Glo founder and Nigerian business titan Dr. Mike Adenuga’s influence extends far beyond the realms of business. His deep-rooted passion for the arts, particularly literature, has seen him forge a remarkable friendship with the global literary icon: Wole Soyinka, the first African to win the prestigious Nobel Prize in Literature in 1986.
Soyinka and Adenuga share a mutual admiration underpinned in the power of the written word. Their friendship is a good study on the intersection of business acumen and literary brilliance. It’s a friendship that has enriched the lives of both men who are leaders and icons in their respective fields.
The story of the friendship goes back over two decades ago, when Nigeria’s nascent telecoms brand Glo was making its belated entry into the Nigerian market and Adenuga was looking for the big bang. He was looking for a world-class television commercial to usher in Glo, his telecoms brand that gave birth to the nationalistic catchphrase “glo with pride” that was on every lips.
In the Nobel Prize laureate Wole Soyinka, Mike Adenuga, a marketing guru who, in the words of his elder brother Demola Adenuga “can sell ice to Eskimos,” had found an ideal figure to present Glo to the world. An acceptable Nigerian global icon. A man who represents the face and the mind of Nigeria. A man who is intelligent, outspoken and fearless. A man who symbolizes excellence. A man who can be proudly sold to the world as an authentic Nigerian heroic brand. A man whose qualities can be transferred to brand Glo in the battle to be the best in the crowded and highly competitive telecoms marketplace. As a marketing guru, Adenuga understands the power of branding. He is familiar with the concept of celebrity testimonial and the effect it can have, not just on the bottom line, but in building brand equity. In terms of brand synergy, Adenuga and Soyinka are two famous brands with a common past rooted in Ibadan. As a kid growing up in Ibadan, the city of his birth, Mike Adenuga had been a long-time admirer of Wole Soyinka, the avant garde writer, literary hero and radical who seized a radio station to protest election rigging. In 1986, Adenuga was among the millions of Nigerians who jubilated when Soyinka put Nigeria on the world map as the winner of the coveted literary prize.
Each time Soyinka was in Lagos, he often stayed with his old student and friend Dr. Yemi Ogunbiyi at his Victoria Island residence. One evening, Ogunbiyi was at home dining with Soyinka when Adenuga walked in. He prostrated before Soyinka in the proper Yoruba tradition of greeting an elder respectfully. Soyinka was impressed. He liked him instantly for the show of respect and humility. As for the idea of doing a TV commercial which Adenuga strategically explained as his reason for coming, Soyinka had to ask for some time to go sleep over the request. He wasn’t going to commit himself until he conducted his own investigation about who Adenuga really is. It was at a time when Mike Adenuga had not fully become a household name. Among those Soyinka spoke to was his trusted friend the late Chief Bode Akindele, a billionaire industrialist and chairman of the Madandola Group and Fairgate Properties. It was Chief Akindele who encouraged Soyinka to assist Adenuga, saying: “Anything you can do to help this young man, please do it. He deserves to be helped.”
Soyinka was very impressed, such that later on, when I was interviewing him for a book on Adenuga, he painted this glowing portrait of Adenuga: “He is a young entrepreneur I have come to admire. I like his drive. He sought me out when he was about to begin his Globacom business. I thereafter made enquiries about him. I was actually told by somebody whose judgement I respect that Mike Adenuga is somebody with enormous drive and ideas and he said I should give him much help as I could. I checked him out and I discovered that he likes challenges, he has the drive to deliver. I have tried to support him by appearing in a couple of his TV commercials. The first commercial which aired on CNN was about an imaginative theme. And I like people who use imaginative themes or creative ideas in business. The question to me was: What is it that makes you glo(w)? Adenuga was targeting important people and the idea was that he was trying to use people with high profile to launch a challenge against the monopolists in the GSM business. The monopoly being enjoyed in the business then by some operators who are from outside the country was scandalous. And Globacom being a Nigerian brand owned by a Nigerian who loves challenge, I decided to support him. I actually backed the idea of a strong Nigerian communication company. I thought it was a great idea doing the advertisement for him.”
Dr. Ogunbiyi whom I also interviewed recalls that the TV commercial was shot outside Nigeria. According to him, “They went to London together for the shooting. It was a whole day affair and Soyinka enjoyed it all. He is quite fond of Mike Adenuga. He likes his company, he enjoys his company and they get on very well. It’s just that sometimes Mike does a lot of disappearing acts. You see Mike today, tomorrow you don’t see him again for a while. And Prof doesn’t like that. You can’t reach him when you want to. But he is very fond of him when he sees him. The ad was something quite new, fresh and different, coming from Prof Soyinka, the Nobel Prize laureate to speak out for this project. It made a lot of impact because Soyinka is a well-known face internationally. And for him to put his name to this meant a lot for Globacom.”
Ogunbiyi is happy that “Globacom’s growth has been phenomenal. I think it’s one of the most recognized brands in our country today. Initially when Mike came with the name Glo, I didn’t like it. I told him it didn’t sound well and he said: ‘No, people would come to like it.’ And in the end, he was right. Over time, the Glo thing stuck and people love it. I think Glo is one of the finest things a Nigerian ever did for our country. I am so proud of him. No other Nigerian has done telecoms business on that scale. And we ought to be proud of Mike Adenuga. The brand has done very well. Mike, naturally, is very passionate about building the brand Glo. He is always talking about Glo and where he would see it go. Mike obviously understands marketing and brand building. You can see marketing and branding in action. He is the champion of the brand and he drives it. I want to see it become Africa’s largest telecoms company. Nigeria deserves that kind of image. I want Globacom to become a key player in the world at large. That is where I want Globacom to be. That is where I hope it would be.”
Share your story or advertise with us: Whatsapp: +2347068606071 Email: info@newspotng.com
