Malokun Labs, a creative agency based in Lagos State, has paid the sum of N500,000 to 10 models for services rendered in August 2023.

Between August 3 and 4, the agency had hired Vintage Photography, a photography company, to take pictures and graphics interchange formats (GIFs) of the models. The shoot was organised so Malokun Labs could honour a catalogue contract it had with a client.

Based on the agreement both Malokun Labs and Vintage Photography had, the latter was to secure an apartment, hire and take pictures of amateur models, and then deliver the pictures in printed form to the former.

The creative agency then made an advance payment of N420,000 out of an agreed fee of N1.4 million to the photography company so that work could start.

When Vintage Photography thought it had completed its job and sent the pictures to Logo Olumuyiwa, Head, Multimedia, Production and Consumer Research at Malokun Labs, he did not like them.

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This led to a dispute between Malokun Labs and Vintage Photography, leaving 10 models who had worked for two days unpaid.

The models were supposed to be paid N50,000 each.

FIJ later found out that the aggrieved models got the job through Ifunanya Ikeh, a modelling agent.

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“Ifunanya called me for a shoot, and asked me to come with my attires,” Emmanuel Nwankudu, one of the models, told FIJ.

“When spent two days shooting and when it was time for the organisers to pay us, they started giving excuses.

“Ifunanya Ikeh kept telling us they were yet to receive payment from the agency, and then she later said the photographer was about taking legal actions.”

Between Wednesday and Thursday, FIJ contacted Ikeh, Vintage Photography, Vintage Photography’s legal representative and Olumuyiwa.

After a lengthy FIJ-organised conference call that had all four major parties present on Thursday afternoon, Olumuyiwa eventually committed to paying the models their wages.

It was at the meeting that he also agreed to amicably settle issues with the photography company.

Ikeh would later confirm to FIJ that Olumuyiwa had made a N500,000 payment to her so she could pay the models.

“He has paid, I have seen the money. Thank you so much,” a delighted Ikeh said on Thursday evening.