Kadiju was founded by Oyindamola Aleshinloye in Lagos, Nigeria, in August 2021. The brand’s name is a Yoruba phrase translating roughly to “let’s close our eyes,” reflecting an intended sense of fearlessness and confidence the label aims to evoke in its wearers. Kadiju built its identity around maximalist womenswear, favoring bold prints, dramatic silhouettes, and statement-making design over minimalism, while pairing that aesthetic with a conscious production model: pieces are made locally in Lagos using stock fabrics and recycled materials, produced in small batches specifically to reduce textile waste and support artisans working with the brand. This combination of maximalist design and deliberately limited, sustainable production helped Kadiju build a following relatively quickly, gaining attention from Nigeria’s fashion community and celebrities within a few years of launching. Aleshinloye’s profile rose further in 2023, when Kadiju won the maiden Europe Day Afro-Euro Runway competition organized by the EU delegation in Abuja, earning a sponsored trip to showcase the brand at Madrid Fashion Week. Kadiju has since shown at Lagos Fashion Week, becoming one of the more closely watched younger labels in the city’s fashion scene.