Adeniyi, in this interview unfolds how it all started and why she quit her bank job to start a business not yet acceptable in Nigeria 10 years ago. Excerpts:
In the beginning
Venivici started 10 years ago. Incidentally before then, I was in the corporate world, I always tell people this is a vision, a calling and my purpose in life. I’m passionate about ensuring that people live healthy lifestyle. I’m passionate about their wellbeing, I’m passionate about sharing with them what they can do to look younger and longer.
It’s not just about beauty because a lot of people will tell you they are going to the Spa maybe, indulgence, it’s just for the rich, it’s just for a certain class of people, but it’s just for everybody. If you care about yourself, you would go to a place where you can reduce the level of your stress because of the amount of pollution and toxins in you.
There’s something for everybody at Venivici. Male, female, young, old, white, black, yuppies and executives. If your health is important to you, you will do something about it. The money we use for some other indulgences more than what goes into treating and reducing certain stress and ailment. We don’t make any medical claim, but we ensure that people live healthy lifestyle, they are well, and they have more energy, the greatest challenge right now is pollution. That’s why people need to detoxify all the time. Everybody is just running helter skelter, every minute of the day is accounted for, so we don’t have time for ourselves. Most of the diseases that people complain about like hypertension, diabetes etc are all lifestyle ailment.
Leaving bank job
People felt for me. They were worried, some even cried, saying I think she had a problem. It’s not really about them, but you. No other person can determine your purpose in life. When God gives you a vision, you run with it. That’s why I keep saying, I’m led by God, I’m led by the Holy Spirit. It tells me what next to do. And sincerely, I don’t know the industry was this wide. Visions are given in stages, all the pictures you don’t get in one day. My mind was made up, I have sorted it out with God, I’m a Christian, and I can’t do anything on my own. Look at the story of Esther, in the Bible. The place those ladies were taken to for one year to be able to get one-day attention from the king, if you have seen that movie, it’s a Spa. Even in the Bible, this thing is relevant.
Acceptance
All I heard was, I do my facials in London; I do my massage in Selfridges and New York. People were skeptical and a lot of people were wondering how does she think a white man business would thrive in Nigeria. And I wonder why are white people the only wise one. Why should it be only the white people that will relieve stress, take care of their skin and why is it only the white people that will look nice. There was no encouragement from anywhere, but I knew it was a purpose that has been given to me to serve, to help people achieve wellness, so I just went ahead.
There was a disconnect but I’m happy those same people are happy with us now. They said this is commensurate with what they can get anywhere in the world. It is heartwarming. Even then, when some people walk into the Spa, they will tell you, this place belongs to a white person. A Nigerian can’t do this.
Memorable experience
The smiles on customers’ faces, when they come down the stairs after treatment. The hug you get, the thank you, the families we’ve built over the years because we have people who are faithful to us from day one. That shows we are doing something nice here. Those are very memorable moments for me, or when people stand in front of my office and they do the I feel good, tara ra ra ra ra ra, I think we just have to do a re-mix of that record of James Brown because virtually everybody sings this song when they are leaving and they don’t know each other.
So, it was not a planned thing. At different times during the day, I just heard the sound, I feel good, it’s either people standing in front of my office or in front of the mirror, just to show what they’ve been through. It’s a good and memorable moment; before six months into our operations, we got an award as market driven Spa of the year. I didn’t even know anybody knew we were around, they said we came into the market forcefully and aggressively. I just started and after six months, we got an award, that’s memorable. We have gotten an international award, Kwame Nkrumah; I had to go to Ghana to get that. Almost every year, we get the award as the Spa of the year. All that keeps us on our toes. Venivici as you know, means, “ I came and I conquer”. We are so customer eccentric, we are so conscious of them to get the best. Like I tell people, our goal is to continually evolve in the sanctuary of wellness for all, with the highest morale of ethics of service, quality and integrity.
Assessing Spa in Nigeria
A massage is a therapeutic treatment. Abroad, you have massage therapy attached to recovery unit because there is power in touch. A surgery that was done in a university teaching hospital in the US. There were two groups of people. The group that got regular massage after surgery they heal faster than the other sample group that didn’t get any massage. Abroad, you have massage therapy attached to hospital units. Then you also know that massage is one of the oldest therapies that are being practised all over the world for centuries. Every corner you turn to today, there is a massager going on. At the gym, on the plane if you go on Virgin Atlantic, you get some massage at the mall abroad, at shopping centers, it’s just second nature.
At the last Oil and Gas conference in Houston, Texas, US there were booths for massage therapy. It’s just a healing balm, it’s very therapeutic and it’s been used for centuries. A mind before a massage is weary disturbed, in pain but after massage, you find that it is calm, emotionally challenge is taken care of, he’s peaceful and he’s at rest.
Our touch is with boundary and we are licensed to touch. It’s not just a frivolous touch, we are talking about therapy. You need to do anatomy and physiotherapy to know. It’s not a frivolous touch that one girl is touching me, it’s like you going to a female doctor or a woman going to a male doctor, so this is a therapeutic touch with boundaries. Touch has been found to be very therapeutic, touch is comforting, it’s reassuring. Look at the Roman Empire, the Roman soldiers before they were sent to war, history has it that they were put in a sauna, gave a massage before they go to war. It gives energy. If they have the wisdom to enjoy it, why won’t Nigerians just take preventive measures? It is natural, it has no side effects and there is no chemical effect.
Regret
I wish I had been brave enough to leave my corporate world earlier than I did. I was holding on to that. This is more pleasurable. You are making a positive difference in peoples’ lives. I wish I had the courage to do it earlier.
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