Entrepreneurs Over 50 - Kemi Oloyede

Entrepreneurs Over 50 - Kemi Oloyede
I thought it would happen when I was much younger, but now my kids are older and I’m in a really good place head-wise and emotion-wise, and I’m at peace with myself.

Kemi first worked as a seamstress more than 20 years ago in a bridal store. She then moved on to become an art and textiles teacher in a high school. Around the time she started having children, she fell into a routine of 9-5, relying on a fixed salary, but she always had an inkling that she would like to start a business one day. For a long time, there was a room in her house that she filled, bit by bit, with scraps of fabric, threads and sewing equipment that she hoped to use when the right moment came…

One day, the school she worked at asked her to start teaching other subjects. This prompted her to leave her job. Around the time she turned 50, Kemi used a large chunk of her savings to set up Sew London Project. She would upcycle old and ‘unwanted’ fabrics into new garments and unique, quirky accessories. This became a brand called recyclothes.com. This was accompanied by the running of a sewing course.

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Because Kemi loves her work so much, she will often work from 9am til 8pm! She has also been known to work into the early hours of the morning, so she has to remind herself to stop working. She plans to hire a part time machinist to help with the growing demand.

She recently got in touch with a former student of hers, and arranged a skill-share. This student helped her get up and running on social media in exchange for sewing lessons.

2 years after launching her business, Kemi is making a profit!
https://imsewlondon.wordpress.com
Follow the link to see some of her creations and find out more about the project...