Twenty-three year old Oluwafemi Coker is the Chief Executive Officer of Cokard Creative Agency. He spoke with COMFORT OSEGHALE on how he transformed his talents into a productive venture

What does Cokard Creative Agency do?

Cokard is a creative agency that does communication design. Communication design comprises graphic designs, web designs and experiential advertising including social media adverts for small businesses. I have always been an art person. I draw and paint. Even in secondary school, I was the only science student who took Visual Arts in my school. I had to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the school in the event that the Visual Arts classes interfered with my studies; they wouldn’t take responsibility because it wasn’t part of my science subjects. I went so far as to take the subject at the level of the West African Senior School Certificate Examination and National Examinations Council. Unfortunately, I didn’t study Creative Arts for my first degree.

My plan was to study the subject at the University of Benin or Ife but I had already waited for a year at home. So, it then happened that I was admitted at the Redeemer’s University to study Tourism at a time when I had not been called up for post JAMB either by UNIBEN or OAU, Ife. I did not want to lose the chance although I knew Tourism was not my career path.

Even at that, I read up all the books I could find on creative arts. I started studying the works of industry giants in creative arts. As an undergraduate, I made money from arts, designing logos, handbills and flyers for departmental and students’ associations. I would use the extra money I made to augment my pocket money. That was how I coined the name of the company because my friends called the cards I designed Coker cards.

When you decided to take creative arts as a career, did you go for any training?

Yes I did. I read a lot from online tutorials, books and then I got mentors who were already established in the field of creative arts. I tried to master the craft and started doing jobs for people free of charge. That helped sharpen my skills and made me better at what I did. When the job I was doing became actually good enough, I started charging for it. The whole time I worked for people without charge lasted two year and a half years; it started from school. I had already got a followership from school through friends who knew I was into creative designs.

My career actually kicked off during my National Youth Service Corps. I started working with big brands. I met people and discovered that what I did was valuable. It was a profitable career. After my NYSC, although I did a couple of jobs, I was determined to start my own company. I made the decision because I felt a lot of companies were too rigid. Things were often streamlined to a particular way and I couldn’t express myself creatively. I didn’t want that hindrance. Moreover, the kind of job that I did was not the type I could get gratuity for after retirement even though I was working for a company. That was when I decided there was no better time to start off than that moment.

When did you start your company?

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