Diaspora Star | Toyin Kolawole : From Lagos Roots to U.S. Manufacturing Leader

Toyin Kolawole is rewriting the narrative of African entrepreneurship in America. As founder and CEO of Iya Foods, a fast-growing food manufacturing company based in Naperville, Illinois, she blends the bold flavors and traditions of her Nigerian heritage with cutting-edge innovation to serve health-conscious consumers across the U.S.

Raised in Lagos as the eldest of five children, Toyin was immersed in business from a young age. She worked alongside her mother in small ventures from a local convenience store to a makeshift eatery learning firsthand the grit required to survive and succeed in Nigeria’s informal economy. That early exposure shaped her entrepreneurial mindset long before she studied accounting and business management at university.

After moving to the United States in 2003 for an MBA at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, Toyin entered the corporate world as a management consultant in the food and beverage sector. But her deeper mission to reintroduce African ingredients and values to a global audience pushed her to launch Iya Foods.

Named after the Yoruba word for “mother,” Iya Foods stands for nourishment, care, and authenticity. The company specializes in gluten-free, nutrient-dense products like cassava flour, plantain flour, and pepper soup seasoning all rooted in African culinary traditions. With growing consumer demand for clean-label and sustainable ingredients, Iya Foods has carved out a strong niche.

Under Toyin’s leadership, the company recently expanded to a 40,000-square-foot, fully automated facility, complete with an R&D innovation kitchen. Iya now serves both retail and private label clients, all while maintaining strict food safety and quality standards. The company is also a client of the Illinois Manufacturing Excellence Center (IMEC), part of the MEP National Network.

Toyin believes manufacturing is essential because it produces real value for real people. “People have to eat, people need medicine, people need cars,” she says. “Manufacturing unifies us through the things we need to thrive.”

Focused, visionary, and unapologetically rooted in her culture, Toyin Kolawole exemplifies the power of the diaspora to build, innovate, and inspire. Through Iya Foods, she is sharing love one product, one flavor, and one story at a time.