MAKI OH FINAL
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Transcript of MAKI OH FINAL
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2
I N T R O D U C T I O N ..................................................................................... 4
B R A N D A U D I T ............................................................................................ 5
B R A N D D E V E L O P M E N T A N D S T R A T E G Y .......... 18
B R A N D P E R F O R M A N C E & M E T R I C S ....................... 25
C O N C L U S I O N ............................................................................................ 28
Appendix 1 ................................................................................................................ 35
Appendix 2 ................................................................................................................ 37
Appendix 3 ................................................................................................................ 38
Appendix 4 ................................................................................................................ 40
Appendix 5 ................................................................................................................ 42
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I N T R O D U C T I O N
Maki Oh, founded by Amaka Osakwe in 2010 is a Lagos
based luxury fashion label with designs steeped in
culture and with ancient spirit and meaning at its
core. The brand’s designs have strong feminist
undertones, inspired by the female form and
sensuality. They also seek to bring to the
forefront traditional dyeing techniques and
Nigerian fabrics, in particular Adire (Appendix 1).
Maki oh endeavours to promote sustainability by
utilising this fabric as the signature of the
brand. It is believed that Maki Oh found the last
person still carrying out the traditional handmade
process. They reinvented it for their brand using
silk as opposed to cotton (Menkes, 2012).
In 2012 Maki Oh debuted during New York Fashion week
and since numerous editorials have been written with
Maki Oh being heralded as a brand with extraordinary
potential by publications such as Vogue and the New
York Times.
The brand has garnered support from many prominent
personalities including, Michelle Obama, Leelee
Sobieski, Beyonce, Rihanna and Lupita N’yongo.
The Maki Oh design ethos
challenges prevailing notions of
beauty and analyses cultural
norms through a womanist lens
Amaka Osakwe
5
B R A N D A U D I T
Brand Inventory
&
Brand Exploratory
6
B R A N D I N V E N T O R Y
Key milestones | Achievements
2012 began showing at NYFW
ARISE Young designer of the year award
Stocked at New York Based Maryam Nassir Sayed
2014 LVMH Young Designer Semi Finalist
First African Designer invited to the White House celebration of Design
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B R A N D E L E M E N T S
Brand name and Logo: The name is a play on the
first name and surname of the founder Amaka Osakwe.
The logo is simple and effective utilising all-caps
which aesthetically symbolises boldness and
authority. The typeface portrays an amalgamation of
modernity and ancient African symbolism.
The logo however is not prominent on the pieces and can only be seen
on the inner labels.
Products: Maki Oh offers shirts, trousers, dresses, skirts, shorts,
jumpsuits and jackets.
Signature print: Adire used in every collection
Pricing: High end pricing in line with the luxury fashion sector.
$520 $1, 520
Ancient Ghanaian Symbols NKYINKYIM and NEA ONNIM NO SUA A, OHU (Koutonin, 2013) Modern and minimal font, Montserrat (montserrat.zkysky.com, 2012)
8
Communications: Maki OH has little
online presence. There is an
Instagram page, which is updated
somewhat regularly and a Twitter
account that has not been active
since 2015. There is no website,
Facebook page or blog.
Each season, Maki OH’s latest
collection is featured on Vogue.com
with images of each piece and a
short editorial.
In addition to this, there are a
number of artistic videos online
corresponding to Maki Oh
Collections, these are featured on
Vogue.com, YouTube and Vimeo.
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Promotion: At present, Maki Oh has not carried out any marketing
campaigns or advertising.
A large amount of Maki OH’s publicity stems from celebrity clients
wearing pieces to functions and events. Recently Maki Oh obtained
product placement in Beyoncé’s latest visual Album LEMONADE.
BEYONCE AMANDLA STENBURG
SOLANGE
LUPITA N ‘YONG’ O
MICHELLE OBAMA LEELEE SOBIESKI
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Stockists: Maki Oh has only been stocked in four places. Two
showrooms/concept stores and two niche online retailers.
ALARA - Lagos (Currently)
Maryam Nassir Sayed – New York
(Previously)
Oxosi.com (Currently)
Totokaelo.com (Previously)
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Brand Characteristics:
The brand identity centres around three main themes
The juxtaposition of African traditional design with western
silhouettes
Utilising African fabric and dyeing techniques to promote
sustainability
Feminist undertones
The Brand Personality Framework developed by Aaker (1997) provides
insight into the human characteristics associated with a brand. This
is key to differentiating a brand within its product category as
well as understanding how brands are perceived and the types of
consumers they attract.
The two dimensions of brand personality that Maki Oh exhibits are
excitement and sophistication. This can be gleaned from press
releases regarding Maki Oh often utilising words such as “dazzling”
“stunning” “exciting”, “sleek”, “charming”, “quirky”, and “chic.
Brand Personality
Sincerity
Down to earth
Honest
Wholesomness
Cheerfulness
Excitement
Daring
Spritedness
Imagination
Conteporary
Competence
Reliability
Intelligence
Success
Sophistication
Class
Charm
Ruggedness
Masculinity
Toughness
Figure 1 Brand Personality Framework (Aaker, 1997)
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Competitors:
Appendix 1 details the profiles of Maki OH’s key competitors. These
are other African luxury brands with a similar price range and
design style. These brands have also made a global impact and
particularly in the US where Maki Oh is gaining traction.
Figure 2 shows that Maki Oh is at present the most exclusive of the
brands within its category and on the high end in terms of pricing.
Figure 2 Competitor Perceptual Mapping
Exclusivity Mass Market
High Price
Affordability
13
In relation to these competitors, Points-of-Parity (POPs) and
Points-of-Difference (PODs) have been highlighted in figure 3:
PODs
- Use of a signature material in all collections (Adire)
-High Profile clientele
- No advertisments (Niche/Luxury Strategy)
- Focus on reviving traditional fabric dying techniques
- Consitent brand theme -feminism
POPs
- Afrocentric design with western motifs
- Showing at major fashion weeks (LFW NYFW)
- Premium Pricing
- Multiple stockists
Figure 3 POPs and PODs (Keller, Sternthal & Tybout, 2002)
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B R A N D E X P L O R A T O R Y
Primary Research and Analysis
15
BRAND EXPLORATORY
To understand the current brand situation primary research (Appendix
2) was conducted in the form of a survey with qualitative and
quantitative questions. There were around 50 participants and all
participants were people between the ages of 18-55 who stated they
had an “interest in African fashion”.
The research highlighted that Maki Oh has very low brand awareness
5% of respondents were able to recall Maki Oh when asked to
list 5 African fashion brands with no prompt.
20% of respondents selected Maki Oh as one of the brands they
had heard of when presented with a list of 7 African fashion
brands.
Maki Oh was the 4th most recognized brand on the list of 7
10% recognized the brands clothing when shown pictures of
celebrities wearing it
38% of respondents recognized the fabric Adire when shown a
picture of it. Only 3% were able to state the name of the
fabric.
As can be seen from the data gathered Maki Oh has very low brand
awareness with low ease of recall and recognition of the brand and
its products.
When respondents were asked to describe what they associate with a
luxury fashion brand common responses included:
In addition to this, respondents were asked to choose from a list of
features associated with luxury items, which features were most
important to them.
The top 3 were:
1. Style
2. Craftsmanship
3. Quality
EXPENSIVE | EXCLUSIVE | STYLE | UNIQUE | ELEGANT | CLASSY
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Resonance
Judgements
Feelings
Performance
Imagery
Brand Salience
Critical concerns
From the data gathered and as
can be seen in figure 2 Maki
OH’s critical concern is a lack
of brand salience.
From a psychological perspective
the word salience describes the
ability of an item to “stand out
from the background” (Guido,
1998). This transcends from
psychology to business in that
it is the crucial first step in
creating sustainable brand
equity.
Maki Oh should take steps to
showcase the uniqueness of the
brand and its products against
competitors (Rosenbaum-Elliot,
Percy and Pervan, 2015).
Figure 4 Brand Equity Pyramid (Keller et al. 2012)
B
R
A
N
D
E
Q
U
I
T
Y
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Opportunities
There are also a number of opportunities that Maki Oh can
capatalise on.
Consumers associate craftsmanship with a luxury item they
would buy. Maki OH’s branding focuses heavily on craftsmanship
and fabric dyeing techniques
Maki Oh’s impressive clientele list presents promotional
opportunities and potential for further brand exposure
Maki OH’s signature
fabric is recognizable
to consumers and in
relation to competitors
Maki Oh is the only
brand with a consistent
signature look.
Research has shown that
consumers tend to favor
brands that are seen as
Sustainable or
environmentally
responsible (Charter,
Peattie, Ottman, &
Polonsky, 2002). Maki Oh
has a strong focus on
sustainable production
methods.
Exclusivity was a word that consumers mentioned when
discussing the attributes of luxury brands. Out of all of the
brands, Maki Oh is the most exclusive as finding out where to
obtain products is extremely difficult (Appendix 5). This can
work in Maki OH’s favor if leveraged properly.
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B R A N D D E V E L O P M E N T A N D S T R A T E G Y
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Figure 5 Example Video Campaign Promotion
Maki OH’s primary issue is at the level of Brand Salience.
Maki oh should maintain its base in Lagos but focus on expanding
within the US market beginning with New York, a fashion capital.
Maki Oh can also tap into the recent sociocultural movement amongst
African Americans and multicultural peoples of being increasingly
concerned with ancestry and social issues and growing ethnocentrism
(appendix 4).
There are 2 strategies suggested revolving around brand aesthetics,
symbolism and identity.
1. Integrated Marketing Communications - Focused communications and increased online presence
Maki Oh should create a visually appealing website. Whilst the brand
may be ensuring exclusivity is a part of their positioning, it is
important that there is a place where information about the brand is
gathered in one place.
a. Avoid traditional advertising – Maki Oh seeks to maintain
its niche and luxury positioning therefore traditional
advertising is not necessary. Advertisement can be carried out
by seeking out suitable situations for product placement i.e.
music videos, films and sending out products to celebrities
that the brand would like to be associated with (appendix 3).
b. Video campaigns – In addition to
videos promoting new collections,
these videos should continue to be
artistic in nature, focusing on
humanistic advertising - promoting the
ethos of the brand and not just the
products.
Communications should focus on meaning
The meaning of a brand is an important
aspect in consumer decision making as
often consumers look for brands whose
meanings tie in with aspects of self
(Belk 1988; Ahmad & Thyagaraj, 2014).
Therefore, all communications should
revolve around:
Feminism
Ethical fashion
African culture and heritage.
Promoting the notion of the
“Maki Oh Woman”
This will ensure that Maki Oh
communicates the brand identity. As
consumer purchases are non-
dichotomous, these videos will appeal
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Figure 6 Experience Realms (Pine & Gilmore, 1998)
to both rationale and emotion by
displaying brand products and themes
that consumers can identify with.
(Meenaghan, 1995).
2. Tap into the experience economy
Brand experiences have great economic benefit to a company and
brands must become increasingly aware of creating engaging
experiences that will in turn increase revenue (Pine & Gilmore,
1998).
The Experience Realm Framework (figure 6) enables an
understanding of the types of experiences brands can create and
how it affects the consumer.
An experience can combine one or more realm and for Maki Oh the
entertainment, aesthetic and educational realms can be utilised to
create consumer engagement.
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Figure 7 Example invitations/flyers for Maki Oh events
Figure 8 Example event venues
a. EVENT TYPE 1 - Invitation only social events
Entertainment and Aesthetic Realm | Passive absorption and immersion
For a luxury brand, the experience
is fundamental as consumers seek a
brand that relates in some way to
their lifestyle. Experiential
marketing follows Schmitt and
Simonson’s (1997) expressions to
impressions framework and creates
tangible and interactive
experiences, reinforcing the brand
identity (Atwal & Williams, 2009).
Maki Oh can host private events
with targeted guest lists.
These events should:
Have a cohesive and compelling theme, design and pieces available
for purchase. Should not give the
impression of a sales event but an
engaging experience to provide
consumers with a strong impression
of the Maki Oh brand identity.
Have consistent cues – beginning each event with “Welcome to the
Maki Oh Experience” or a similar
phrase to set the stage for a
unique experience (Pine II &
Gilmore, 1998)
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Figure 9 Memorabilia + Photo (Photo edited from fashiontographer.com, 2013)
Be heavily photographed and shared on social media to create intrigue
and desire in consumers, tapping
into those who see their “desired or
ideal self” in the event (Solomon,
Bamossy, Askegaard, & Hogg, 2006).
Obtain press coverage in publications that will reach the
target market, i.e. Vogue, Nylon,
Vanity Fair, i-D etc.
Provide meaningful memorabilia –branded bags with Adire samples.
Maki Oh can utilise a photo booth
with a catchy hashtag. Photo
booths have become increasingly
popular at high-end events.
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b. EVENT TYPE 2 – Workshops and Talks
Educational and Esthetic Realm | Active absorption and Passive immersion
Maki Oh and Friends – A series of discussions
The Maki Oh woman is a deep thinker therefore Maki Oh can provide
spaces for discussion about social issues to do with feminism and
culture.
These events will feature the Maki Oh founder and other women who
have a level of expertise on the topic being discussed.
These will:
Enable education and dialogue about Maki OH’s ethos and design inspiration.
Educate consumers on Maki Oh’s African heritage and in particular on the origins of Adire, promoting interest in Maki
Oh’s signature fabric.
Create an avenue to learn about the brand and also purchase products.
Figure 10 Example Maki Oh and Friends flyer
24
These two types of events will enable Maki Oh to utilise strategic
experiential modules (SEMs) (Schmidtt, 1999)
THINK – Discussion and workshop events on social issues, appealing
to consumer’s intellect.
FEEL – Empowering women, promoting feminism and equality, engaging
with the consumer’s emotions.
ACT- Motivating consumers to aspire to becoming the “Maki Oh woman”
through the events, gathering together inspiring socially conscious
women.
SENSE- Events will incorporate all 5 senses; sight through beautiful
spaces, clothing and décor at each event, smell and taste through
food and drink centred events, sound through music that will appeal
to target market and touch through hands on workshops and browsing
clothing.
RELATE – Consumers at these events or experiencing the event
vicariously through social media will see aspects of their ideal
self, actual self or desired self in the “Maki Oh woman”.
Through these two brand development strategies consumers will have a
holistic brand experience that stimulates both the head and the
heart and makes Maki Oh a part of their lifestyle (Schmidtt, 1999).
25
B R A N D P E R F O R M A N C E & M E T R I C S
26
To measure the success of the brand strategies suggested, perception
and performance metrics will be utilised.
As was ascertained previously, the primary concern is brand
salience. Activities will be carried out to measure this at the
customer mind-set level and market performance level of the value
chain shown in figure 11.
Customer Mindset
This is to measure whether customers are aware of Maki Oh and what
their perception of it is.
A range of techniques will be employed to assess this:
Calculating reach and frequency metrics o Monitoring cookies: the number of unique visitors to the
site and Search Engine Optimisation
o Measuring views and shares on video content
o Monitoring general online presence
Surveying consumers o A similar survey that was utilised within this report
will be carried out again to measure awareness and
associations.
Aim to see: o Increased web traffic
o Increased reviews on independent blogs and websites
o Increased traffic to online stockists
o Significant increase in awareness of the brand (recall)
o Significant increase in awareness of designs when shown
images of brand elements (recognition)
o Positive associations in line with central brand themes
and characteristics.
Marketing campaign
Investement
Customer Mindset
Market Performance
Shareholder Value
Figure 11 Brand Value Chain (Keller, 2012)
27
Market Performance
This is to measure how the brand is performing and increasing equity
for Maki Oh.
Measuring brand loyalty
o Repeat customers
Measuring new customers
o Increasing attendees at each event
o New brand ambassadors – celebrities or otherwise
Measuring revenue
o Significant increase in revenue due to more sales
following increased brand awareness
Measuring market share
o Maki Oh should become the go-to African brand within the
luxury segment
28
C O N C L U S I O N
29
Maki Oh is a brand with significant potential. Through integrated
marketing communications and experiential marketing, Maki Oh can
improve its current levels of brand salience.
By ensuring that consumers can easily understand the values that
underpin this brand - feminism, sustainability and African culture,
attachment to the brand and what it stands for can be achieved. This
can then be further developed by events, ensuring a holistic brand
experience where the consumer can be immersed in and absorb the Maki
Oh experience.
Increasing levels of brand awareness and a clear brand image will
increase the potential of Maki Oh being the brand of choice within
its segment and build sustainable equity.
30
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35
Appendix 1
BACKGROUND ON ADIRE
Adire is a resist-dyed cloth produced and worn by the Yoruba people
of southwestern Nigeria in West Africa. The Yoruba label adire,
which means "tied and dyed," was first applied to indigo-dyed cloth
decorated with resist patterns around the turn of the twentieth
century. With the introduction of a broader colour palette of
imported synthetic dyes in the second half of the twentieth century,
the label "Adire" was expanded to include a variety of hand-dyed
textiles using wax resist batik methods to produce patterned cloth
in a dazzling array of dye tints and hues.
(Wolff, 2006)
MAKI OH COMPETITOR PROFILES
Loza Maleombho
Base: Côte d’Ivoire
Products: clothing, jewellery, shoes and
accessories.
Stocked: Alara Lagos, oxosi,com, UK and US
showrooms, lozamalembho.com
Brands: Loza Maleombho and LMLM label (cheaper
line extension)
Promotion/Press: Website, Facebook, twitter,
Instagram.
Duro Olowu
Base: London UK
Products: clothing, jewellery, shoes and
accessories.
Stocked: Selfridges, Moda Operandi, Lagos
flagship store
Brands: Individual brand
Promotion: Website, Facebook, Instagram,
Deola Sagoe
Base: Lagos
Products: clothing, jewellery, shoes and
accessories.
Stocked: Alara Lagos, oxosi,com, UK and US
showrooms, lozamalembho.com
Brands: Individual brand
Promotion: Website, Facebook, twitter,
Lisa Folawiyo
Base: Lagos
Products: clothing, jewellery, shoes and
accessories.
Stocked: Selfridges, Moda Operandi, Lagos
36
flagship store
Brands: Individual brand
Promotion: Website, Facebook, twitter,
Instagram, Tumblr
Lanre Da Silva
Ajayi
Base: Lagos
Products: clothing, jewellery, shoes and
accessories.
Stocked: DOLCE & GABBANA,Yoox.com, 41 LUXE,
Temple Muse, Lanre Da Silva Flagship Boutique
Brands: Individual Brand
Promotion: Website, Facebook, twitter,
37
Appendix 2
Survey questions
Survey powered by Google forms
1. What is your country of origin?
2. Please select your gender
3. How old are you?
4. What is your occupation?
5. Please use three words to describe luxury fashion?
6. What do you think is most important when buying a luxury
fashion item?
7. Would you describe yourself as interested in African fashion?
8. Please list up to 5 African fashion brands that come to mind
9. Are you aware of these African fashion brands (Please select
all that apply)
10. These celebrities are all wearing clothes from an African
Fashion brand. Do you know the name of the brand?
11. If yes please state the brand
12. Prior to taking this survey had you ever heard of the brand
Maki Oh?
13. Do you recognise the fabric shown?
14. If yes, please state the name if you can.
38
Appendix 3
The Maki Oh Woman
“I believe that the woman wearing Maki Oh thinks much further and
deeper than the physical, because she is a multifaceted woman who
projects her whole being in everything she does, and in the clothes
she wears.”
“Every Maki Oh collection has been inspired by women, from street-
workers to nuns. If you love women, then I believe you can’t help
but be a feminist too. Maki Oh collections all express feminist
views in different doses.”
– Amaka Osakwe in an interview with the ManRepeller.com (Syrett &
Diamond, 2013)
The Maki Oh Woman STP profile
The Affluent Creative The Trendy
Professional
Demographics FEMALE
22-55
HIGH INCOME
EDUCATED
AFRICAN, AFRICAN AMERICAN, MIXED
ETHNICITY
WORKS OR OWNS BUSINESS WITHIN
CREATIVE INDUSTRY:
MARKETING/ADVERTIS
ING/FASHION/DESIGN
ETC.
FEMALE
22-55
HIGH INCOME
EDUCATED
AFRICAN, AFRICAN AMERICAN,MIXED
ETHNICITY
PROFESSIONAL WITHIN ANY
INDUSTRY, CAREER
DRIVEN
Psychographics
OPINIONATED, ENTREPRENURIAL,
SOCIAL BUTTERFLY, ENJOYS NETWORKING
AND PARTIES
KEEPS UP WITH CURRENT AFFAIRS
PARTICULARLY IN
THE FASHION, ART
OPINIONATED, CAREER DRIVEN
SOCIALITE, ENJOYS
NETWORKING AND
EVENTS
KEEPS UP WITH CURRENT AFFAIRS
PARTICULARLY
39
AND MUSIC SCENE
TRENDSETTER HOWEVER AVOIDS
MAINSTREAM
READS FASHION BLOGS AND
MAGAZINES SUCH AS
VOUGUE, I-D
INTERESTED IN
WOMEN IN
BUSINESS AND
LEADERSHIP
CONCERNED WITH APPEARANCE,
FASHIONABLE
READS GLOSSY MAGAZINES AND
BUSINESS
PUBLICATIONS,
VOGUE, ADWEEK,
VANITY FAIR,
FAST COMPANY
Geographic AMERICA, NEW YORK
NIGERIA, LAGOS
AMERICA, NEW YORK
NIGERIA, LAGOS
40
Appendix 4
Sociocultural trends in America amongst multicultural people and
African Americans
THE BLACK SOCIAL MEDIA MOVEMENT: IMPACTFUL, CULTURAL AND BOLD
In today’s digital age, online social networks have become the
virtual water cooler, where all consumers exchange ideas, feelings,
aspirations and plans. African-Americans are notably active on
social media. In fact, blacks earning more than $75,000 spend an
average of about 15 hours and 30 minutes on Facebook each month. In
addition, blacks are using social networks to become their own
publishers, sharing news and bringing widespread awareness to social
issues and trends.
The #BlackTwitter phenomenon has become a platform full of cultural
humour, entertainment, breaking news and trends, fed by an
influential cluster of users who consistently drive global trending
topics and cultural conversations.
Multicultural consumers are the fastest growing segment of the U.S.
population. Already over 120 million strong and increasing by 2.3
million per year,
Multicultural consumers are transforming the U.S. mainstream.
Propelled by the twin engines of population growth and expanding
buying power, they are at the leading edge of converging demographic
41
and social trends that are reshaping how marketers and advertisers
use culture to connect with increasingly diverse customers.
Empowered and culture-driven shoppers, who over-index on a
wide range of products and services.
Younger than the rest of the population, they are trendsetters
and tastemakers across a broad range of categories, from food
and beverage to beauty products.
In their prime, multicultural consumers are starting families,
making plans and establishing long-term brand relationships.
Expressive and inclusive, which very often allows
multicultural consumers to simultaneously maintain their
cultural heritage and see themselves as part of the new
mainstream, allowing them to mix and match endless choices and
products to suit their effortless duality in lifestyles and
tastes.
Connected and mobile savvy, multicultural consumers use their
smartphones and other devices at much higher rates and more
intensely than their non-multicultural counterpart
All above information from (Nielsen,com, 2015)
42
Appendix 5
Figure 12 Comments discussing the inaccessibility of Maki Oh on Popular Nigerian
Blog "Bella Naija" (Obiuwevbi, 2015)