How Murals.ng Is Making Art Work In Nigeria With Kuda Business

Murals.ng didn’t start with a grand business plan or pitch deck. It started with a simple reaction: “Where did you get this?”

Femi Adelike, founder and CEO of Murals.ng, heard that question over and over again while running Rooftop Apartments, a short-let business he was building at the time. Guests loved the spaces. They took pictures of the walls. They asked questions. And slowly, a side interest began to look like a business hiding in plain sight.

Today, Murals.ng curates art for hotels, commercial spaces and brands, using Nigerian culture as their unique advantage. And behind the scenes, Kuda Business handles the money side of things.

We sat down with Femi Adelike to discuss the systems that made this speedy growth possible.

Before Murals, what were you doing and how did you transition into this?

“I really enjoyed designing spaces, the furniture, the art, how everything came together,” he says. “That part of the work was genuinely fulfilling.”

Then came a trip to Brazil in 2022 where Femi saw murals treated as an important part of public and commercial spaces.

“That trip opened my eyes,” he says. “I realised there were commercial opportunities. And I kept thinking, we could absolutely do this in Nigeria.”

Murals.ng was born shortly after.

The project that changed everything

What has been your favorite project so far and what made it special?

Every growing business has that moment, the project that changes everything. For Murals.ng, it was a large commission from Albergo Hotel.

“They didn’t just want one piece,” Femi explains. “They needed a significant volume of work to solve a specific business need.” It was a shift.

“Nigeria has incredibly talented painters,” he says. “But there aren’t always enough opportunities for them to earn consistently.”

Murals.ng was structured to change that. Inspired by Brazil’s mural economy, Femi built a model that works with skilled painters, not necessarily famous names and gives them steady, paid work.

“You don’t need thousands of followers,” he says. “You can just say, ‘I’m a painter,’ do your job well, and get paid. That’s the ecosystem we’re trying to build.”

What do you want people to feel when they walk into a space you’ve designed?

If people don’t take pictures, it’s not done yet

Ask Femi how he measures success, and he doesn’t mention revenue first.

“They should pull out their phone and take a picture,” he says, without hesitation.

For Murals.ng, a finished piece should stop people in their tracks, the kind of work that ends up on Instagram Stories or dropped into group chats. 

“We’re not just painting walls,” Femi explains. “We’re offering visibility. If someone feels the need to share it, then the client gets organic PR. That’s when we’ve done our job.”

There seems to be a strong representation of Nigeria in your work. What does that mean to you?

Murals.ng’s work is unmistakably Nigerian, bold colours, familiar references, cultural confidence.

And for Femi, that’s deliberate.

“There’s a new wave of businesses using culture and technology to build better products,” he says. “We’re smart. We’re cool. We’re ambitious. Why shouldn’t our spaces reflect that?”

He believes Nigerian creativity no longer needs external validation.

“The richness is already here,” he says. “People connect to what feels familiar and real. That’s what we lean into.”

How Has Kuda Business helped you manage Murals more efficiently?

As Murals.ng grew, the backend needed to catch up.

“I was working remotely and needed to open a business account quickly,” Femi recalls. “I Googled it, found Kuda, and everything was done in a few steps. No bank visits.”

That speed mattered.

“At a certain point, I couldn’t keep sending my personal account details to serious clients,” he says. “Kuda Business helped us look and operate like the company we were becoming.”

With Kuda Business, Murals.ng could invoice properly, run payroll, and manage everything from a phone.

What’s next for Murals.ng?

Growth, but with intention.

“We’re working on a more affordable product line,” Femi shares. “A lot of people love our work, but price can be a barrier. We’ve figured out how to bring costs down without losing quality.”

It’s a move that aligns perfectly with Murals.ng’s wider mission: making Nigerian art visible, viable and scalable.

With Kuda Business handling the finances, Femi and his team are free to focus on what they do best, turning blank walls into experiences people can’t ignore.

“Creativity has always been there,” Femi says. “We just needed the right structure to grow it.”

Watch the full interview here to see Femi’s story in his own words.