Morolake Dairo

Dr. Morolake Dairo is a Lecturer at the Manchester Fashion Institute, Manchester Metropolitan University, specializing in African creative industries with a focus on fashion's intersection with society and culture. She holds a PhD from Pan-Atlantic University’s School of Media and Communications and has professional experience in brand management and fashion entrepreneurship. Her research explores African fashion cities, place branding, and digital narratives, with notable work on Lagos’ fashion identity and user-generated content in Nigerian fashion communities. She actively supervises postgraduate students and contributes to academic discourse through journal articles, book chapters, and conference presentations.

Education: PhD (Media and Communication), MSc (Brand and Marketing Communications), BSc (Mass Communication). Professional qualifications include a PGCE LTHE (in progress) and Fellow Higher Education Academy (FHEA) status. She speaks English, Yoruba, and French (A2).

Research interests span African fashion economies, cultural dress codes, and the digital transformation of fashion practices. Her work bridges academia and industry, addressing themes like sustainable fashion traditions and the role of AI in African fashion marketing. Recent publications analyze pandemic-era Aso-Ebi culture on Instagram and the cultural symbolism of Lagos in literature and film.

Media contributions include articles on Nigerian wedding attire and PhD-student relationships. She is a sought-after speaker at events like the Lagos Studies Association and London’s Fashion, Body & Culture Conference.