Adeola Ariyo is a

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was derived from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jo ...

born model who became

Elizabeth Arden Elizabeth Arden (December 31, 1881 – October 18, 1966), also known as Elizabeth N. Graham, was a Canadian-American businesswoman who founded what is now Elizabeth Arden, Inc., and built a cosmetics empire in the United States. Backg ...

's first ever African Ambassador in 2014. She began her modelling career at the age of 13 after being scouted for and participating in the London Fashion Week. Adeola is sometimes referred to as a Nigerian-Ghanaian because of her mixed heritage. She is born to a

Ghanaian The Ghanaian people are a nation originating in the Gold Coast (region), Ghanaian Gold Coast. Ghanaians predominantly inhabit the Republic of Ghana and are the predominant cultural group and residents of Ghana, numbering 34 million people as of ...

Mother and Nigerian Father.

Early life

Ariyo was born in

Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...

to a Ghanaian Mother and a Nigerian Father. She grew up in Nigeria but sometimes traveled to London with her father. Her participation in the

London Fashion Week London Fashion Week (LFW) is a clothing trade show that takes place in London, England, twice a year, in June and September. Showcasing over 250 designers to a global audience of influential media and retailers, it is one of the 'Big Four' fash ...

at the age of 13 was made possible when she went shopping with her father in London. While she spend most of her time in

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

, South Africa, Adeola also travel to Lagos and London.

Modelling

Her modelling career began at the early age of 13 when she met Alek Wek and

Kate Moss Katherine Ann Moss (born 16 January 1974) is an English model. Arriving towards the end of the "supermodel era", Moss rose to fame in the early 1990s as part of the heroin chic fashion trend. Her collaborations with Calvin Klein brought her t ...

just after being signed by the London Fashion Week agency. In 2005, she participated in the Nokia Face of Africa Competition and since then, she has been very active in the international modelling scene. Aside featuring in the London Fashion Week, Adeola has also featured in other fashion weeks. Notable among them are the Johannesburg Fashion Week, Mozambique Fashion Week, Cape Town Fashion Week, Arise Fashion Week Lagos and the London Fashion Week. She spent several years modelling in South Africa before securing the Elizabeth Arden appointment in February 2014. Aside featuring in different fashion weeks, Adeola also featured for a number of fashion publications such as Marie Claire, True Love and Fair Lady, Cosmopolitan and Glamour.

Other works

Being an African personality Ariyo has also been involved in a number of charity works and awareness creation projects. Notable among her charity projects is her involvement with "

The Lunchbox Fund The Lunchbox Fund is a non-profit organization providing a daily meal for orphaned and vulnerable school children in township and rural areas of South Africa. The organization was founded by South African model Topaz Page-Green. The Board of Dir ...

", a project aimed at providing daily meal for vulnerable school children and orphan in South Africa. Adeola was also involved in other Elizabeth Arden project like the "Make a Visible Difference" Campaign.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ariyo, Adeola 21st-century Nigerian businesspeople Nigerian beauty pageant contestants Businesspeople from Lagos Living people University of South Africa alumni Nigerian businesspeople in fashion Nigerian female models Models from Lagos Year of birth missing (living people) Nigerian people of Ghanaian descent Nigerian child models People from Lagos State