Sapphire Group CEO Adewale Aladejana Talks About Affordable Luxury

Nearly 4 years ago, Mr Adewale Aladejana was literally a broken man, with his 7 - month pregnant wife and $100 in his pocket. The last thing he expected is to become Founder and CEO of a huge wealth creation company in just 4 years. 

In 2019 his business already has over 1000 distributors in 19 states of Nigeria, the UK, the USA, Ghana, and Cameroon, having more demand for their production, than they can even supply. 

Today we are sharing the story, proving that the success harbor has its mouth and the world is just another ocean of possibilities one can catch the wave in.


The story of Sapphire Scents started in April 2015 under dramatic circumstances. 

It’s future founder, Mr Adewale Aladejana was given only 3 days to move from Benin to the capital city of Nigeria, Abuja. Obviously, him and his family were hardly ready for such transition, especially taking into consideration that this was one of the disciplinary purposes, which had no further support or accommodation attached to it. The transfer from Benin to Abuja seemed to bring no advantages, possibilities or perspectives for a wealthy and secure future. “I had only 3 days to leave my official residence and to leave Benin. And this was the very first time I did realize that I have nothing: no possessions, no money, no backup plan”.

After arriving in Abuja, Mr Adewale’s family was going through harsh times, having no place to live, staying at his brother’s apartment and sleeping on the couch.

But the night is the darkest before the dawn. It was Adewale’s wife’s birthday, that gave him the idea and motivation to step into the business that made him a thriving person today, creating new workplaces and developing an ultimate network of perfumes and accessories produced and sold. "I wanted to express my appreciation to my wife, saying thank you for all the support and staying around during the hard times” . When he bought the present which was a perfume, he realized the money left with him was so little to take care of his family till the end of the month, at the same time he was about to become a father, All these made him think: “what should I do and what are my good at”. Immediately, the idea was born.

Mr. Adewale Aladejana has a very unique trait: he can remember and recognize every smell he ever perceived. This was the very first step in his exciting success story, and the first time, he started considering this trait, as a money making venture.

Mr. Adewale Aladejana started from selling the perfumes he liked (Oud scents ) which was very popular in certain Middle Eastern wealthy circles. Having no money to arrange trips to The Middle East Dubai to be precise, he had and to go to Abuja's Wuse market. He went through the numerous local stores to find the perfume that would be the closest, the most similar to the perfumes that were 'capturing the attention of wealthy people in high circles,and he eventually found it.ByUsing the marketing tools, social media and word of mouth, he managed to promote it so quickly and luckily, people started desiring to own it even without perceiving the scent . It became the point of status and prestige to have Sapphire Scentsperfumeunder an affordable price.


The business started growing rapidly, the first online store was opened on Konga , (Nigeria’s no 1 online shopping mall) . Pastor Abiodun Fatonyibo of COZA who happened to be Mr Adewale Aladejana’s mentor decided to invest in sapphire scents with the sum of $3,000. , This made it possible for Mr Adewale Aladejana to travel to Dubai to purchase more perfumes and to explore a plethora of oriental scents in the Middle East. The idea was to bring a sample of each perfume scent and to guarantee maximum exclusivity.


But the idea was so easy to replicate, Rather soon, a similar shop popped up, and this made Mr Adewale search for the new solution. The idea was apparent - in order for someone not to steal his ideas, he had to create exclusive scents. Adewale started mixing, relying on his taste, smell and nose literally. Today, Sapphire Scents has 25 various fragrances, which are sold globally.The distribution network was built easily, Mr Adewale brought the company to the market and found counterparts who were ready to sharein his ideas and passion. In 2019, the distribution network enlarged to 1000 representatives, in 19 countries, delivering the scents that capture the attention of people in the society.

Now Sapphire Scents is discovering and conquering the new niche again. Despite the large size of the African market, it became obvious, that there are very few manufacturers, who produce and sell products for African people, In other to fill up the gap, Mr Adewale’s solution happened to be on the surface: “to produce products for Africans, by Africans, with a price, Africans can afford.” “Today we have SapphireparfumeSapphire watches, eyewear, sapphire music (ear piece) dispatch services etc. Sapphire Foundation is a big philanthropic center, that supports building schools and healthcare centers, implementation of socially important and necessary community projects and infrastructures.

The Story of Mr.Adewale Aladejana is an inspiration and success story proving that as long as you're willing to work hard, commit to your ideas, and take the necessary risks, your ideas will become reality. Take inspiration from the massive success of Mr. Adewale Aladejan CEO and founder Sapphire Scents/Sapphire Group and don't let lack of finance or experience dissuade you from following your dreams.

from entrepreneur.com