A leading investment and capital market conglomerate, Meristem, has reiterated its stance on the need to facilitate the adoption of healthier lifestyle alternatives and dispose of artificial and unhealthy living habits.
Meristem said in a statement Thursday, that that was the focus of the inaugural edition of its GREEN FEST held at Muri Okunola Park, Victoria Island on June 1st 2019.
With the theme, “Unjunk”, the organic and healthy-living festival, was the ultimate haven for health, fitness and wellness enthusiasts and created to propel the singular truth that health is wealth, and individuals must be committed to sustaining their health to enjoy true wealth.
According to the firm, it took its Meristem Green Fest on a holistic approach in projecting the message through an array of activities including engaging fitness sessions, master classes, outdoor games, thrilling musical performances, and much more that spanned throughout the day.
Reiterating the purpose of the event, the statement quoted the Head, Management of Meristem, Omosolape Akinpelu, as saying: “At Meristem, we are explicitly client-centric; our core focus is creating value for our clients by helping them grow their wealth. We have however come to understand that it is counterproductive for one to acquire wealth without paying attention to their health because of what use is wealth if one does not live long enough to enjoy it? Also, it would be difficult for one to grow wealth if they are not physically and mentally healthy.
“The Meristem Green Fest was borne out of this very notion and our goal is to promote the adoption and maintenance of a healthy lifestyle in nutrition, physical activities, and mental balance.”
Also speaking on the future of the fest, Wole Abegunde, GMD, Meristem, was quoted to have said: “The Meristem Green Fest is definitely here to stay, we have successfully brought people from all walks of life to experience our brand up-close and personal and we have consequently, heralded the biggest organic and healthy living festival in Nigeria. We will continue to redefine the content and core-essence of the fest to help our clients to stay healthy so they can grow and enjoy their wealth. In the same vein, we will bolster the community of business owners by creating a range of financial solutions to help them ultimately expand their business.”
The Meristem Green Fest served as a platform for clients of the company, health and fitness enthusiasts and practitioners to collectively kick-start a journey into a much healthier life. This was facilitated with a series of fitness sessions and master classes that held throughout the day. The morning itinerary included yoga, zumba, and aerobics classes led by fitness instructors Obinna Udora of Fit Nigeria, Bunmi Olunloyo of Bailamos Dance Company, and Sandra Patrick of Yoga Club Lagos.
The afternoon itinerary included master classes led by nine industry experts who shared insights on the following topics: ‘Juicing – Passion to Profit’ led by Goke Balogun, co-founder of So Fresh and Shola Ladoja, founder of Simply Greens); ‘Journey to fewer pounds’ led by Bunmi George, weight management coach); Lifestyle Modification and Healthier patterns led by Dr Patrick Ijewere and Dr Chinasa Amadi, nutritionist and health coach; Financial Literacy for Business Growth led by Senami Johnson, Head of Meristem Capital, ‘The Pretty side of Charcoal led by Omolewa Adenaike, CEO of activated charcoal company, Koalture Organics, and ‘A Trip to Unfiltered Glow’ led by Nancy Ndukwe–Ositelu, founder of skincare company, Chaurme Beauty. There was also an enlightening live cooking class on ‘The Art of Healthy Cooking’, led by culinary chef, Soliat Bada, where guests learnt ways to recreate high-caloric and unhealthy staple meals with natural and organic alternatives.
Damilola Hassan, Head, Wealth Management, Meristem explained the event line-up saying: “With this festival, we are taking a practical and holistic approach to promoting healthy living. Through these fitness activities and master classes, the guests are able to learn from industry experts about better ways of staying healthy in all aspects of their lives. Entrepreneurs in attendance will also gain some knowledge on financial literacy to help them make better financial decisions in their various businesses.”
At the completion of the master classes, Meristem treated its guests to a live band performance from the enigmatic Segun Johnson, who thrilled them with a medley of old and new school music. DJ Crowd Kontroller was also in attendance to give an electrifying set, and fan favourite, Johnny Drille, serenaded the crowd with a phenomenal performance of his hit songs ‘Halleluyah’ and ‘Wait for me’.
The Meristem Green Fest was indeed the first of its kind in Nigeria; a true community of like-minded individuals who are mentally and physically ready to embrace new, wholesome and healthier choices in all aspects of their lives.
