.

23

b. EVENT TYPE 2 – Workshops and Talks

Educational and Esthetic Realm | Active absorption and Passive immersion

Maki Oh and Friends – A series of discussions

The Maki Oh woman is a deep thinker therefore Maki Oh can provide

spaces for discussion about social issues to do with feminism and

culture.

These events will feature the Maki Oh founder and other women who

have a level of expertise on the topic being discussed.

These will:

Enable education and dialogue about Maki OH’s ethos and design inspiration.

Educate consumers on Maki Oh’s African heritage and in particular on the origins of Adire, promoting interest in Maki

Oh’s signature fabric.

Create an avenue to learn about the brand and also purchase products.

Figure 10 Example Maki Oh and Friends flyer

24

These two types of events will enable Maki Oh to utilise strategic

experiential modules (SEMs) (Schmidtt, 1999)

THINK – Discussion and workshop events on social issues, appealing

to consumer’s intellect.

FEEL – Empowering women, promoting feminism and equality, engaging

with the consumer’s emotions.

ACT- Motivating consumers to aspire to becoming the “Maki Oh woman”

through the events, gathering together inspiring socially conscious

women.

SENSE- Events will incorporate all 5 senses; sight through beautiful

spaces, clothing and décor at each event, smell and taste through

food and drink centred events, sound through music that will appeal

to target market and touch through hands on workshops and browsing

clothing.

RELATE – Consumers at these events or experiencing the event

vicariously through social media will see aspects of their ideal

self, actual self or desired self in the “Maki Oh woman”.

Through these two brand development strategies consumers will have a

holistic brand experience that stimulates both the head and the

heart and makes Maki Oh a part of their lifestyle (Schmidtt, 1999).

25

B R A N D P E R F O R M A N C E & M E T R I C S

26

To measure the success of the brand strategies suggested, perception

and performance metrics will be utilised.

As was ascertained previously, the primary concern is brand

salience. Activities will be carried out to measure this at the

customer mind-set level and market performance level of the value

chain shown in figure 11.

Customer Mindset

This is to measure whether customers are aware of Maki Oh and what

their perception of it is.

A range of techniques will be employed to assess this:

Calculating reach and frequency metrics o Monitoring cookies: the number of unique visitors to the

site and Search Engine Optimisation

o Measuring views and shares on video content

o Monitoring general online presence

Surveying consumers o A similar survey that was utilised within this report

will be carried out again to measure awareness and

associations.

Aim to see: o Increased web traffic

o Increased reviews on independent blogs and websites

o Increased traffic to online stockists

o Significant increase in awareness of the brand (recall)

o Significant increase in awareness of designs when shown

images of brand elements (recognition)

o Positive associations in line with central brand themes

and characteristics.

Marketing campaign

Investement

Customer Mindset

Market Performance

Shareholder Value

Figure 11 Brand Value Chain (Keller, 2012)

27

Market Performance

This is to measure how the brand is performing and increasing equity

for Maki Oh.

Measuring brand loyalty

o Repeat customers

Measuring new customers

o Increasing attendees at each event

o New brand ambassadors – celebrities or otherwise

Measuring revenue

o Significant increase in revenue due to more sales

following increased brand awareness

Measuring market share

o Maki Oh should become the go-to African brand within the

luxury segment

28

C O N C L U S I O N

29

Maki Oh is a brand with significant potential. Through integrated

marketing communications and experiential marketing, Maki Oh can

improve its current levels of brand salience.

By ensuring that consumers can easily understand the values that

underpin this brand - feminism, sustainability and African culture,

attachment to the brand and what it stands for can be achieved. This

can then be further developed by events, ensuring a holistic brand

experience where the consumer can be immersed in and absorb the Maki

Oh experience.

Increasing levels of brand awareness and a clear brand image will

increase the potential of Maki Oh being the brand of choice within

its segment and build sustainable equity.

30

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35

Appendix 1

BACKGROUND ON ADIRE

Adire is a resist-dyed cloth produced and worn by the Yoruba people

of southwestern Nigeria in West Africa. The Yoruba label adire,

which means "tied and dyed," was first applied to indigo-dyed cloth

decorated with resist patterns around the turn of the twentieth

century. With the introduction of a broader colour palette of

imported synthetic dyes in the second half of the twentieth century,

the label "Adire" was expanded to include a variety of hand-dyed

textiles using wax resist batik methods to produce patterned cloth

in a dazzling array of dye tints and hues.

(Wolff, 2006)

MAKI OH COMPETITOR PROFILES

Loza Maleombho

Base: Côte d’Ivoire

Products: clothing, jewellery, shoes and

accessories.

Stocked: Alara Lagos, oxosi,com, UK and US

showrooms, lozamalembho.com

Brands: Loza Maleombho and LMLM label (cheaper

line extension)

Promotion/Press: Website, Facebook, twitter,

Instagram.

Duro Olowu

Base: London UK

Products: clothing, jewellery, shoes and

accessories.

Stocked: Selfridges, Moda Operandi, Lagos

flagship store

Brands: Individual brand

Promotion: Website, Facebook, Instagram,

twitter

Deola Sagoe

Base: Lagos

Products: clothing, jewellery, shoes and

accessories.

Stocked: Alara Lagos, oxosi,com, UK and US

showrooms, lozamalembho.com

Brands: Individual brand

Promotion: Website, Facebook, twitter,

Instagram

Lisa Folawiyo

Base: Lagos

Products: clothing, jewellery, shoes and

accessories.

Stocked: Selfridges, Moda Operandi, Lagos

36

flagship store

Brands: Individual brand

Promotion: Website, Facebook, twitter,

Instagram, Tumblr

Lanre Da Silva

Ajayi

Base: Lagos

Products: clothing, jewellery, shoes and

accessories.

Stocked: DOLCE & GABBANA,Yoox.com, 41 LUXE,

Temple Muse, Lanre Da Silva Flagship Boutique

Brands: Individual Brand

Promotion: Website, Facebook, twitter,

Instagram

37

Appendix 2

Survey questions

Survey powered by Google forms

1. What is your country of origin?

2. Please select your gender

3. How old are you?

4. What is your occupation?

5. Please use three words to describe luxury fashion?

6. What do you think is most important when buying a luxury

fashion item?

7. Would you describe yourself as interested in African fashion?

8. Please list up to 5 African fashion brands that come to mind

9. Are you aware of these African fashion brands (Please select

all that apply)

10. These celebrities are all wearing clothes from an African

Fashion brand. Do you know the name of the brand?

11. If yes please state the brand

12. Prior to taking this survey had you ever heard of the brand

Maki Oh?

13. Do you recognise the fabric shown?

14. If yes, please state the name if you can.

38

Appendix 3

The Maki Oh Woman

“I believe that the woman wearing Maki Oh thinks much further and

deeper than the physical, because she is a multifaceted woman who

projects her whole being in everything she does, and in the clothes

she wears.”

“Every Maki Oh collection has been inspired by women, from street-

workers to nuns. If you love women, then I believe you can’t help

but be a feminist too. Maki Oh collections all express feminist

views in different doses.”

– Amaka Osakwe in an interview with the ManRepeller.com (Syrett &

Diamond, 2013)

The Maki Oh Woman STP profile

The Affluent Creative The Trendy

Professional

Demographics FEMALE

22-55

HIGH INCOME

EDUCATED

AFRICAN, AFRICAN AMERICAN, MIXED

ETHNICITY

WORKS OR OWNS BUSINESS WITHIN

CREATIVE INDUSTRY:

MARKETING/ADVERTIS

ING/FASHION/DESIGN

ETC.

FEMALE

22-55

HIGH INCOME

EDUCATED

AFRICAN, AFRICAN AMERICAN,MIXED

ETHNICITY

PROFESSIONAL WITHIN ANY

INDUSTRY, CAREER

DRIVEN

Psychographics

OPINIONATED, ENTREPRENURIAL,

SOCIAL BUTTERFLY, ENJOYS NETWORKING

AND PARTIES

KEEPS UP WITH CURRENT AFFAIRS

PARTICULARLY IN

THE FASHION, ART

OPINIONATED, CAREER DRIVEN

SOCIALITE, ENJOYS

NETWORKING AND

EVENTS

KEEPS UP WITH CURRENT AFFAIRS

PARTICULARLY

39

AND MUSIC SCENE

TRENDSETTER HOWEVER AVOIDS

MAINSTREAM

READS FASHION BLOGS AND

MAGAZINES SUCH AS

VOUGUE, I-D

INTERESTED IN

WOMEN IN

BUSINESS AND

LEADERSHIP

CONCERNED WITH APPEARANCE,

FASHIONABLE

READS GLOSSY MAGAZINES AND

BUSINESS

PUBLICATIONS,

VOGUE, ADWEEK,

VANITY FAIR,

FAST COMPANY

Geographic AMERICA, NEW YORK

NIGERIA, LAGOS

AMERICA, NEW YORK

NIGERIA, LAGOS

40

Appendix 4

Sociocultural trends in America amongst multicultural people and

African Americans

THE BLACK SOCIAL MEDIA MOVEMENT: IMPACTFUL, CULTURAL AND BOLD

In today’s digital age, online social networks have become the

virtual water cooler, where all consumers exchange ideas, feelings,

aspirations and plans. African-Americans are notably active on

social media. In fact, blacks earning more than $75,000 spend an

average of about 15 hours and 30 minutes on Facebook each month. In

addition, blacks are using social networks to become their own

publishers, sharing news and bringing widespread awareness to social

issues and trends.

The #BlackTwitter phenomenon has become a platform full of cultural

humour, entertainment, breaking news and trends, fed by an

influential cluster of users who consistently drive global trending

topics and cultural conversations.

Multicultural consumers are the fastest growing segment of the U.S.

population. Already over 120 million strong and increasing by 2.3

million per year,

Multicultural consumers are transforming the U.S. mainstream.

Propelled by the twin engines of population growth and expanding

buying power, they are at the leading edge of converging demographic

41

and social trends that are reshaping how marketers and advertisers

use culture to connect with increasingly diverse customers.

Empowered and culture-driven shoppers, who over-index on a

wide range of products and services.

Younger than the rest of the population, they are trendsetters

and tastemakers across a broad range of categories, from food

and beverage to beauty products.

In their prime, multicultural consumers are starting families,

making plans and establishing long-term brand relationships.

Expressive and inclusive, which very often allows

multicultural consumers to simultaneously maintain their

cultural heritage and see themselves as part of the new

mainstream, allowing them to mix and match endless choices and

products to suit their effortless duality in lifestyles and

tastes.

Connected and mobile savvy, multicultural consumers use their

smartphones and other devices at much higher rates and more

intensely than their non-multicultural counterpart

All above information from (Nielsen,com, 2015)

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Appendix 5

Figure 12 Comments discussing the inaccessibility of Maki Oh on Popular Nigerian

Blog "Bella Naija" (Obiuwevbi, 2015)