By Balogun Kamilu Lekan
Biography
Sijibomi Ogundele is a real estate guru and is unarguably one of Nigeria’s youngest billionaires.
Born April 8th, 1981, Sijibomi is currently 41 years old.
Sijibomi Ogundele, a youthful and exemplary luxury real estate magnate and CEO of the Sujimoto Group, is a person whose alluring charisma and bold impact cannot be ignored.
Education
Sijibomi started his elementary education in Agege slum at Oko-Oba primary school before proceeding to Model College for his secondary education
To further his education, he attended Model College for his secondary school.
Sijibomi then proceeded to acquire a law degree from Anglia Ruskin in the UK
Career
His enthusiasm for business started when he assisted his mother a small-time dealer in Oke-Arin, one of Lagos’ busiest markets, in pushing wheelbarrows to carry her goods,
At 8 years old and living in the Agege slum, he began his first business, a bike enterprise known as “Okada,” with the meagre funds he had saved up.
The growth of his Okada firm from one to six motorcycles is a testament of his strong, resolute, and resilient business mentality, which was inspired by his mother’s entrepreneurial spirit.
Sijibomi started his professional career after his graduation from the university.
As a trained lawyer, in 2004 he went into risk management and lending to SMEs.
He then later formed Moto France in Paris, which includes offices in New York City, Madrid, Dubai, and Accra, before finally transitioning to join the Nigerian real estate market following key career accomplishments with the name “Sujimoto.”
His business name, Sujimoto, is named after his mentor Sujimoto Koga, a Japanese university professor who he frequently credits with giving him more confidence and inspiring a profound transformation in both his personal and professional life.
His first big break came when he bought an apartment, renovated it, and then sold it for twice as much. This arouses his curiosity about the real estate industry. After that, he jumped into project management, risk assessment, and proper Nigerian real estate.
A division of the Sujimoto Group of Companies, Sujimoto Construction Limited is one of the most well-known names in luxury real estate today.
He stated in one of his thread posts how the ride hasn’t been a smooth one, he made this known when extolling Maiden Alex Ibru, Chief Executive Officer of Guardian Newspapers on her birthday.
In the thread, he said people gave Maiden a negative review about him for a project he was to deliver which made her get a refund from him. But that hasn’t affected his relationship with her as aside from business she has played a wonderful motherly role in his life.
Marriage
Sujimotos revealed in 2018 that he intended to give his prospective wife a $13 million Rolls Royce Sweptail and a residence on Banana Island.
He made this know in a post on social media. “The most expensive new car ever built. The Rolls Royce Sweptail at a price of nearly $13 million. An automotive equivalent of haute couture, designed and hand-tailored to fit a specific customer… the car I desire to gift my wife.”. He wrote
In 2020, an online publication reported that Sijibomi is reportedly dating actress Juliet Ibrahim. The actress then posted a video of herself in a Rolls-Royce – Phantom Coupe gifted to her by the young billionaire.
Net worth
Sijibomi’s company is reportedly worth an annual revenue of approximately $30 million. With many ongoing luxury projects of the company, Sijibomi himself is estimated to be worth over $400 Million. NewsWireNGR however cannot independently verify his net worth.
Achievements
In addition to Hausa, Yoruba, French, Spanish, a little Arabic, and Japanese, Sijibomi is a multi-tribal Nigerian who is a polyglot.
His company constructed the Medici Terraces Luxury Apartments in Lagos.
The second huge project achieved by his company is the Lincoln Avenue project, a collection of 16 townhouses with four bedrooms in Accra, Ghana (in partnership with Wonda World/Petronia)
Lorenzo, Lagos’ tallest residential structure, is also constructed by his construction firm.
Sujimoto is also credited for championing the construction of structures in affluent neighbourhoods like Ikoyi and Banana Island’s
Billionaires, multinational companies, and the biggest celebrities in the country today have been doing business with Sijibomi.
The Afropop star, Davido’s luxury $1,500,000 home in Banana Island is also a project achieved by Sijibomi.
Another massive project of his company is the LucreziaBySujimoto; the tallest residential building in Banana Island
The Lucrezia is a ground-breaking structure that has never been seen in Nigeria or Africa before.
It is the first structure with a glass-reinforced concrete (GRC) façade, full home automation, a private IMAX theatre for residents, a standard daycare centre, indoor virtual golf with more than 2,500 courses to choose from across the world, a swimming pool in the sky, and other breathtaking amenities.
On the twelfth floor of the Lucrezia sits Africa’s finest penthouse.
The Lucrezia establishes an admirable benchmark for premium residential flats in Nigeria.
Speaking on the Lucrezia, Sijibomi said “We are building the best condominium not only in Nigeria but also in Africa. The Lucrezia Penthouse comes with a private elevator, private cinema, private golf, private gym, and a private pool! The Lucrezia is very special to us because Sujimoto is divesting from Residential Projects with 80% of our real estate interest into Commercial Projects.”
Controversy
There was a rumour surrounding the real estate mogul in 2014 about his romantic relationship with Femi Otedola’s daughter, DJ Cuppy. He however denied the claim.
Denying the report, he said; “I know DJ Cuppy, I’ve known her for a short time. She’s a young lady I appreciate because of her entrepreneurial skills.
“But I’m not dating her. I consider her a younger sister – and I promote her business. She was contracted as the DJ for our opening”.
Disclaimer
The information in this article was curated from online sources. NewsWireNGR or its editorial team cannot independently verify all details.
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