I wear what fits — Agbani Darego

Agbani Darego

Years after winning the coveted Miss World crown, Agbani Darego remains beautiful like a gazelle, with little or no additional flesh on her slim frame.

But if you ask her how she has managed to stay so slim and beautiful through the years, the elegant former beauty queen has a simple answer: “I eat well, work out, do some yoga and generally take care of my body.”

With a smart head on her shoulders, Darego recently added ‘entrepreneur’ to her already crowded curriculum vitae with the launch of her own denim line.

But that does not make everything rosy. To the former world’s most beautiful woman, there are challenging moments which she did not allow to daunt her.

“I am human,” she says.

She adds: “There are moments where it seems that moving back to Nigeria, setting up a business and working on several projects all seem too much for me to take on. Nevertheless, we have to work hard and pursue what we want to do.  I don’t think it is wise for me or anybody to give up when things are not working out the way we expected them to.  For example, I first released promotional pictures for my clothing line some months ago and I had hoped to open the place a month or two after.

“However, I had some issues with my production team, I could have given up but I did not, I persevered and together, we figured out the best solution.    Now, we actually have a better production line because of that issue.  It all goes to prove that if you believe and work hard at what you want and don’t give up in the middle of everything, you would achieve whatever you set your mind on.

 “I am inspired by the fact that I have a huge project on my hands and I am determined to push it.  I have been blessed with   opportunities and it would be a shame if I don’t make use of the opportunities.  Young girls all over the world look up to us, we have to prove to them that dreams can be realised with hard work and perseverance.”

It would not be the first time Darego is persevering and refusing to be discouraged. Her tenacity dates back to pre-Miss World days. She had gone for many competitions but lost.

Recalling some of these, she says:

“I went for the casting of the Mnet Face of Africa but I did not make it to the competition.   That was where I actually ran into the pageant manager for the Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria and she convinced me to go for it and MBGN became my first major pageant.

“Before then, I took part in one or two pageants in secondary school and I did not win them but I placed well. After winning MBGN, I went on to the Miss Universe pageant, I did not win that but I placed top 10.”

She never felt bad at any of the losses. “Losing Mnet Face of Africa did not make me feel bad because it was my first time of going for something so big and on an international scale.   I am happy that I made it to the stage that I did. I also think it was a blessing in disguise. It was because I did not go on to compete there that I went on to compete in MBGN, which created a platform for me to compete in Miss World. God has always been faithful to me and I see His hands in everything that happens to me. I think God’s guidance led me to where I went and where I am at the moment,” she recalls.

Born in Port-Harcourt to family of three brothers and five sisters, she relives fond memories of her childhood:

“It was a wonderful experience. I am the sixth in the family and one of the babies. Sometimes, that is not so good because everyone thinks for you and believes they know what is right for you. But I do love my family, we are one close unit and I know that I can always go back home when I need any support from them.

           “I lost my father last year but while he lived, he made sure that his kids did not lack for anything. He was my best friend and strong supporter.   Any questions or issues I had, I could go back home and call him and speak to him. My family is notoriously close knit and after we lost my mother, our father was everything to us. He was like one of the kids; we played and made jokes with him. He instilled great values in us and I hope he is happy with me today with what I have been able to do with my life,” she recalls.

Losing her mother to cancer at a very tender age, Darego is a pain she remembers still.  “Losing a loved one is a very difficult situation to deal with.  I miss her everyday and I never stop wishing she were here. I know that I am who I am today for the time I spent with her and for the values she imparted in me.

“I was 11 when she passed; I do remember very much, she was an entrepreneur, a hardworking woman and I like to believe that I follow in her footsteps in some way. I also feel that the loss has made me more of a stronger and independent person,” she says.

The first and only black African woman to be the face of an international cosmetic line, her recipe for beauty is amazingly ordinary.

“I would say, first and foremost, take care of yourself, be good to your body and let your body be good to you too. Eat healthy and have a good workout regime.”

Dismissing a wardrobe malfunction she once suffered as ‘one of those things’ Darego says, “It is life. It was a wardrobe malfunction and there is nothing I could have done about that. Things happen but you persevere and keep on moving with your life and hope that people know that you are human and, things like that happen to them too.’’

Her definition of style?  “It means calm, simplicity, comfort. I love fashion but I am not one to do anything that makes me feel uncomfortable.  The key thing to me in looking good is comfort.”

For a fashion icon, ask her what she would not caught wearing and she responds: “I don’t know. But let’s just say I have not been caught in anything I don’t want to be caught in yet.”

Noting that she intends to introduce bags and shoes, which are her favourite fashion accessories, to her line as well, she adds, “Denim is just a line I have introduced into the market but as the years go by, I plan to add other items to the line.  I want it to be a large scale brand.  I want to introduce new products every year and see how it goes,” she concludes.