Women We Love: Public Relations & Comms Aficionado – Yetty Ogunnubi
Welcome to this week’s ‘Women We Love’ – our weekly column where we celebrate women doing amazing things in their areas of influence. From the tech & the fashion world to social activism & politics, these women, we think, are definitely crush-worthy. Catch up on all our crushes here!
Today, we shine the light on the Founder of the famed Lagos public relations & communications brand, The YD Company – Yetty Ogunnubi.
Yetty…
…fondly called ‘Yetty’ by friends & family, is the lead Publicist at The YD Company – a fully integrated hybrid PR, Branding, Events and Communications firm. With over 19 years of working in the public relations and brand management space, she has secured her place as a leading professional in the fashion, arts and corporate affairs industries. Her repertoire spans projects for SMEs, corporate businesses and the government as well as fashion exhibitions, creative events, press conferences as well as promotion of emerging 7 established brands.
We are packing a double dose of motivation & inspiration in our feature today as we chat with Yetty on keeping the heart of her brainchild beating while exploring new worlds of opportunities.
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If you were meeting someone for the first time, describe yourself.
I am Yetty Ogunnubi—a public relations and brand management expert. I love to create effective solutions to business challenges bordering on brand awareness, public relations, and marketing communications.
As the founder of The YD Company, what was your vision for the brand?
Initially, I never thought I’d be operating a PR and communications company as I’ve always been creative in the fashion and arts industries. Having organized several fashion shows and exhibitions in Europe and in Africa, eventually, I dived into the PR industry as I realized I could make a prodigious impact in that field. My vision for founding The YD Company stemmed from my enthusiasm for providing result-based services to businesses/brands, organizations, individuals, etc. in the areas of communications management, brand awareness/publicity, event management, and public relations.
There’s a certain quality of excellence and delivery that YD possesses, what’s the secret sauce?
Thank you for acknowledging us in that regard! First, I’d like to say that teamwork amongst our staff has been one of our greatest strengths at The YD Company. For all our projects, campaigns, and other tasks, everyone gets involved enthusiastically and proactively; nobody waits to be pushed or micromanaged before they perform their tasks excellently. Another secret is my hands-on approach to managing our projects and clients, and I am happy to say that members of The YD Company team are not even playing around.
Tell us about the Africa Expo 2022 in Malaysia. Is this a part of the YD vision of world domination?
The Africa Expo 2022 is an event that encompasses a complete showcase of the various sectors from more than 28 African countries. Also, more than 30 countries from Asia dedicated to the local and international industry stakeholders will be participating to explore business opportunities and learn the latest needs of the world today. The expo provides a platform for many brands from Africa to expand their market share in Asia, and also focuses on bilateral trade between the two continents and the opening of their emerging economies. The Expo is put together by The ASEAN Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), My Events International and in partnership The YD Company (We are handling the African Fashion and Beauty side of things).
No, we are not dominating the world, but we are blazing the trail for more African brands to get to the global scale.
How does this event connect with the Nigerian and African markets?
There are so many untapped opportunities in the global market for Nigerian and African businesses to leverage. The Asian market has over 640 million consumers and is ranked 8th in the world; this shows that there are uncountable potentials and opportunities in the Asian market, too. The expo will open up these opportunities for Nigerian and African businesses in the Asian region and before you know it, African businesses will be the leading innovative businesses.
Watch Yetty Ogunnubi and Kola Oshalusi (Founder, Insignia Media) speak about The Business of Photography platform.
What are your expectations from this event for not just your brand, but for the possible opportunities?
At The YD Company, we are committed to the empowerment and development of African businesses and brands. As the expo will provide a platform of opportunities for African brands, we believe that being a part of this event will further foster our commitment to the growth of African businesses, as well as build in us a sense of fulfilment. In the same vein, we expect that at the expo, African businesses and brands in attendance will be able to identify their individual stronghold of opportunities and leverage that to scale up their business operations.
If you wrote a book on Communications for your younger self, what 5 insider secrets would you pass on?
Self-motivation, determination, persistence, consistency, and personal learning & development are very essential in the communications industry. You have to possess these, and even more, to stay on top of your industry game. If you’re not self-motivated, you will not be able to do anything; if you’re not determined and persistent, you faint in the day of little troubles. Be consistent in what you do in order to create an emotional feeling around your brand. It is also essential to learn and develop new skills so as to command value in the communications industry.
What’s next for your personal brand and the YD brand?
At present, we are still exploring the PR and communications industry with full force; we’re not slowing down anytime! LOL. In the next phase of our business operations and project management, we enthusiastically look forward to working with a fintech company, and we cannot wait for such a time. Until then, The YD Company is still waxing strong in the industry, making gorilla strides and eagle soars!
To find out more about Yetty Ogunnubi, you can find her on LinkedIn | Visit her website: www.Yettyd.com
