Egbeda-Based Loom Rooms Unveils Five-Year Plan for Sustainable Creative Businesses

By Adedapo Adesanya

Egbeda-based creative ecosystem Loom Rooms has unveiled a five-year plan to help African creatives build sustainable businesses, protect their intellectual property and create employment opportunities as it marks its first anniversary.

Founded by creative-economy strategist Mr Shola Bamidele in Alimosho, Lagos State, Loom Rooms was established to address a persistent gap in Africa’s rapidly growing creative economy, where many emerging creatives possess talent but lack the business knowledge, professional networks and industry structures needed to build lasting careers and enterprises.

The ecosystem’s strategy is built around helping creatives move beyond producing work to understanding ownership, commercialisation and business development across sectors including music, film, fashion, photography, broadcasting, design and digital media.

Loom Rooms said its location in Egbeda reflects its belief that access to creative infrastructure and professional opportunities should not be limited to Lagos’ traditional commercial and creative districts, with Alimosho serving as the foundation for its community-driven model.

Over the past year, the ecosystem has recorded milestones across music, broadcasting, film and enterprise development.

An emerging artist from its community received the PME New Wave Award, while a single released through the ecosystem has reached listeners in more than 70 countries.

Also, a broadcaster developed within the Loom Rooms community has gone on to present on major radio platforms, while other members have formalised their careers through company registration, trademarking, brand development and web development.

The ecosystem has also launched a recurring live platform that gives emerging singers, hosts and podcasters opportunities to develop their craft, build audiences and gain practical industry experience.

Speaking on the anniversary, Mr Bamidele said the organisation’s first year had demonstrated the impact of combining creative talent with business knowledge, mentorship and community support.

“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,” he said.

He said the next phase would focus on helping creatives become founders, employers and industry leaders.

“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,” Mr Bamidele added.

The five-year plan is centred on three priorities: expanding education around intellectual property, contracts, publishing, brand protection and commercialisation; developing programmes in emerging creative fields such as sound design, animation, gaming and documentary production; and supporting creatives to grow from individual practitioners into business owners capable of building teams and creating jobs.

Through the strategy, Loom Rooms aims to strengthen creative entrepreneurship in Egbeda, Alimosho and beyond by equipping emerging creatives with the knowledge and structures needed to build sustainable businesses around their work.