From Lagos Markets to Paris Runways: A Nigerian Creative's Thrift-Shop Journey

For the past six months, 22-year-old Rachel Ojuromi has gained widespread attention on social media by transforming the streets of Lagos into a personal runway. Alongside her childhood friend, neighbour and stylist Debby Fasingha, Ojuromi showcases outfits created from secondhand, thrifted clothing and scraps sourced from local open-air markets such as Yaba.

The creative duo shoots their videos in locations across Lagos, including Gbagada and Yaba, without disrupting traffic. Their projects frequently capture the attention of local pedestrians, traders and drivers who respond with amusement and cheers. In one recorded segment, Ojuromi walks purposefully through traffic while balancing a tray of bananas on her head. Another video features a tea-drinking scene outside a street-side shop, brought together with the help of a passerby who recruited her son to act as an extra.

Ojuromi, known on Instagram as Give Rachel a Shot, explains that her work relies on the spontaneity of local environments. She notes that the resulting images capture specific, unrepeatable moments tied to particular times and places. This distinct approach to everyday street photography ultimately helped lead the young Nigerian creative to an invitation at a Chanel fashion show in Paris.

Before establishing her digital identity through fashion and filmmaking, Ojuromi initially pursued a very different career path. Growing up around clothing due to her mother's market stall business, she originally aspired to become a neurosurgeon, inspired by the autobiography of Ben Carson. However, following complications with her college application, she took a gap year and began exploring filmmaking.

She ultimately decided against a career in medicine, choosing instead to channel her ambition into creative direction and visual storytelling. Working alongside Fasingha, Ojuromi began reinterpreting global fashion collections using affordable wardrobe finds and local materials, adhering to a personal philosophy of working within her existing reality rather than spending beyond her means.