Alumni profile

Tobi Kolawole-Olutade made the most of every opportunity at Kent. During her Politics and International Relations degree, she studied abroad in Finland, worked abroad in India, completed a Year in Computing and even gained experience at 10 Downing Street. Keen to drive change, but not in the political arena, Tobi’s entrepreneurial creativity took shape when she joined ASPIRE’S Business Start-up Journey and started to develop her sustainable fashion brand and factory, Revival and Resurrection. Using regenerative and innovative design methods, Tobi’s initiative aims to tackle and prevent the rise of solid waste in Lagos, Nigeria by repurposing it into valuable products.

Tobi funds the development of her business by working as a freelance Digital Project Manager for high-profile brands such as Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein and Adidas: “My Year in Computing developed my knowledge of ecommerce and gave me the employability edge I needed to get going with my freelance career”.

Revival and Resurrection is now a thriving startup but Tobi’s long-term dream is to use her business to socially and economically empower vulnerable women and nonbinary people in Nigeria. Her advice to young entrepreneurs is simple: “There will be times when you’ll want to stop; take breaks but never give up.”

“I’m an advocate for the Business Start-up Journey. I still apply the skills I gained to my business, and my alumna links with ASPIRE have given me some great opportunities.”