The Black Pelican Group - 20 & Timeless
The Black Pelican Group - 20 & Timeless
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00:00This is the story of a wholly owned Nigerian brand.
00:09It chronicles a century's worth of experiences, building living spaces, birth from a personal
00:16need and skill to meeting a nationwide demand, all in just 20 years.
00:23But how did it all start?
00:25I'm very proud of the Ubanyo story because it's one of vision against reality.
00:34I'm not an engineer, I'm not an architect, I'm a lawyer with banking experience.
00:37I had no knowledge or background in the business I wanted to embark upon.
00:42So I started by going to an exhibition in Italy, it was a bathroom exhibition, and I
00:47went from business to business, from brand to brand, basically looking at the things
00:52that I liked.
00:53And so that obviously started my journey of traversing the entire Europe.
00:58I have been to every corner of Europe and visited every single company that we do business
01:03with.
01:04My potential partners were fascinated by my persistence and also the fact that I was passionate
01:12about wanting to really do what I said I wanted to do.
01:15And one by one, once I started getting used to our business ethics and diligence, we became
01:23the preferred partner.
01:25That's basically our story.
01:28He had a big vision.
01:29He wanted to build a design center that modeled after what occurred or was available internationally.
01:36And that required a huge investment, which we didn't have at the time.
01:40So I had fears about, okay, life savings was going to go into this venture.
01:47What will happen?
01:48Would this idea be adopted or embraced?
01:51People trust that everything they found abroad, they could now find in one space, particularly
01:57with the bathroom solutions, which is what we started with.
02:00So those were my initial concerns when he expressed the idea of Black Pelican.
02:07Myself and two drivers with Boss, four of us started the business.
02:14Then it would be the one doing the codes, ordering of the goods.
02:19Then it would be the one taking inventory, going to sites.
02:21Most of the time, we drive to sites, the two of us, we drive to sites to see what they
02:26are doing there.
02:27Then we don't have an installation team.
02:29We have to get people, subcontractors from outside that does installation for us.
02:33I can remember vividly that we used to go to sites together.
02:38You know, we rented an apartment at Lake King, like a showroom.
02:45I can already let us understand that, though we are good before, but with him, we learn more.
02:53There's something unique in Ibarium, is it trains staff a lot.
02:58So the training is very important.
02:59If you got training, make Ibarium ahead of others.
03:06Without that training, we don't know what would have happened to this company.
03:11Or where we would have stopped our journey.
03:15Because our traveling, here and there, exposed us to so many jobs.
03:22Though we've been traveling with a plane to Abuja or something, but we've never traveled.
03:28The first country we went to was Italy.
03:33After that one, we went to Switzerland.
03:37There was a time we traveled to Hong Kong and Taiwan.
03:42We traveled to China.
03:45We traveled to Dubai many times.
03:48Because when the training comes, it will always put our name.
03:54From the get-go, training was critical.
03:58Because you're talking a niche market, a luxury market.
04:02These people don't take prisoners.
04:04So that training, I think, is game-changer for the Black Pelican Group.
04:10By extension, in Urbana.
04:11Because I remember, it was taking people off the streets and sending them to Italy for training.
04:17The choice of the name Black Pelican reveals the thought process of an outlier
04:23determined to do things differently.
04:27I had registered a company.
04:30I was with my lawyers and I decided on Black Pelican for no other reason
04:35than the fact that there was a calendar beside the lawyers' table that had pelicans.
04:40So I looked at the calendar and I saw pelicans.
04:41I said, you know, you can just even be called Black Pelican.
04:43And everyone said, why?
04:44And I said, well, the Black Pelican will be the exception.
04:46Because what we wanted to do at the time or what I wanted to do was to be an exceptional company.
04:51And that's how Black Pelican was chosen.
04:54Even at that time, I, again, that's probably the lawyer in me,
04:57I thought of the idea of a holding company.
05:00And so I thought Black Pelican could be the holding company.
05:03And then Ilbanyo, which meant the bathroom, could be the trading name.
05:08You know, and I basically just went with that idea.
05:12In Nigeria, few names in design are as immediately recognizable as Ilbanyo.
05:19This brand's growing popularity and its unwavering adherence to sophistication
05:24while constantly reinventing workplace structures is a testament to the brand's value.
05:31I've known Ilbanyo for 20 years.
05:34Feels like yesterday.
05:36To design this, our company headquarters, it took about, I would say, 30 visits.
05:42And I know I'm a stickler for attention to detail.
05:45But I was enthused that Michael and his team were very patient.
05:51They listened to the client and they make sure that they process the data
05:56and output exactly what the client requires.
06:01In my case, actually a little bit more.
06:04Ilbanyo was recommended to us and that's how I met Mr. Owolabi.
06:10Mr. Owolabi came himself.
06:14He's always trying to push the limits to be a couple of steps ahead of,
06:20not necessarily competition, I think his competition is himself.
06:27When I entered Michael's showroom the first time,
06:30I was like, this is where I like to be.
06:33This looks like me.
06:35This is what I like to create.
06:37And I could see that walking into this showroom,
06:40I think I'm going to get a good solution from here.
06:43The value I got from Michael was,
06:46the cost was not too far from what I would have gotten it abroad,
06:49and the timely delivery and the after-sales support.
06:54And I think we had good support from them from the beginning.
07:00My first encounter with Michael was a few years ago
07:04when we were embarking on the Delborough project.
07:07I met him at the airport with a team of engineers and architects.
07:11But at the end of the day, we got stuck.
07:13I came back to Michael to consult and help sort us out.
07:20He gave me a team of people, gave me the M&E team and more.
07:24And that was the saving grace that we had with the project.
07:27And today, everything completely, completely sorted.
07:32They are the best.
07:35Corporate savviness aside,
07:38the Black Pelican vision is entrusted in the hands of a workforce
07:43buoyed on by a dream work environment.
07:46It simply inspires in ways individual staff members
07:49have found immensely suitable to their professional and personal needs.
07:55It takes a lot to do the work that we do.
07:58There's a lot of aspects of the business.
08:01And so not one individual, I cover at least eight different departments.
08:05And it means that we have to have a team of people doing what we do.
08:09And so the support of those people are invaluable.
08:12And whatever contributions I've brought to the table,
08:15I couldn't have done anything by myself.
08:21People will always be where they are happy.
08:23And for you to be happy,
08:25you need to know that what you do, what you contribute is valuable.
08:29And for that to happen, that means you have a voice.
08:33So Black Pelican is where everybody has a voice.
08:36So no matter what idea that it is that you bring,
08:39you are certain that somebody will listen to it.
08:4280% of the time, those ideas are some of the things that you see around.
08:46And I mean, what's there to live for?
08:48You're growing, you're well compensated, you're happy.
08:52I think everything that encompasses the word work
08:55is what you see here in Black Pelican.
09:00There's a whole lot of role that Black Pelican has played,
09:03you know, in my growth.
09:05There's training, right, there's job satisfaction.
09:08I'm even able to lead and also help people grow.
09:13So I can tell you that my experience has made me, you know,
09:17grow into a leader that everybody admires to be.
09:23I have been given a whole lot more responsibilities
09:27that challenges me to build more skills,
09:31to harness, you know, my talents.
09:33And so when you apply yourself, you will get the rewards.
09:37I have been here nine years.
09:39I have had to function in different capacities
09:43because I have the knowledge, the expertise,
09:47and the skillset to serve a customer.
09:50If somebody would tell me I will still be here,
09:53relevant for 14 years, I would say it's a dream.
09:57But I have stayed because the environment is supportive.
10:03Coming to work, sometimes I ask my team,
10:05that I don't feel like I'm at work
10:07because it's a place I come and I feel relaxed.
10:10I'm able to work.
10:11I'm being supported by the cinema needs.
10:14That makes work easier for us and light.
10:17I joined the group as a copper in 2011.
10:19The first copper I studied, metallurgy and materials engineering.
10:23I was retained. I grew from the ranks.
10:25I currently head the Abuja design team.
10:29It was an adventure moving into uncharted waters back then.
10:33Twelve years of working with architects is not a mean feat.
10:37Every single project which Eubanyo handles,
10:40which Black Pelican handles, it's always unique.
10:42It's always different from the next person's.
10:44If you come into a project we have handled
10:46and you go into the next person's project,
10:48there are two different things you are seeing.
10:50It's a unique thing for each particular client.
10:58When joining the organisation,
11:00immediately I came in and I was like,
11:01wow, this is a space I really like to work in.
11:04The aesthetics, everything was just really fascinating.
11:07I was able to also imbibe that excellence spirit.
11:10Everything you do, we drive for excellence.
11:12Managing our customers, our products,
11:15and we're not even a product-centric company.
11:18We go beyond just what we sell.
11:20I think that is one thing that has been able to keep the organisation over the years
11:25and we always ensure that our customers are optimally satisfied.
11:31Technogym made me a master trainer.
11:33Because of Black Pelican, I travelled to the Technogym village,
11:38met up with other master trainers,
11:41went through the course, came out with flying colours.
11:44And that can only happen because of the structures within the Black Pelican system.
11:49Because away from the Technogym business,
11:52I see and I know that they do these things
11:56with other businesses under the Black Pelican umbrella.
12:02Nevertheless, the journey is not without its own scars,
12:06as the business learned to navigate the challenges
12:09of running a business in a country like Nigeria.
12:13We transitioned from rented showroom to this design centre,
12:17which was a big dream.
12:19Nothing like had existed in Lagos.
12:21Our first design centre, it was a proven concept
12:25and we thought, let us build a location in Abuja
12:29that will serve Abuja, the capital of the country,
12:33and the northern market.
12:35In the advent of the Buhari administration,
12:37the Naira crashed from 160 to a dollar,
12:41to 500 Naira to a dollar.
12:43As at that time, we were building an Abuja office
12:46and we had an open position,
12:48meaning we were owing foreign suppliers over 2 million euros.
12:532 million euros, that was 320 million,
12:56suddenly became a billion Naira overnight.
13:00And don't forget that this was not money that I used to buy stock.
13:05It was money that I used for a building.
13:07So, I mean, obviously, I sat in my office one day
13:10and I said to myself, this is the end.
13:12Because I didn't see how.
13:14At that point, I thought, no, this is not the end, it's over.
13:16There's no coming back from this.
13:18But we stayed the course and we were able to come out of it.
13:21But that was a really, that was perhaps,
13:23I would say my most difficult moment in the last 20 years.
13:27Black Pelican CSR programs are testaments
13:31to a brand that acknowledges its humble beginning
13:34and is happy to support a worthy cause.
13:43The Children's Library and Discovery Centre
13:46is not just a regular library.
13:48It is a place where we close the gap
13:50in learning for children who do not have,
13:53whose parents do not have enough resources
13:55to take them to the best of schools.
13:57So we want to close that learning gap.
14:00And not just closing the learning gap,
14:02we also want to make sure that these kids
14:04grow up to have strong self-identity
14:07and to stay out of crime, poverty,
14:09and every other negative impressions
14:12people have about this community.
14:14I was born here and I felt there is something I can do
14:17to make a difference in my community, in my country.
14:23When we got that email that we've been selected
14:26for this year's bathroom renovation,
14:30it was so beautiful. I felt happy.
14:32So to Black Pelican group, I just want to say thank you.
14:36It didn't matter to you what our status was.
14:39What mattered to you was the problem that was relevant
14:43to maybe the development of this community
14:46or to the society. Thank you for supporting us.
14:48You motivated me to continue
14:50and to keep at what it is I'm doing.
14:5420 years and still timeless,
14:57the Black Pelican brand continues to inspire.
15:01I think I'm more excited about the future
15:03because we're laying foundation
15:05for the next set of businesses we'll be launching
15:09that will be taken over in certain specific spaces
15:12that Black Pelican is not even known for at the moment.
15:15So that's the exciting part of the role,
15:17which then means, other than being the general counsel,
15:20my role then evolves within the organisation as well.
15:24So the future, the past has been great,
15:27but the future is even going to be greater.
15:32We cooperate with El Baño since 15 years
15:36because El Baño is the most well-organised organisation
15:39in all Africa.
15:41Very trained, professional, offering the best solution
15:47in terms of furniture and bathroom
15:50and following the needs of the Nigerian customers.
15:56I'm sure that we can grow a lot in the next years.
16:02They defined an industry, OK?
16:05I mean, before, for those who want that quality
16:10of what they sell,
16:12you just have to get out of the country and go get it.
16:16They defined an industry by making it close by.
16:22You can see it, you can check it,
16:25you can ask for it, you can modify it,
16:28and so there's a lot going on for them
16:32because they're also structured from just Michael
16:35deciding everything.
16:37They have a board, right?
16:39So they're institutionalising,
16:42and those who institutionalise
16:45are those who have the idea or the desire to last long.
16:53I've been chairman for upwards of five years now.
16:57It's our vision that in the next 20 years,
17:00this would have been a truly established enterprise
17:05that would have its own managers and governors,
17:11and you can then bequeath this, hopefully, as you move on.
17:17So I think institutionalising it to the point
17:20where it can take a life of its own,
17:22devoid of its initial promoters,
17:25and making it a true company is where the drive or pursuit is.
17:30I see the Black Pelican Group manufacturing
17:33and assembling most of the things that are important now.
17:38That's my projection for them,
17:40and I think they have the bandwidth,
17:42they have the resources,
17:44and they have the good name, the good will.
17:47So I see them, not in the near distant future,
17:51being quoted on the stock exchange
17:53or being offered one money that is out of this world.
17:57So that's my prayer.
17:58So sometimes I reflect on how far we've come.
18:0120 years of changing an industry,
18:06of meeting needs,
18:08of creating a market that people have come to appreciate and even copy.
18:15So you take a minute and appreciate how far you've come,
18:19but then you look and think,
18:20okay, there's more to be done,
18:22and there's grace to do those things.
18:25So you look back, you look up,
18:27and thankful for how far we've come,
18:29and then in anticipation of bigger things to come.
18:33We started as one company selling bathrooms.
18:36Today, in terms of product offerings,
18:38we have probably 50, 60 solutions.
18:41We started as one brand, Ilbanyo.
18:43Today we have five brands under the Black Pelican Group,
18:46so it's now a group of companies.
18:49I think that those subsidiaries,
18:52those subsidiaries will, in the next 20 years, stand alone.
18:57There's one CEO now.
18:59I think that in 20 years we'll have five CEOs, perhaps even six.
19:02I think that we will continue to take advantage of the opportunities
19:06that are already before us.
19:08So, for instance, a couple of years ago,
19:10we sort of tested the waters of real estate.
19:13I think that is something that the Black Pelican Group
19:15will heavily invest in in the future,
19:18real estate at the high level or maybe even for the middle class.
19:22There are opportunities for backward integration as well.
19:24We may go into manufacturing.
19:26We're thinking about it. We're testing the waters.
19:28So there are quite a number of things that we can do.
19:31We're blessed with very young, smart, very smart people
19:34who are driven, who are hungry.
19:36So I think that in 20 years,
19:38Black Pelican will be listed amongst the top five in Nigeria.