Shey na my charger den wan inherit Abi my shoemaking machines and tool 😂

Meet the founder who took a detour from tech, and raised $1.5 million to build West Africa's largest safety footwear company Yinka Atunde, a computer science graduate of Babcock University, pivoted into shoemaking after a delayed NYSC programme pushed him to rethink his career path. What began with training in Italy, factory experience in Nigeria, and the production of just 20 pairs of shoes a day has grown into Yikodeen, West Africa’s largest safety footwear manufacturer. In 2025, he raised $1.5 million from Aruwa Capital Management to expand its industrial footprint. Credit: Business Insider Africa

Shoemaking.

He also said people should make regulations about the things people know. Like shoemakers making laws about shoemaking.

For today’s founder spotlight we meet, Yinka Atunde (full name Atunde Shamsideen Olayinka) a Nigerian entrepreneur and the founder of Yikodeen, a company that has grown from a small local footwear operation into West Africa's largest safety footwear manufacturer. What makes his story remarkable is that he chose to build in an industry many considered too difficult. To understand the craft, he travelled to Italy to study shoemaking, visited factories in China to learn large-scale production, and even worked on a factory floor back home to understand the realities of manufacturing from the ground up. Starting in 2016 with the capacity to produce just 20 pairs of safety boots a day, Atunde steadily grew Yikodeen into a trusted supplier for some of Nigeria's biggest industries. His persistence attracted a $1.5 million investment from Aruwa Capital Management in 2025, a milestone that will help scale production from 500 pairs daily to as many as 2,500 pairs per day. The company has also recorded more than 10x revenue growth and supplied tens of thousands of safety boots to major industrial projects, all while remaining committed to local manufacturing and job creation. His story continues to inspire founders all across Africa. ✨ Follow us @refinedng for more stories on black excellence!

Yinka Atunde switched careers to shoemaking after a delayed NYSC programme and founded Yikodeen, West Africa’s largest safety footwear manufacturer. Atunde trained in Italy, gained factory experience in Nigeria🇳🇬, and started by restoring old manufacturing equipment due to limited resources. He faced scepticism from clients used to foreign products, but gradually built credibility through relentless quality improvements and support. By 2025, following a $1.5 million funding round, Yikodeen had entered a new phase of rapid expansion.

Our shoe and bag making beneficiaries have successfully completed their training with Apiroes💫 We are proud of all they accomplished during the training and can't wait to see them thrive during their internship #empowerherfuture #esetoniafoundation #ngoimpact #shoemaking

Leave shoemaking for us idolo U don big pass am

Shoemaking sis

Big sis to kid bros: Learn handwork. Plumbing, electrical work, carpentry, welding, tiling, POP installation, painting, aluminum fabrication, bricklaying, roofing, furniture making, automobile mechanics, panel beating, AC and refrigeration repairs, generator repairs, solar installation, CCTV installation, appliance repairs, upholstery, and even shoemaking. The world will always need people who can fix, build, and install things. A good handwork can feed you anywhere, and you can always add tech to it later. You're welcome 🫶

Shoemaking thought me patience. Before you make a shoe you have to design it first, using a pencil & an eraser. So while facing the errors I learnt patience. And, on trying to get It right, I learnt ART. Today I design comfortable and bring the shoe to life. #TG30DayVisibility

Check this out….. #shoes #shoemaking #madeinnigeria #learning

Shoemaking

Shoemaking thought me patience. Before you make a shoe you have to design it first, using a pencil & an eraser. So while facing the errors I learnt patience. And, on trying to get It right, I learnt ART. Today I design comfortable and bring the shoe to life. #TG30DayVisibility