HOW NKECHI HARRY-NGONADI BUILT NHN COUTURE INTO A BIG BRAND

Nkechi Harry Ngonadi is a big fashion designer in Lagos. She is the CEO of NHN Couture. She is a woman of many parts and a successful industry leader. She made her debut and caught much attention in the fashion industry with her slogan – Bringing Decency Back to Fashion with her brand NHN.

Nkechi Harry Ngonadi was born 18th November 1975, grew up in the ancient and beautiful city of Zaria in Kaduna State, where she lived most of her life. She attended the prestigious Ahmadu Bello University where she studied Urban and Regional Planning and today she is married to top military personnel - Rear Admiral Harry Ngonadi. The couple are parents to 2 children. 

CAREER

She is an Entrepreneur, Motivational speaker, and CEO of the fashion house – NHN Couture which a rare and unique brand which advocates strongly against indecent dressing in the fashion industry.

 She has been acknowledged by many leading publications for changing the narrative. This singular act has not just seen the NHN brand rise to the top but also seen it bridge the gap between fashion and the Christian faith using fashion as the major vehicle of the message. 

NHN: The Brand

Starting out with her first love – Fashion, Nkechi has been able to use this ever-evolving platform to educate, enrich and empower other womenfolk. A well-travelled woman, showcasing her fashion prowess and speaking at public engagements, Nkechi started her journey in 2015. 

She has since been featured on the cover edition of various top-shelf magazines in Nigeria, which has interviewed world-renowned personalities among other notable publications.

NHN: MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKER

Nkechi Harry Ngonadi aka NHN is a recipient of various awards. She was featured by the renowned Entrepreneur.com among the 11 AFRICAN ENTREPRENEURS changing the business landscape. 

NHN was also featured by BUSINESS ELITES AFRICA among the 30 AFRICA'S MOST POWERFUL WOMEN. 

Her strong business acumen saw her as a keynote speaker at the Lagos Enterprise Summit which was designed to bring top notch stakeholders –top government officials and seasoned entrepreneurs together to discuss ways in which the public sector can support the private sector and galvanize Job creation, with a focus on succeeding at doing business in Nigeria.

  

She has also been involved in quite a number of prominent social responsibility engagements like “The BETA Proposition organised by a prestigious banking institute seeking to address convenience and financial access to women in Africa and third world countries. 

The programme was also aimed at pulling down barriers to accessing formal financial services locally. Other speaking engagements include –The Hub which is a Global Business and Success Conference where she spoke on the secrets and principles needed to make businesses stay relevant in this generation. 

Other national and international speaking engagements include - The New Age influencer Fashionoreneurs, Ted X by a prestigious university – Covenant University ( 2017), The Women International Forum, Women Arise Conference, Leading Voices Africa ,  Youth Alive program, Women of Influence 2018 and many more to her credit.

Awards and Nominations

Nkechi Harry Ngonadi has been recognized both internationally & nationally for not just her contributions to fashion design but also in mentoring and women empowerment at large. 

Since her debut on the runway in Dubai in November 2015 which was a beauty to behold -as the rich display of fabrics showing Nigeria’s diverse culture were duly admired. In 2018, she received THE DESIGNER OF THE YEAR award at the Runway Dubai fashion show. 

At the same event, NHN used this global platform to highlight the struggles of the African women, using women who have overcome issues, emerging victorious. Some of these notable awards include Women of Praise Awards Uk(2016), 100 Nigeria’s Most Inspiring Women(2017), 

La Mode Magazine- Fashion designer of the year(2017), Social Media Change Agent of the year(2017), 30 Africa’s Most Powerful Women in Business(2017), 11 African Entrepreneurs Who are Changing the Business Landscape(2018), La Mode Magazine  - Inspiring Humanitarian of the year(2018), NAPS Outstanding Award of Excellence(2018), Honoree -Wheatle Peart Global Business Ball (2019)

Projects

In 2018, NHN launched the BE MORE Foundation, a platform of empowerment for the less privileged to be motivated through fashion. This saw the brand give out grants to over 40 businesses. Other NHN projects are The War Room and The Morning Declarations for both women, self-employed and entrepreneurs.