Jamie Hill is the Managing Director, BtoB Events Limited, the organiser’s of Beauty West Africa exhibition and conference. In this interview, he spoke on the exhibition starting today and what Nigeria stands to gain.

What is the Beauty West Africa exhibition all about, how can our readers learn more?
Beauty West Africa is an exhibition and conference that caters for all professionals within the beauty and cosmetics industry. The event launched in 2018 and is now one of Africa’s largest exhibitions for the beauty industry, hosting over 5,000 beauty professionals and 250 companies from around the world, who are exhibiting their products in make-up, hair care, skincare, toiletries, spa equipment and nail care.

This year is our biggest edition ever, with more exhibitors and visitor registrations than before. Significantly, this year, we have government backed pavilions from places such as South Africa, Egypt, China and Pakistan, who are bringing official delegations of beauty manufacturers to Nigeria for the exhibition. Such is the importance of the Nigerian market to the global beauty industry.

Significantly, this is the first time our Chinese exhibitors will be participating after the pandemic. Chinese beauty products have always been very popular with our audience, and we have received favourable feedback from our local partners in this regard.

With over 250 companies participating, what does Nigeria stands to gain? 
We have over 50 companies from Nigeria showcasing their products at the event. Furthermore, we have been working closely with partners from across West Africa, such as Ghana, Cameroon, Benin and Gambia that are bringing delegations to the exhibition. This will provide opportunities for Nigerian companies to find new international buyers and expand their exporting capabilities and global exposure.

Given the current challenges facing the naira, the importance of exporting ‘Made in Nigeria’ brands cannot be understated as a valuable source of foreign currency and positive contributing factor to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country. Furthermore, the stress on the naira, at present, also creates a requirement for local importers to source new, more cost-effective products to import and sell in the domestic market that are affordable to consumers.

Indirectly, large scale global exhibitions like this also bring significant amounts of foreign currency to the local economy through tourism, hospitality and logistics such as local hotels, transportation, exhibition fees, and dining. We will be bringing in over 1,000 international guests to Lagos within a week, which will have significant positive impact on local businesses.

What are the benefits of the exhibition for those attending?
This is once-a-year opportunity for beauty professionals to see, test, experience and sample beauty and cosmetics products from every corner of the world.

All of our exhibiting companies are investing a lot of time and money to come to Nigeria, as they want to meet new business partners to represent them. So, it is a huge opportunity for local beauty professionals to get new suppliers, buyers and business partners that will enable them to take their business to the next level.

Beside this, we are partnering with founder of Beauty in Lagos, Ezinne Alfa, to put together this year’s conference. The conference complements the trade element of the exhibition with knowledge sharing and best practices.

It is a unique opportunity for attendees to learn from experts from the industry such as CEO of Blot Beauty, Olufunke Tonye-Preghafi and CEO of Glam Brand Agency, Bola Balogun, in intimate fireside chats about how they grew to become leaders in the industry.

What products and companies can visitors expect to see at the show?
We have companies from across the entire African continent, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and the USA, all showcasing their latest product lines in the fields of hair care, make-up, skincare, cosmetics, perfumes and fragrances, personal care and toiletries and more…

The Nigerian Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) zone will also be back and bigger than ever presenting smaller, independent brands from Nigeria, who wants to rub shoulders with the global leaders. The SME zone also provides opportunities for visitors to pick up a few bargains onsite and sample some of the best products that Nigerian companies have to offer at discounted prices.

Would you say beauty companies in Nigeria are measuring up to their contemporary across the globe?
The Nigerian beauty industry is expected to reach $5.28 billion by 2026, from $4.2bn in 2021. There is a huge market here, which is growing across the globe. Nigeria has a wealth of natural resources and a huge talent pool, which is the envy of the African continent. It is great to see more brands from Nigeria gaining recognition across the globe.

There is still a long way to go, in terms of reaching international standards at scale. Some key issues that need addressing remain – access to the importation of raw materials to scale up local manufacturing and quality of packaging. We hope that the educational content provided at the Beauty West Africa conference will offer important insight into how to address some of the issues that hold the ‘Made in Nigeria’ beauty and cosmetics industry from reaching its full potential on an international scale.