The Egbeda-based creative ecosystem celebrates an award-winning first
year and expands its vision to build the skills, structures, businesses
and opportunities behind Africa’s creative economy.
LAGOS, Nigeria – 20th October, 2026 – Loom Rooms, the
Egbeda-based creative ecosystem founded by creative-economy strategist
Shola Bamidele, is marking its first anniversary with a five-year plan
focused on helping African creatives move from creating work to
understanding, protecting, owning and building sustainable businesses
around what they create.
Founded in response to a persistent gap in Africa’s rapidly expanding
creative economy, Loom Rooms was built around a simple premise: talent
alone is not enough. While Africa has developed a globally recognised
creative culture across music, film, fashion, photography, design,
broadcasting and digital media, many emerging creatives continue to
navigate the industry without the business knowledge, professional
networks and structures needed to turn creative ability into sustainable
careers and enterprises.
Contracts, intellectual property, publishing, brand development, company
formation, commercial strategy and access to the right opportunities can
ultimately determine who benefits from creative success. Loom Rooms was
created to help close that gap by connecting creatives to people,
knowledge and opportunities while creating an environment where
different disciplines can collaborate and develop alongside one another.
Loom Rooms’ location in Egbeda is central to that approach. While much
of Lagos’ established creative and commercial infrastructure is
concentrated in familiar districts, significant creative communities are
developing elsewhere. Loom Rooms was established in Alimosho, Lagos
State, to demonstrate that access to creative infrastructure and
professional opportunity should not depend on where a person lives.
The first year has produced results across music, broadcasting, film,
enterprise and live experiences. An emerging artist from the community
received the PME New Wave Award, while a single released through the
ecosystem has reached listeners in more than 70 countries. A broadcaster
developed within the Loom Rooms community has gone on to present on
major radio platforms, while other members have taken practical steps
towards formalising their careers and businesses through brand
development, web development, company registration and trademarking. The
ecosystem has also launched a recurring live platform creating
opportunities for emerging singers, hosts and podcasters to develop
their work, build audiences and gain real-world experience.
Speaking on the milestone, Shola Bamidele, Founder and CEO of Loom
Rooms, said: “We are proud of what Loom Rooms has achieved in its
first year, but the first year was never the destination. It was proof
of concept. We have seen what happens when talent is given structure,
mentorship, community and business knowledge, and the next question is
how we turn that into an institution that can keep producing
opportunity.
“Over the next five years, we want to help creatives understand what
they own, protect what they create, build businesses around their
abilities and eventually become employers themselves. We want someone
who enters Loom Rooms as a young creative to eventually return as a
founder, mentor, employer, investor or industry leader.” Bamidele
added.
Over the next five years, Loom Rooms will focus on three priorities.
- Ownership: The ecosystem will expand its work around the business of
creativity, helping creatives and creative businesses understand and
navigate intellectual property, contracts, publishing, brand protection,
company formation, commercialisation and access to markets. - New creative frontiers: Loom Rooms will expand its development
programmes into disciplines it believes will increasingly shape
Africa’s creative exports, including sound design, animation, gaming
and documentary, alongside its existing work across music, media,
performance, fashion, film and digital creativity. - Creatives becoming employers: The ecosystem will support alumni and
emerging creative businesses to move from individual practice into
enterprise, building registered businesses, developing teams and
eventually creating opportunities for other young people in Egbeda,
Alimosho and beyond.
