How Misty Glam is Championing DEI&A in Nigeria
An interview with the founder of Nigeria's first inclusive modelling agency
I first heard about Misty Glam Company on Twitter, when I saw a post about the Albinism Awareness pageant hosted by the modelling agency. Growing up in Nigeria, I always knew what albinism was, and what people who were called ‘albinos’ looked like. My father’s hometown in Agbor, Delta State has a large community of people with albinism, including most of my cousins and relatives on his side of the family. My father’s mother was an albino woman who was rejected by her own father when she was born due to her skin colour. This is unfortunately a common stigma in Nigeria, people with albinism are often mistreated, marginalized or fetishized. There are even some communities in Nigeria where they are forbidden to enter, or risk being killed.
Nigeria is not a country where differences, whether in expression or being, are encouraged, accepted or tolerated. From LGBTQ+ people, to people with disabilities, bias and stigma against diverse and marginalized communities is the norm. As I have grown older, I have come to value the beauty of diversity and why it is important to highlight and celebrate differences in our world. Misty Glam Company seeks to do just that by uplifting and centering models who are rarely celebrated and/or seen in popular media. It was an honour to speak with founder Misturah Owolabi on her vision for Misty Glam, as well as learn more about the Albinism Awareness pageant. Read the full interview below:
What was your purpose behind founding Misty Glam Modelling Company?
Professionally, I’ve worked in the last 8 years as a brand storyteller, copywriter and a marketing professional crafting campaigns at top agencies in Nigeria. During the course of my work, I always found myself constantly seeking out advocacy campaigns and initiatives. I could be on my way to work, see a visually impaired person struggling to use the road and next thing, I’m disturbing my superiors at work to let us pitch a solution to a brand or an organization with the means to support that community.
I always made sure my creative ideas found a way of including them. One of my greatest professional achievements was being part of the team that won Nigeria’s Cannes Lions in 2023 for an advocacy campaign we created for people in soot polluted communities in Nigeria. So, that was the kind of creative that I’ve always been. It was in my line of work that I noticed the gap in the modeling and advertising industry. I saw how certain kinds of people and models were always relegated or rejected when it was time for us to create campaigns for brands, because in the words of most brands, “they are not brand fit.” Diverse or unconventional models were rarely booked and when they were, it was often for those performative CSR campaigns.
“The biggest hurdle was bias.
Deep, systemic, and unapologetic bias.”
Behind the scenes too, the modeling agencies were also not opening doors to models who didn’t ft the conventional beauty standards. Models had to look a certain way before they were considered. Same tall, slim, flawless skin tones and appearances were in what ad and every campaign. And that felt deeply wrong to me. So I decided to do something about it. I started Misty Glam Company — Nigeria’s first inclusive commercial modeling agency. The mission was to be that modeling agency that mirrors society. So if you need to book models that reflect real people; those with tribal marks to vitiligo, albinism, freckles, physical disabilities, and more, you’d come to us. I built a team of unconventional models and started pitching them to brands and preaching the gospel of inclusivity because really, Nigeria was lagging behind when it came to inclusion and representation.
What challenges did you face starting and running Misty Glam?
Nothing prepared me for the challenges I faced. What I found out was heartbreaking. The biggest hurdle was bias. Deep, systemic, and unapologetic bias. Clients would openly reject models with albinism, even for campaigns that were meant to champion diversity. One brand actually told me that booking a model with albinism would “spoil” their campaign.. And the rejection wasn’t always about talent or within the modeling industry alone, it was a deeper societal issue. If the larger society wasn’t accepting people who didn’t ft the conventional beauty standards, how would we expect brands to ever catch up? So my work shifted from inclusion in modeling to full advocacy for unconventional and marginalized communities within and outside the modeling world.
From your experience, how is diversity/inclusivity currently valued in Nigeria’s fashion/entertainment industry?
Diversity is still treated like a trend honestly rather than the norm. It’s something brands sometimes do for PR or CSR campaigns when they want to look good not because they believe in it. I’ve seen brands request “diverse” faces only to turn down anyone who doesn’t align with the conventional beauty standards. The intent isn’t always there, so the follow-through is even weaker. There’s performative progress, but not enough commitment to systemic change.
Inclusivity for us is a commitment. Our models are selected based on their talents, their stories, their courage, and their potential, not how closely they ft industry standards. We represent models with albinism, vitiligo, physical disabilities, freckles, burns, and other underrepresented identities. What they all have in common is a story worth telling. And we are advocating everyday until the world hears it.
Can you highlight a project you’re most proud of?
I think that’d be the documentary project for International Albinism Awareness day documentary that we just released. In the doc, we interviewed persons with albinism across different walks of life around the larger issues of discrimination beyond the media, beauty and fashion industries. And it sparked a lot of conversations because it resonated with persons with albinism who have been in the shadows and haven’t really heard their stories being told from the empowerment angle. We needed members of society to see persons with albinism as not just objects of pity but as leaders and talented individuals. That documentary told the unfiltered stories of persons living with albinism who’ve been overlooked for far too long and also presented the WHY behind our advocacy pageant.
What is the significance of the Albinism Awareness Pageant, and how can people support or participate?
This pageant is about shifting perceptions. And it’s not your typical beauty contest, it’s an advocacy platform. Through it, we will highlight the talents, voices, and struggles of women with albinism. Rather than the usual pageant where contestants are judged based on how they look, we’ll judge based on their talent showcase and advocacy pitch. The winner of the pageant will become an ambassador for the albinism community, representing the community and championing conversations around their rights in the media.
We are working closely with the Lagos chapter of the Albinism Association of Nigeria and we have 20 contestants already that will be unveiled soon. Support can come in many forms: financial and product sponsorship, empowerment opportunities and capacity building for our winners, creative partnership, sharing our content, or simply unlearning harmful myths. Visibility is powerful and with your help, we can amplify it.
(Note: Misty Glam is currently seeking sponsors for the Albinism Awareness Pageant. To support and learn more about Nigeria’s first beauty pageant for persons with albinism, check out their Instagram here.)
What are your future goals for Misty Glam?
In 5–10 years, I see Misty Glam Company becoming a global standard for inclusive modeling. Not just in campaigns, but in casting rooms, production meetings, and boardrooms. I also hope to see the pageant become a continental movement, creating a ripple effect across Africa. Each year, we’ll use this platform to spotlight communities that have been marginalized for too long. And because we represent other models such as wheelchair/ specially abled models, models with vitiligo etc., we want to have annual events like this to advocate for these communities as well. This year, it’s an advocacy pageant for persons with albinism. Next year, we intend to include one of the other communities like the specially abled community for example. The coming year, we’ll add another community to it, making sure we are spotlighting all marginalized groups, making them visible and starting conversations at the same time. The younger generation is more open-minded, and with more advocacy, I believe attitudes toward diversity in the beauty and fashion industries will evolve for the better.
*Author’s Note: This is the first in a series of ‘spotlight interviews’ I plan to publish. I would like to interview & promote companies/organizations/people who are driving positive change in Nigeria with a focus on inclusivity and uplifting the marginalized. Please drop any suggestions or ideas in the comments if you have some. Thank you!*