TEN MINUTES WITH BRUNO

A well-known and respected name in the Nigerian beauty lexicon, Bruno’s Place gradually shot-up from obscurity to prominence. Since its establishment a little over four ago, the unisex hair salon has grown from just one outlet to several in Lagos and Abuja. The brain behind the outfit is Bruno Oaikhinan; an ex-banker and one that could be described as the “Spirit of Courage” for his resilience and tenacity towards entrepreneurship when forced to resign from Skye Bank.

In this brief chat with Splendid!, he revealed the secret of his success, obstacles he surmounted during his formative years and his vision for the future.

By contemporary Nigerian standards, you are a successful businessman. What have you done differently from other Hairdressers?

We are the first to operate a salon in a Mall in Nigeria. Ours is a one stop shop. It's trending and very expensive. My kind of customers value SAFETY first, CONVENIENCE before TRANSFORMATION. We offer these through the mall.

Looking back what were the major obstacles you came across?

Paying our rent in dollar equivalent. Our rent is not fixed. It keeps increasing. So, we keep innovating and coming up with new strategies. By God's grace we have spent over 4 years so far and we are surviving and pushing ahead.

Do you sometimes regret not starting Bruno’s Place much earlier?

I knew earlier that God's time is always the best. No regrets.

Tertiary Education vs Vocational Studies, would you consider tertiary studies a waste of time?

They work together. Though they are independent, they are dependent on each other. But tertiary education first before vocational education.

Please, tell us about current challenges faced with your kind of business?

The ability to manage people is a key success factor in this business. You need to have relationship skills to succeed and be successful in salon business.

Despite challenges faced, Bruno’s Place is still waxing stronger. What is the secret?

We cannot rule out the God factor in business. The grace, mercy and favour of God has been our portion.

Where do you see Bruno’s Place in another 5 years?

In different countries USA, Canada, UK and Ghana etc.

How do you think the problem of youth unemployment could be resolved?

Encourage small scale businesses. This is the heart beat of any economy. As small as Bruno's Place, we have over 80 staff.

Obviously, Hairdressing has been profitable. What other area(s) are you venturing into?

We are building a brand. A Brand once formed can be expressed through several platforms. People are already asking for out t-shirts, tea cups and our shoes because it has our logo on it.

Would you encourage your kids to take after you?

Why not? I'm taking ordinary business and making it extraordinary. It's not really about the business but who is behind the business. I'm a brand.

What’s your advice to upcoming talents?

Discover your story. Your story is not what happened to you but what you make out of what happened to you. I was asked to resign from the bank but today I'm giving jobs to people. The sack from the bank was a blessing in disguise.