“You two look like you know each other already,” How salesman ‘joined’ Mr & Mrs Alabi together at furniture showroom in Lagos

If by now, you still doubt that love can be found in the least unexpected places, then you have not been reading this space long enough or you just caught up with us.

I have said it overtime here that people (especially the singles and searching) should always be open-minded, intentional and never rigid about where to find love. It could be in your worship centers, office, community, fitness centers, conferences or seminars, plane or vehicle, National Youth Service Scheme (NYSC) or other related youth gatherings, banking hall, supermarkets, just name it. There’s always someone out there looking for the a partner and they could find their answered prayers in you if you’re genuine and serious about wanting to get partner or settle down.

My spotlighted couple this week might have remained strangers and never meet again if they hadn’t taken the clue and greenlight the salesman at the furniture showroom was showing them serious.

Both met at the furniture showroom for different purposes. One was there to get a dinning table for his new apartment while the other was there for a wardrobe. However, the salesman who innocently felt they came together kept addressing them as couple while attending to them. Despite their explanations that they came separately and have never met but for that day at the showroom, he insisted they looked like they’re married.

That was the clue. And they didn’t let it slide. They built on that momentum and the rest say is now history. That unscheduled meeting of 11 years ago has now produced an eight-year-old union with lovely kids.

You don’t need to be told that the flame between them today is still as hot as it was when they first become friends and subsequently lovers.

Let me take you on this beautiful love journey with the Alabis…

 

1. Can you take us back to how your love story started?

Mr Alabi: We met at a furniture showroom in Lagos. I had just rented my first apartment and wanted to buy a fairly used dining table. She was there with her aunt, looking for a wardrobe.

Mrs Alabi: The salesman mistakenly thought we came together, so he kept asking us questions as if we were a couple. We corrected him several times, but he just smiled and said, “You two look like you know each other already.”

Mr Alabi: We both laughed so much that we ended up helping each other bargain for our different items. After paying, we discovered we lived only a few streets apart. I offered to help her arrange transport for the wardrobe, and that was how everything started.

 

2. What was the moment you knew “this is the one”?

Mr Alabi: I realised she was different the day we disagreed on something important. I expected the conversation to turn into an argument, but she listened to my side first before sharing hers. That maturity made me see a future with her.

Mrs Alabi: Mine was when I noticed he never made promises just to make me happy. If he couldn’t do something, he would simply say so. I trusted his honesty more than sweet words.

 

3. How many years have you been together?

Mr Alabi: We’ve known each other for 11 years.

Mrs Alabi: We’ve been happily married for 8 years.

 

4. What has been your secret to keeping the spark alive all these years, especially after the arrival of kids?

Mr Alabi: We don’t wait for anniversaries before celebrating each other. Ordinary days deserve special moments too.

Mrs Alabi: We try not to let parenting replace our friendship. Before we became parents, we were friends, and we still protect that part of us.

 

5. How do you both make each other feel special, even in small ways? What fun habits have stayed with you throughout your marriage?

Mr Alabi: Every month, we rearrange one small corner of the house together. It started because we met while buying furniture, and somehow it became our little tradition.

Mrs Alabi: Every time we enter a furniture shop, one of us always says, “Imagine if that salesman had minded his business.” . We still laugh about it after all these years.

 

6. How do you handle disagreements or tough moments now, compared to your early years?

Mr Alabi: When we first got married, silence was our way of handling conflict.

Mrs Alabi: Now we’ve learned that silence solves nothing. We sit down, even if it’s uncomfortable, and talk things through.

 

7. What’s one thing your partner still does that melts your heart?

Mr Alabi: She prays for me before I leave home everyday.

Mrs Alabi: He notices the little changes about me—a new hairstyle, a different pair of earrings, even when I rearrange the sitting room. It makes me feel seen.

 

8. What was one of the biggest challenges you faced together, and how did you overcome it?

Mr Alabi: Our biggest challenge was learning how to balance work, family and marriage without neglecting one another.

Mrs Alabi: We started setting aside one evening every week just for ourselves. That decision brought us closer again.

 

9. What advice would you give to younger couples hoping for a lasting marriage?

Mr Alabi: Marry someone whose character still gives you peace on difficult days.

Mrs Alabi: Don’t spend all your energy planning the wedding. Prepare for the marriage too.

 

10. If you could sum up your marriage in one word or sentence, what would it be?

Mr Alabi: Home.

Mrs Alabi: The best thing we have built together isn’t our house—it’s the life we’ve created inside it.