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Gaya

At this point, you might want to consider adding runway modelling to your CV. Afterall, if Lagos Fashion Week 2026 has taught us anything, it's that you could be a chef, musician, actress, influencer, or even the governor of Lagos State and still find yourself strutting down the runway. Who knew modelling had become everybody's side hustle?

From Hilda Baci to Teni Makanaki, Real Warri Pikin, Rachael Okonkwo, Sharon Adeleke and a host of other familiar faces, this year's runway had quite the interesting guest list. Even the Governor of Lagos state, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, joined the movement walking for Nigerian designer Ugo Monye and even got the nickname “Lagos Mamdani” while some others praised his “drip” and hinted that he had “activated his new side hustle”.

Now, celebrities walking the runway isn't exactly a new thing. Fashion brands have been collaborating with famous people for years, and there's a reason for that. However when you have this many familiar faces appearing at a fashion event, you have to wonder whether the real attraction is still the fashion or the people wearing it, because somewhere between the celebrity appearances, Instagram reels and everybody shouting about who ate and who didn't, there's another group of people worth talking about. You know, the actual professional models.

So, Is Fame the New Runway Qualification?

Let's not pretend we don't understand why designers invite celebrities to walk for them. It's marketing, ba-by!

Imagine you're a designer trying to get more people to notice your brand and you have two options: To have a professional model showcase your collection, or invite someone with millions of followers whose appearance alone might get entertainment blogs talking. And even though it shouldn’t be a core determinant, which option would get more immediate attention? Exactly!

To be fair, some of these collaborations make perfect sense. Hilda Baci, for example, appeared in a presentation for Lush Hair, a brand she represents. Governor Sanwo-Olu's appearance for Ugo Monye was also presented as a show of support for Lagos's creative industry.&nbsp;

There's nothing wrong with using familiar faces to bring attention to Nigerian fashion. Designers need visibility, and fashion is a business, not just an opportunity to wear beautiful clothes and collect compliments. But here's the thing: when does using celebrities to promote fashion become prioritising celebrity appeal over professional modelling talent?

We all must agree that there's a difference between inviting a famous person to make a special appearance and making celebrity recognition feel like one of the biggest qualifications for being on the runway. And it's particularly interesting when some of the personalities involved aren't even primarily known for fashion.

We’re not saying a chef can't model or that an actress must remain only on a movie set. Everybody is allowed to have range. But if you're going to bring in people from different industries to showcase clothes, shouldn't we also be asking whether the professional models who have trained and worked for these opportunities are getting enough room to shine? Or is having an established fan base now the quickest way to get everybody's attention?

So, What About the People Who Actually Do This for a Living?

For a celebrity, walking the runway might be another exciting addition to an already impressive career. A few pictures, some applause, a viral video, and it's back to regularly scheduled programming.&nbsp;

For a professional model, however, that same runway could mean something entirely different. It could be the booking that strengthens their portfolio, introduces them to a designer, puts them in front of an international audience or helps them secure their next job.

Also, do we realise that getting there isn't necessarily easy? Models attend castings, face rejections, work on their craft and compete for limited opportunities, sometimes under very harsh conditions, and all of that, only to still have to fight for visibility in an industry where they're supposed to be the professionals.

Now imagine watching someone who is already famous get a major runway moment while you're still hoping your next audition goes somewhere. Wouldn't you have questions too?

This isn't just about people being jealous of celebrities. On social media, some fashion enthusiasts have questioned the decision to feature famous personalities when capable professional models are available.&nbsp; One criticism made a particularly interesting distinction: an occasional celebrity appearance is one thing, but relying on famous faces for runway attention raises questions about the opportunities available to working models.

There's also the issue of how models are treated. Lifestyle and UGC creator Keeks, known on Instagram as @meetkikii, raised concerns in a video about aspiring models becoming so desperate for a breakthrough that they accept difficult or unfair circumstances. Her criticism points in two directions: the industry's treatment of models and the pressure aspiring models place on themselves to get noticed, sometimes at considerable personal cost.

&nbsp;She's not the only person drawing attention to challenges within the industry. In 2025, BBC News Pidgin reported complaints from Nigerian models about poor compensation, delayed payments and difficult working conditions. That reporting doesn't establish that these problems occurred at Lagos Fashion Week 2026, or that celebrities took bookings away from professional models. But it does make the conversation about opportunity and recognition more important, because what exactly are we celebrating if the people who do this professionally are still struggling to secure decent opportunities and treatment?

Nobody Is Asking You to Send the Celebrities Home.

Before this turns into another internet war, let's be clear about something. Celebrity appearances aren't automatically bad for fashion. A familiar face can introduce a designer to thousands of potential customers, attract media coverage and bring fresh attention to African creativity which is essentially the point of these fashion shows, right? And yes, professional models still walked at Lagos Fashion Week 2026. This isn't a case of celebrities completely taking over the runway.

However, there's a question worth asking about where the attention goes and who benefits from it. If a celebrity walks for a designer and the moment goes viral, that's great. But are people becoming interested in the collection, the craftsmanship and the designer behind it? Or does the conversation end at how well the celebrity walked? And while all that attention is being generated, are professional models receiving meaningful opportunities, fair compensation and the recognition their work deserves?

Surely, the industry should be able to promote its designers and celebrate its models at the same time.

Lagos Fashion Week has become an important platform for showcasing African creativity, and the presence of famous personalities can contribute to its visibility. But the event's success shouldn't be measured by celebrity appearances alone.&nbsp;

The designers matter. The collections matter. The professional models matter too. So by all means, invite the chefs, musicians, actors and even the governor. Let them walk, let them pose, let the cameras flash.&nbsp;

But if everybody is getting a chance to play model for the day, the people who actually model for a living shouldn't have to struggle to get their own moment.

After all, it's one thing to walk the runway because you're already famous but it’s an entirely different thing when you’re trying to build an actual career on it.

From celebrity chefs to the Lagos State governor, familiar faces showed up on the runway this year. But with all these famous people getting their moments, what about the professional models?

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