Chibuikem Nwani is the Chief Executive Officer of Alula Learning, a digital learning and development platform. In this interview by KOLA MUHAMMED, the digital expert speaks on his motivation to start a digital outfit, the impact of COVID-19 for start-ups and how individuals and corporate bodies could leverage technology in an age where physicality is becoming less important.
YOUR background
My name is Shadrack Michael popularly known as Mr White. I am the Chairman and Managing Director of White Deck Beach Resort. I am from Delta State, Agbor to be precise. I lived all my life abroad. I am happily married with three kids. I am also the CEO of Magnificient Estate, a real estate company I started in South Africa before expanding its operations to Nigeria. We currently have over 50 blocks of flats under construction and other properties scattered across Nigeria.
How do you find it easy to diversify from real estate to tourism and hospitality industry?
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown last year, I was stuck in the country as borders were closed, and you know it all felt like life was upside down with a lot of people looking for where to hang out and have fun.
So I went to Ilashe and got there about 3 pm. It was very far and actually got tired after the sail on water. Just a little while after we settled down and began merrymaking, someone just walked up to us and said it’s time to go. I was not happy and impressed, having paid a huge sum of money. So I thought of bringing Ilashe with much more luxury and class to a place easily accessible by people.
So it’s safe to say it was COVID-19 that inspired the resort?
That’s right. And you know, I stay, work and do all my businesses abroad. So now we’re locked down in Nigeria. I said, wow. If for any reason we can’t travel abroad and I was becoming a poor man, I have to think of a business that will fetch me income on a regular basis. We have a lot of beach resorts around here; sometimes I go there, the kind of people I see in the environment, I’m scared. So we decided to do it with class, creating a serene, luxurious atmosphere where people can relax with no worries. That birthed the idea of White Deck Beach Resort. We started building in September, and we opened on the 14th of February.
Is it true that White Deck Beach Resort was adjudged the best beach resort in West Africa?
That’s absolutely true. We just got rated as the best beach Resort in West Africa. Luxury and class is the theme of White Deck Beach Resort. We have over 18 luxury rooms and our facilities are state of the art crafted to create a luxurious and relaxing ambient. White Deck hosts the biggest beach party in Lagos every Sunday, and we boast of an accessible road network from anywhere in Lagos. Security is top-notch and the business is fast booming. We are going viral like a wildfire, and it gets better over time. We are just out to redefine the luxury hospitality business in Lagos and Nigeria generally.
How will you rate government support of the tourism and hospitality business in this state and Nigeria generally?
They have not been supportive at all to me. I don’t know about other beach resorts along this line. I did this road by myself. I know how much I paid to get electric transformers, yet we don’t have light. We run 24 hours diesel, and you know how bad that is for business. If you go to countries like Ghana and Togo, the seashore is a major source of income, and we can achieve that as well. The government needs to make the coastal roads accessible. A lot of people are hoping to invest in the tourism potentials of the state. Having seen our structure here, a company reached out to me from Durban, South Africa and they are willing to partner and invest, but the government needs to make this easy by providing infrastructures that will boost the confidence of investors. This area is supposed to be the Miami of Africa
So what other tourism and hospitality potentials of Lagos and Nigeria are you planning to tap into?
For me, I think this is the starting point. We’re acquiring more spaces on this Okun- Ajah coastal axis. We plan to build luxurious beach apartments and Five-Star beach hotels around here. Since we opened, I’ve seen a lot of people trying to do what we’ve done, but luxury and class is our trademark and that’s the message we intend to carry to other parts of the country and the state generally.
We are planning to open facilities in Badagry and Port Harcourt. Ideally, we just want to explore the tourism and hospitality beauty of the Nigerian coastal lines.
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