Things I wish I knew before I started – Effiom Nyeh, Co-founder Ekondo.

Welcome to my new interview series, Things I wish I knew before I started. This is a platform celebrating young professionals and entrepreneurs teaching us to think differently, speak louder, and live better in their various fields. I’ve been talking to brilliant minds and some of your favs to share their stories of how it feels like to blaze your trail as a 20-something-year-old. These people are leading by example and living on their terms, and I am super excited to share their stories with you.

For this first episode, I sat down with Effiom Nyeh, the co-founder of Ekondo to share what his day-to-day looks like, as well as what it is to build a fulfilling career in a creative field. Enjoy.

“Hello! Welcome to the Sip and Paint,” a lady tells me, guiding me through the compound from a small desk office, into the larger apartment where I was meeting with my friends, harmonious music briefly escapes into the quiet neighborhood.  I’ve been a long-time follower of the Ekondo brand. Ever since I stumbled across their warm and earthy Instagram feed, I immediately fell down the infamous IG rabbit hole and into a deep plant/nature love. Eventually, I found my friends and we settled for a cozy spot on a woven mat, where we could enjoy the fresh air and sunshine.

It was early February 2023 and a day to channel our inner Picasso.  The rhythmic strokes of our brushes against the terracotta pot resonated with the gentle buzz of conversation and the soft rustle of leaves. Occasionally, young men wearing black shirts with the Ekondo inscription would come around to complement our painting and it was one of those moments when I looked up and was greeted by a young man, donning a cheering expression. He was welcoming and kind. That was the Effy I first met, and that’s the Effy I know today.

Fast forward to a few months later, I stay in conversation with Effy, who frankly, still has an artistic vibe going for him. He’s been hard at work on delivering a stellar experience at the upcoming event of the year, South Festival 3.0. He’s spent the past few days in his park in Abuja, taking phone calls, and navigating a hail of meetings and marketing conversations. One thing I realize though, his dreams are vast.

We talk for an hour, about his creative journey, unique trajectory, insights into his life, and how he’s built a brand from a genre that isn’t native to Nigeria.  Here's his story, with honest advice on things to know before you get started.

I’d love to start from the very beginning. Why did you pursue a creative career?

It was only a few years ago, maybe three or four, that I started to see myself as a creative person. Before that, I knew I was good at solving problems, creating businesses, and selling stuff, but I didn’t think of myself as creative.

I think the turning point was when I started Ekondo and got a ton of feedback that it was artistic. I had no formal training as an artist, so I thought creativity was something like painting on canvas. But it took me a while to realize that being that comes from having a unique perspective in life and being able to express that in whatever form you can.

Even as a creative person, my main skill would be creating experiences for people. I see everything as an experience. For instance, if you ask me to design a bottle of water, I will think about how people would experience the water. I suppose I’m an experience creator for everything I do. My motivation is always the experience I want people to have from my art. We started Ekondo with pots because they were ugly. I wondered, “How do I want people to feel when they see this pot in their house?” I wanted them to find the pot colorful and beautiful. That’s when I realized I might be creative.

 I have a civil engineering degree. I worked for 4 years. My job then was not creative at all. It was humanitarian. We built boreholes, schools, and hospitals in remote areas in Adamawa state. There was no room for creativity in my job. But I learned structure from it. I think that’s what many creatives lack and that’s what I benefited from that job.

My advice to a creative is to work in the corporate world for some time before becoming a full-time creative. Creativity can make you lose focus, but corporate life keeps you grounded.

All right, so for those who might not be familiar with your business, what can you say about Ekondo? What sets you apart from others?

Ekondo is an Efik word that means world or universe. For us, it means community because we believe your community is your first world, your immediate environment. And we think that by taking care of your community, you can take care of the whole world.

We are a lifestyle company that promotes sustainability and wellness, and we are doing our work through nature and community. So, whatever we do, it is always centered around making people better through nature. We found out that two things that make people feel good are if you are surrounded by nature and people who love you.

If we can do those two things, we can make the world a happier place, we can make the world more creative. Our vision is to make Africans happier and more creative by connecting them to nature and themselves.

Wait a sec, how did you come up with the name “Ekondo”?

The first name I came up with was Afro merchant. People always laugh when I say this. The reason was that we sold many pieces and we wanted to share African stories through the design, so Afro merchant seemed fitting. But my co-founders at the time didn’t like the name. I told them it was their problem because I had already created social media pages for it.

Then one day I was watching 12 Years a Slave or Django and I realized that this name sounded like a slave ship. It would have been the maddest slave ship brand ever, so I scrapped it.

To find a new name, I liked to play with names and words from my parents, siblings, friends, etc. I liked it because I could connect to real people. Ekondo came to my mind somehow, I don’t recall how, but it did, and it stayed.

Our mission at the time was to build a community of home lovers so it made sense to call it Ekondo.

Three things you wish you knew before you started this.

*breathes in heavily* hmmmm! Lol

The first is the importance of clarity in communication. I believe is crucial when communicating with people, especially in a partnership. You can never communicate too much. So, talk to people as often as you can, so that everyone knows their roles and expectations and can collaborate better.

Another thing I wish I had known before starting was the importance of distribution. I’m still learning that now. I had a different idea of what distribution meant before I started. I’m adjusting my idea of distribution to fit my reality in Nigeria. I am grateful for the team around me because they helped me see that. I wish I knew better because I would have started earlier.

I think that’s it.

Three misconceptions about having a plant.

A common misconception is that plants need daily watering. That’s not true. The plant in my room has not seen water for weeks and it’s still growing.

This leads to another misconception, which is that all plants are the same and need the same care. The last misconception is that plants need to be outside.

I think even in nature, where plants grow in the forests, some plants only grow under the shade of trees. Those are the kind of plants you can keep indoors because they require low light exposure. That’s what we look for because many of our customers, who are Genz and millennials, don’t own houses with big yards, but they wish to still decorate their verandahs and cubicles with nature. That way, you can connect with nature even when you rent your first apartment or move to a new place.

What are some of the resources or tools you found useful in your work?

Omo mhen, I use Google Docs, Google Sheets, ChatGPT, Notion, and Pitch. I am not tech-savvy. I know how it works but I am fine with the basic stuff. If you open my browser now, you will find all these tools always open.

If we had the chance to peek at your schedule, what would an average day look like?

It depends. I usually wake up very early, around 4 or 5 am. I make some tea and do some yoga.  I try to fit everything into 30mins. Then I start working on my computer. I do a lot of focused work from 5 to 8 am. I take a break and wander around and I am just existing, doing whatever I have to do.

By 9 am, I get ready for work and face the hardest question of the day - ‘What am I going to eat?’ and then I prepare breakfast. I arrive at work at 10 and the work begins.

Meetings, chats, helping people with their issues, talking to customers. It could be anything. I finish work at 4 or 5, go back home, relax a bit, listen to music, and try to recover myself. My flatmate returns, and we talk. At 6:30 or 7, I have dinner and that’s it. I avoid working at night because my brain shuts down.

What’s one thing that is currently giving you joy?

Omo, food.

Food gives me so much joy. As far as I don’t have to make it or think about what to eat and I get the food, I am happy.

I don’t care about the kind of food, so far, it’s what I would normally eat and it’s good food, without me having to ask, bring it on!

Food is one of my biggest stressors right now. Any time I get food, or someone decides to surprise me with it, I am blown away.

When you have free time on your hands, how do you spend it?

Honestly, I don’t know what free time means. I’m always busy with something.

My work is my life, and my life is my work. When I’m not working, I might watch a movie or sleep. I enjoy reading, but only in the morning or at night, not in the afternoon. I sometimes play football in the evening or have parties with my friends. I love sleeping. I could sleep more. I don’t think I get enough sleep in life. I go to bed early because I’m an early bird. If I’m still up by 10 pm, I quickly finish what I’m doing and go to sleep. I wake up early, so I need to get enough sleep.

I am also fortunate to work with my friends, so I get to hang out with them as well.

Do you have a favorite self-care you’d recommend?

Spend some time in the garden.  Interact with your plants. Touch them, talk to them, look at their leaves, and you’ll discover some lessons from them. Just like humans, plants are different, and you’ll learn that nature has different ways of working.

It’s the same way humans would feel uncomfortable and sweat if they are not in the right environment, that’s the same way a plant would feel.

Spending time with your plant is an incredible way to slow down. In this generation where everything is fast-paced and always on the move, the greatest way to have self-care is when you are moving at your own pace to connect with yourself physically, mentally, and spiritually.

Plants and gardening can help you slowdown, which I think is self-care.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting Abuja for a week and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them in the city? Give me a little itinerary.

They are going to work sha…lol…they’ll follow me to the park and work.

Let’s assume they come in on Monday morning, they will stay home and rest. I’ll go to work while they rest from the travel. I’ll get food down for them. I doubt we would do much on Monday, just catch up and drink at home.

On Tuesday, they’ll come with me to work. I think that’s the most fun thing. They’ll join our meetings, meet the team, chat with them, and see the brilliant minds behind Ekondo. They’ll get to experience the people, space, and nature.

This is a hard question, you know. *laughs

The best thing I can do for them is take them to buy art because that’s the only shopping I like.

Another day, I’ll have some friends over, so I’ll make some food and invite them over to have a good time. Then before they come, I’ll organize an Ekondo party, so they can join. We’ll have a party here. Everyone will think it’s an Ekondo party, but I’ll know it’s for my friend. If they’re up for it, I’ll go with them to the club once. And when they’re leaving, I’ll give them a plant. Nobody gives a plant as a gift, so that’s very thoughtful.

What’s your favorite part of your job?

The community is amazing. I have learned so much from the people I have encountered on this platform. They are so smart and interesting if you talk to them with an open and curious mind.

For more information on Ekondo Life, visit their website, Instagram, or Twitter.