For more than three decades, style icon and purveyor of luxury goods, John Obayuwana has remained a man with an undeniable touch of class that influences thousands of aspirants into the comity of sartorial elegance. He has lived a good life as well as helped others to have a fill of it. This he has done through his Polo Luxury Group, a company he founded in the late 1980s which has grown to become the number one luxury retail brand in West Africa —his Polo is the official luxury retailer for so many world’s most prestigious timepieces including Gucci, Rolex, Chopard, Cartier, and Roger Dubuis. For the Edo-born business tycoon, he has been enabling the drive for luxury growth and insatiable demand for luxury goods across the continent. And he has been ramping up recognitions for all these feats.
Recently, when Obayuwana, 72, was announced as the first recipient of the Swiss Excellence Award by Mr. Thomas Schneider, the Consul General of Switzerland to Nigeria, not a few were excited to join loads of friends to celebrate the Chairman of Polo Luxury Group as the first African to bag such recognition. At an exclusive event in Lagos tagged ‘A Taste of Swiss Luxury’ attended by corporate executives and industry leaders who were taken through the excellent products and services coming out of Switzerland, the Swiss Envoy expressed the deep gratitude of the Switzerland Government to Obayuwana for opening up the vast West African market to the impeccable craftsmanship of high-end Swiss watch brands.
In his acceptance speech, Obayuwana thanked the Swiss Embassy in Nigeria and the Swiss Learning Organisation for the honour bestowed on him. He described Polo Luxury’s 35-year journey with Switzerland in general as truly rewarding and strategic in helping Polo Luxury achieve its vision of enriching the lives of its existing and expanding client base with high-quality products.