By age 12, Elizabeth Elohor Isiorho, known professionally as Elizabeth Elohor, had watched hundreds of fashion shows. It was a home routine that she and her mother, who was once a model herself, shared. They would spend countless evenings pouring over glamorous clothes and the women who modelled them in their home in Lagos, Nigeria. Despite enjoying countless fashion TV shows and loving comparisons to Naomi Campbell from her community, Elohor never envisioned herself in the fashion or modelling industry.
“In Uni, I did a couple [of] photoshoots here and there for some extra cash but it was never really serious because, well, I was shy and adamant that modelling wasn’t really for me despite loving it and it being a natural fit because of my upbringing,” Elohor shares with me. However, a nudge from a previous boss and friends would send her down the path to founding one of West Africa’s oldest modelling agencies, BETH Models, as well as Elite Model Look Africa and Future Face Africa, amongst her other businesses.
Born in London in the 80’s, Elohor and her family moved back to Nigeria when she was two-years-old. At age 16, she returned to London to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Business and Information Technology at London Guildhall University (now known as London Metropolitan University). It was during an internship in 2001 that her boss informed her of a pageant show he thought she would be perfect for — Miss Nigeria UK. She informed her friends about it and they encouraged her to participate in the competition, so she did. “I signed up, did the seven-day boot camp and even showed up to the final rehearsal,” chuckling, she continues, “It is at this final rehearsal that it hit me that this is real. I call my mum and tell her I can’t do it. She calms me down and tells me ‘you can and besides, you have nothing to lose’”.
Following her mother’s motivational talk, Elohor participated in the pageant’s finale. “I walk the stage as Miss Delta and as soon as we’re done with the final walk and they get ready to announce the winner, I head backstage and take off my clothes – ready to alight with my friend. Suddenly, I started hearing ‘Miss Delta. Miss Delta.’ I had won!” she fondly recalls.
After winning the pageant, she got the confidence boost she needed to pursue a career in modelling and received a flurry of invitations to modelling gigs. She kept modelling in the UK and on holidays when she would visit Nigeria.
She chose to move back to Nigeria in 2003 after witnessing firsthand the lack of structure the modelling industry had compared to the UK. After a few months of returning to Nigeria, and with the support of another friend, she launched BETH Models.
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Elohor wanted BETH Models to serve as a platform to educate the Nigerian public on modelling and to grow the industry in the country. “The original idea was to host this conference but it was difficult to get funding to launch so I started cold emailing agencies in Nigeria and outside Nigeria asking for sponsorship for this conference. I didn’t just want money; I also wanted them to send speakers, and literally anybody who could educate.”
This education was integral as there were misconceptions about modelling in Nigeria; with views that the industry is a pathway to prostitution and child trafficking. She recalls a recent trip back to Lagos where she was seated next to a father and daughter, and she had to explain that although the industry can be dangerous and exploitative, there was more to it. “In 2022, I still have to explain to parents that it isn’t child trafficking,” she says.
While there is mistrust and negative perceptions of modelling in Nigeria, Elohor understands parents' fears. “We hear these stories of harassment and abuse about agencies, clients and models. I don’t have all the answers but I try to be vigilant and proactive in addressing these things and also educating models and my staff about safety.”
Teaching models what standard procedures like contract terms (that were non-negotiable for instance) was another aspect of Elohor’s plan to revolutionise an industry bearing the brunt of informality and lack of process. These plans, mighty as they were, required money and time she didn’t initially have. However, Elite Models caught wind of Elohor’s plan and emailed her asking if she would be interested in planning and hosting a scouting event in Nigeria for them. She seized this opportunity as it was the perfect way to gain experience, develop contacts and expand her vision for the modelling industry on the continent, not just Nigeria. She started Elite Model Look Africa — a scouting event in partnership with Elite Models in 2007.
Over the next 13 years, Elohor would hit major milestones for Africa’s modelling industry including her discovery of renowned model Mayowa Nicholas. In this period, the industry has also seen change; more and more calls for African models were coming from international agencies and local advertising and fashion agencies.
2020’s COVID-19 global pandemic was the final jolt Elohor needed to launch Future Face Africa — a scouting platform similar to what Elohor had with Elite Model Look. However, with much more creative control, Elohor could finally make more space for pursuits that she always dreamt of such as scouting models of African descent within the diaspora, as well as the continent, creating mentorship programs, funnelling models into opportunities home and abroad that are not limited to EML agencies. Future Face Africa just concluded its first major scouting event across eight African countries resulting in two winners — Ana Campos (from Angola) and Nziza Ken (from Rwanda).
Elohor’s legacy within Africa’s modelling industry is nowhere near complete. After almost two decades in the modelling world and building the structures she wants to see, she’s tackling new and old challenges in innovative ways. “I want African models to get the respect they deserve home and abroad, not waiting six-seven hours for a job that only ends up paying peanuts and hiring 1 [out] of 30 models who show up. I want to keep connecting African models globally.” For Elohor, there are no delusions of grandeur that everything can be fixed or remedied, she just has the passion to keep going and build this vision with support from family and friends who help her continue on harder days. In particular, the bond and support she has from her mother is something she intentionally replicates with her own daughters.