Growing up, Akindele Mabel Omowumi, loved creating something unique for family functions and community gatherings. She never imagined that passion would turn into a skill, and eventually a brand that now draws clients from far and wide.
By Eberechi Obinagwam
Growing up, Akindele Mabel Omowumi, loved creating something unique for family functions and community gatherings. She never imagined that passion would turn into a skill, and eventually a brand that now draws clients from far and wide.
“Whenever there was a function in my house, I always loved to create something unique – cutting fruits differently, trying to coordinate, and organizing the place in a special way. I was doing all of that and never knew there was a skill for it until I came across it on YouTube ten years ago,” she told TheNiche in an interview.
Ten years ago, Mabel, a B.Sc. holder in Business Administration from Imo State University, was scrolling through YouTube looking for something new when she stumbled on videos by Funke Bucknor-Obruthe, a big name in event planning and décor in Lagos.
“When I saw that there was a skill for this, I was amazed. I watched her videos but didn’t know where to start. I’m not a fan of online training, so I kept watching until I saw a post for physical training at Mev Academy and registered for a masterclass. Before then, I had already done an event for My Shepherd Church. Using what I knew and what I learned online, I handled their planning and décor, and it turned out well,” she said.
After completing a year of training and an internship, Mabel launched her brand, “Hanjoy Events,” in 2022. She began by offering free services and sharing content from those jobs on social media to attract clients.
Today, that brand, Hanjoy Events, has planned events for high-profile clients and has grown from humble beginnings into a household name.
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Capital
Mabel said she didn’t have challenges starting up her brand because the service she renders doesn’t require much capital. “But along the line you will need investment because you have to keep buying some equipment to elevate your skill that would make you better than others. So that was all I needed, and gradually, I started buying them little by little,” she said.
Challenges penetrating the market
“I have not yet broken into the market. But the little I have done has been challenging,” she said.
Mabel’s biggest challenge at the start was growing her following on social media and creating content that would attract clients. “I had to do free jobs. In fact, I did free jobs a lot just to create content that would make me visible. Adding motherhood to it was draining. But I didn’t give up, I kept on until I started getting paid jobs,” she said.
Experience
One of Mabel’s early challenges came from planning an event for a bride based outside Nigeria early this year. The wedding was to be held in Nigeria, so the bride hired Mabel directly. But things got complicated when the bride’s aunty began interfering. The aunty questioned every budget and step Mabel presented to the bride. It got so frustrating that Mabel felt she couldn’t continue.
“I had to call the bride because I was getting pissed off. First, the aunty was speaking to me in an uncouth manner. Then she started trying to renegotiate with the vendors I brought for the job. I called the bride and told her everything the aunty had been doing since the day I introduced myself as the event planner. I told her to decide if she was using me or her aunty for the event planning? I was even ready to refund her money. But the bride told me to go ahead. She made the payment. At the end of the day, the event was successful. The only part that flopped was what the aunty handled,” she said.
Mabel’s second experience happened in 2025. It came from a client in Lagos who needed an event planner and decorator for their father’s burial in Ondo. Because the client was based in Lagos, she initially doubted what a vendor in Ondo could offer.
Mabel had to go through a thorough interview process with other vendors before she got the job. “I didn’t know they would call me for it after the interview. It was like applying for a job in an oil company. I went through a series of interviews with other vendors, but I was surprised when they called me,” she said.
Even after getting the job, Mabel undercharged. The price she quoted for two days was what she normally charged for one day — and she didn’t realize how wealthy the family was.
The planning was also stressful because the client rarely responded on time, especially in emergencies. Throughout the first day, she never saw him smile.
“And I still charged them less than I should. The price I gave them for two days was my normal price for one day, and I didn’t know they were that rich,” she said.
“It was a lot of stress because my client wasn’t responding on time whenever I reached him for emergencies. And all through that period, I never saw him smile. But to my amazement, after the event on the first day, one of the family members dragged me to where my client was. He was like, ‘This lady has done an amazing job. You should add more money when you want to pay her o.’
And for the first time, I saw my client smile. He told his brother that the main day was tomorrow, and until then, he had nothing to say,” she said.
On the main day of the burial, Mabel’s work stood out. Guests kept asking who did the décor.
“It was then that I saw my client happy and smiling… he was even videoing me while I was dancing. At that point, the wife, who had been keeping a serious face, came and hugged me to say thank you for a job well done. I could not help but cry. It was tears of joy,” she said.
To show appreciation, the client gave Mabel several gifts after the event. “I was surprised when he went inside to pack so many gifts to say thank you, with smiles on his face. He was happy, and everyone at the event was happy. It taught me to always believe in myself, no matter what,” she said.
Breakthrough
Mabel’s first real breakthrough came in 2026 when she offered free services at an event. At that event, someone saw her work and gave her a contract to plan his dad’s birthday. “It was one of my contracts that encouraged me. Before then, I had been doing my content myself after each job, but I wasn’t taking it too seriously. I was doing free services, trying to sell myself, creating content and posting. After that contract, I employed a content creator for professionalism. That job just came with ease, and it boosted my confidence,” she said.
Business hurdles
According to Mabel, visibility and logistics remain her biggest hurdles. “Transporting my equipment to event centers costs more now because of the high cost of transportation, which is as a result of the current economic situation,” she said.
Japa
Mabel said every Nigerian has thought about “Japa” at some point. “There was a time, some years ago, when I was so curious to travel. But when it didn’t work out, I decided to just focus on my business. But as long as business keeps coming, I am staying here to build my brand and I can travel only for vacation,” she said.
The future
Mable is looking to introduce “Event Nanny” to her brand. Her reason is simple. Many guests want to come to parties and events with their children, but they worry about how distracting the kids might be. Because of that, some stay back, or leave their kids at home.
“I realized that some guests wish to bring their kids but they don’t because the children will be running around and disturbing. That automatically prevents them from having the fun they came for. Sometimes they even deny themselves events because of their kids,” she said.
She is also working to take her brand to a higher standard. “I have a particular goal in mind. There’s quite a lot I want to add to my brand to bring it up to standard, and I’ll be taking them one after the other. With an Event Nanny service, nursing mothers can drop their kids in a safe space within the hall and go enjoy themselves while the children are being taken care of. The kids won’t be in the hall disturbing,” she said.
About Mabel
Mabel is the Chief Executive Officer of Hanjoy Events. She first had her National Diploma in Banking and Finance at Rufus Giwa Polytechnic Owo. She later proceeded to Imo State University where she obtained a degree in Business Administration. She hails from Ondo state. Mabel trains people and has a team of workers.
