The Nation Newspaper

Category: Small Business and Entreprenuership

  • Battery charging as cash spinner

    Battery charging as cash spinner

    The auto subsector will continue to thrive, despite the twists in the economy. People will keep buying cars, trucks and other vehicles that use battery. LUCAS AJANAKU writes that automobile battery maintenance could create opportunities for many.

    One of the major sources of income for the battery technician is the emergency use of their batteries to start broken down cars, truck or any other automobile with run down battery.

    According to an automobile engineering online platform, About.com Auto Repair, if you turn your car key and get nothing, or get anything less than an engine roaring to life, you might be in for a bad day.  If your car key fails to turn on the ignition, it may be caused by malfunctioning fuses. Few cars have a fuse associated with the starting system, so if you have challenge starting your car, check the fuse.

    Another is battery corrosion: Over time, battery connections get dirty or corroded. This breaks the connection the battery has with the rest of the car and stops it from starting.

    The most common reason a car won’t start is due to dead battery. This is where the ‘battery charger’ comes in with his skill. He comes with his battery tester to measure cranking amps and test to see if it’s weak.

    While bad ignition switch is another reason cars do not start, bad starter connection through corrosion can keep the battery from working.

    In all of these cases, the battery charger’s services are needed. It is only when he fails that he will recommend that an auto electrician be consulted. This will not deter him from collecting money from you, however small.

    According to findings, depending on the location, just starting a car could cost between N500 and N2,500. In Egbeda/Akowonjo area on the outskirts of Lagos, starting a car costs N700 while at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, it is between N1,500 and N2000.

    The Nigeria Battery Technologists Association (NBTA), Treasurer, Egbeda Branch, Alao Ogunbunmi, said restoring power to a battery that has run down will attract N1000 and N2,500. This, however, depends on the capacity of the batteries. “It depends on the amps. Between 38amps and 80 amps will attract N100 while between 100amps and 200amps will attract N2,500 for charging,” he said.

    A battery charger, who identified himself as Alfa, said the amount paid for cars is determined by whether the car runs on automotive gas oil (AGO) or diesel or premium motor spirit (PMS) of petrol. If it is diesel, it is usually higher because it takes extra effort to start a car with diesel engine.

    Starting trucks is another source of income for battery chargers. To start a 33000-litre tanker, for instance, could cost as much as between N15,000 and N20,000. If the tanker breaks down in the middle of a major highway and is capable of causing a traffic gridlock, it could cost as much as N20,000.

    The job is not constrained by weather. Wet season is the time they make the most returns because of the bad roads that all the nooks and crannies of the country. When it rains and there is flood which prevents drivers from locating the deep pot holes on the road, drivers so often ram into these making car engine to stop. Efforts to start the car may lead to running down the battery inevitably, leading to contracting a battery charger.

    The battery chargers also rent batteries out for commercial bus drivers who pay between N1000 and N1500 per day.

    Starting up requires financial support from families and friends. Electrical fan, burner, forge, distilled water, spanners, cell and acid are some of the items needed to be in the business.

    But central to the success of the job is the charger machine. “This is the live wire of the business. It is what charges dead batteries, bringing them to live,” Ogunbunmi said. Alfa added that power is crucial to the sustainability of the job. “Generators are just for support, the best for efficient performance is power supply from the natioanl grid. What will be achieved within 10 minutes using public power supply will be achieved after more than one hour using generators,” he said.

    Analysts say the job does not require that one wears rags. “It depends on the person doing it. You can wear your suit and sit in your shop to do the job,” a battery charger said.

  • Making a living from sales

    Making a living from sales

    Ifeoma Nwanfili has moved from being an unemployed youth to becoming a successful sales woman. DANIEL ESSIET reports.

     

    In the Nigeria’s challenging economy, many people have turned to sales to make a living. One of them is Ifeoma Nwanfili, Chief Executive, Scents

    She has always dreamt of making a career in sales. As a girl, she saw salespeople, going from house to house in the hot afternoon, trying to convince homeowners to buy their goods. From then on, she worked towards achieving her aspiration.

    She worked with a travel agency. But her salary was small. She later resigned and started selling recharge cards. At a time, the company starting owing salaries. Because of this, she was forced to quit.

    With N7000, she bought a cooler and a few items and  started  selling cooked  rice  and salad at Berger Bus stop on the Apapa-Oshodi Expresssway, Lagos. Her food was  good and it brought a lot of people. That was how she became popular. She made more customers. Soon, she won a large chunk of the market at the bus stop. She was excited and continued working hard.

    She proved to be so adept at sales and was able to build a good clientele. But after a few months, she  shifted from food business to learn fashion designing. On graduation, she started a fashion designing business with the aim of sewing quality products. In a short time, people started calling  for her services and she gained their trust. What she didn’t expect — especially in the competitive fashion industry — was that sales would rise  quickly. She came out at a time contemporary dresses were in vogue. She rode on the crest of this and learned how to build a good business. Her growth was notable because she found success in the fashion industry. But she did not give up. She was determined to do everything she could to make sure that  she was successful.

    She envisioned a company in which she could become as successful as she wanted to be. For her, the doors would be opened for people who were willing to pay the price.

    Though a sales person, she was  not  satisfied with the fashion designing. She  realised she  has the ability to do other things.

    Along the line something happened in her family that made her to spend much of her savings. She  was left with nothing. She had to go back to selling to give herself opportunity  to go back to  school. Starting from the scratch, she networked with some people who gave her the opportunity that made   that made to excel.

    As a sales person, she needed to find good products to sell. It should be something people could believe in, that they could recommend, and, most importantly, products that could be used up and re-ordered. She knew that when people look good, they feel good, because their self-confidence is strong. And that idea set her on her journey. She began selling perfumes and other goods to pay her bills. She was ready to sell product to make money. Her indomitable spirit and belief has had a huge impact on her.

    Nwanfili urged young persons to step out and not to be deterred by past failure.

  • Celebrated entrepreneur reveals her next big idea

    Bethlehem Tilahun Alemuis one of Africa’s most celebrated entrepreneurs. In 2004, she founded soleRebels in Ethiopia, and the company has since become one of Africa’s largest footwear brands with its range of artisan-made shoes now selling in over 55 countries.

    According to Making It magazine, soleRebels is set to generate US$15milion-$20milion in revenue by 2015. Alemu’s success has led her to be named by CNN as one of 12 “smart women” entrepreneurs in the past century, alongside Coco Chanel and Elizabeth Arden. She has also been featured on the front cover of Forbes magazine and in 2011 was selected as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum.

    Last week, Alemu launched her second company, Republic of Leather, an online startup that addresses the global trend of consumers wanting to have more control over how and where their products are produced. Republic of Leather allows just this.

    Alemu told How we made it in Africa the idea stemmed from her love for leather products and the fact that her home country, Ethiopia, is a key source of quality hides and leathers used by many global luxury brands to craft high end articles.

    “I have worked side by side with the producers of these very same fine leathers for years as I built my footwear brand soleRebels. I have deep relationships that span from the supply side – right from the origin and selection of the hides and skins themselves – through to our tanners network.”

    The company’s online platform allows customers to select their products from a range of leather goods, such as jackets, bags and gloves. Customers can then use an online app to customise details, from the leather type and colour to the stitch patterns used, and can then choose the artisan and location around the planet where they want their designs to be handcrafted. “

     

    •Culled from howwemadeitinafrica.com

  • Making a living selling information

    Making a living selling information

    The Founder, Success Guide Enterprise, a Lagos-based entrepreneur, Josephson Peter Okwudili, has discovered that selling investment information is lucrative. He shares his secret with Daniel Essiet.

    A free internet appreciation business organised by the   Publisher, Complete Sports, Dr Sunny Ojeagbase, in 2006 was attended by many aspiring entrepreneurs, but only a few today are living off what they learnt.

    While some of the attendants ended up not exploring the training, the purpose for which the programme was designed, the smart ones through a reward from the organiser, have become millionaires.

    For Josephson Peter Okwudili,   founder of Success Guide Enterprise, Lagos, who attended the training, his drive to practise it has made him one of the few who now make millions of naira.

    Fortune smiled on him a few months after the training when Ojeagbase decided to support those who put the exercise to work.

    After Okwudili showed the him some results, Ojeagbase gave him $500, which motivated him to start  what has become a successful venture.

    The reward, however, struck him to aspire to becoming his own boss.  In 2008, he registered his own business selling recharge cards and information products. As his business grows, he resigned his appointment with Today’s Cars where he was a supervisor.

    According to him, the decision to quit the job was  to enhance the growth of his new business.

    In taking the decision, he said he  contended with some challenges which  budding entrepreneurs do encounter, which has made many to give up. To face the business fully, he expended his save-ups on office rent. He became cash-strapped: “For a whole year, I couldn’t make a dime until my rent expired,” he lamented.

    Unfazed, Okwudili never let go as he continued to attend investment seminars to get as much information as possible to break even until he found a nest in selling investment information.That refocussed his goal and shifted his attention from the training. He was scared of risking the loss of another capital in this new venture, especially when he had none anymore.

    As the reality dawn on him, he brainstormed and arrived at an answer: He decided to use it as a bargaining tool to get investment companies to offer him marketing contracts.

    Before he knew it, he made N200,000  introducing people to an investment package.  Along the line, he struck some good deals: Deal Negotiator. All he had to do is to find partners and get wind of opportunities. He found money partners through seminars. He would approach people, explain to them the kind of investment deal, the capital involved and the return on investment (ROI).

    According to Okwudili, prospects were offered the information they needed to take decision. These include figures, forecasts and return, assuring prospects of good deals.

    Today, he said his is a success story, having  learned from his mistakes. He teaches people how to make money online. Since the launch of his training programmes, his income has grown.

    He trains budding business owners on how to launch a profitable business as other new opportunities beckon on him. For him, one has to be ambitious to be successful.

  • Mobile spa, mobile money

    Mobile spa, mobile money

    With the growing interest in fitness and wellness, mobile spa is becoming investors’ destination. Daniel Essiet reports.

    IN the past, wellness and spa service sounded strange to many. It was a business patronised mainly by the rich. Things seem to have changed now. It has become a mass market. On every street, on every corner, spa and beauty service is being offered.

    A Lagos-based entrepreneur, Mrs Kera Oluwasola Oluwabunmi, founder of Keracare Beauty Spa/Academy, was introduced to the business when she  was growing up.  Her dream was to start a wellness centre that  offers personal care services. To achieve this, Mrs Oluwabunmi attended a beauty school and on completion of the course, she decided to carve a niche. She established a mobile spa and wellness firm. Her strategy is to take services to clients at home at highbrow Magodo area of Lagos.

    She started with less than N100,000 in 2003. Today, the business has grown beyond her dream. More clients kept coming. The mobile  firm assists others when their own spas are overbooked, or give special attention to VIP guests.

    The mobile firm has helped Mrs Oluwabunmi to keep her own spa  dream afloat  until  she was able to establish  a shop  service.

    With  a growing demand for mobile massages, she was inspired to go into more treatments, products, massage techniques or packages into the home setting.

    To ensure success, she is flexible, as each spa client expresses different needs.

    Her adoption of viral marketing as a strategy helped people to learn about her company’s mobile services.

    Mrs Oluwabunmi said there are opportunities for Nigerians in the business because they appreciate the feel-good experience and health benefits.

    At the moment, she is focusing on providing world-class skincare services to clients.

    Besides, she runs a beauty academy at Ikorodu, Lagos  and  offers apprenticeship  where trainees, learn new products and techniques. Her skincare secrets are education, inspiration, reinvention and delivery.

    She said some of the reasons behind her success are that her clients  are loyal to her spa services. She employs therapists. Treatments include aromatherapy, designed to relax muscles, alleviate stress and promote  well-being.

    For her, the key to making money is to provide outstanding services that draw customers and keep them coming back while offering value-added options to increase revenue and profits.

  • 217 get free vocational training

    THE Centre for Vocational Empowerment and Development (CVED), Ipaja, Lagos has empowered 217 youths and women with skills.

    The beneficiaries received training in computer, catering, bead making and wirework, decoration and event management, screen printing, adult literacy, hairdressing, among others.

    At their graduation last weekend, the Chief Executive Officer, Rev David Olatona, said since its inception in 2009, the centre has trained 2,335 students free.

    He said the centre was the outcome of a programme he formed in 2007, which was dedicated to giving 300 less privileged free lunch in the community.  But instead of giving them food everytime, he decided to teach them how to get food.

    Rev Olatona, who is also the Senior Pastor, Dominion Faith International Church (DFIC), said the church formed the Free Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (FEEDS) to prosecute the project. “Under the FEEDS programme,” he said, “ free training was provided to enable people acquire skills aimed at helping them become economically self-reliant. The training holds every Friday at DFIC compound,” adding that certificates are awarded at the completion of the training.

    He scored the programme high, saying it was for this that the church has spread its tentacles to some African countries to establish the centre. He listed some of these as Liberia, Chad, Benin Republic, Niger, Togo, Gambia and Burkina Faso.

    He urged the graduands to “prove yourself with the skills acquired and impact your world positively. Your instructors have done all they could to make you who you are now, though it has been a tenacious experience for some of you…Shun tribalism,ethnocentrism, segregation and groupism. Be peace-loving people”.

    The computer instructor Mr Oladeji Showunmi described his 20-member class as well-behaved and the best so far who took their home work serious. He canvassed more computers to assist in practicals. “The class was wonderful. I recommend the training for graduates,” he said.

    One of the graduands Queen Brendan praised the centre for the training, saying she really enjoyed it. The catering graduate said: “I love the training. I enjoyed it so much. I will recommend it to others.”

  • Five personality traits of successful entrepreneurs

    Entrepreneurs come in all shapes and sizes, but the successful ones usually have a few things in common. Some new insight from Corrine Sandler, Chief Executive, Fresh Intelligence Research Corporation, a global business intelligence group, pinpoints exactly what those “things” might be.

    Sandler, a successful entrepreneur herself, has spent 20-plus years rubbing elbows with the world’s most influential movers and shakers. She believes that all effective entrepreneurs owe their success, at least in part, to these five personality traits:

    No. 1: Confidence “Any natural entrepreneur is bursting with confidence, both in him or herself and in the conditions they control,” said Sandler in a recent article on the foundations of entrepreneurial success.”Entrepreneurs need risk to thrive, so believing in themselves and the people they’ve put in positions of responsibility is essential. There’s no room for doubt and second-guessing yourself.”Sandler recommends that aspiring entrepreneurs learn their own strengths and put them to good use. But she also stresses the importance of knowing one’s own weaknesses.

    As an entrepreneur, you need to hire the right people to handle the jobs that don’t play to your strengths, Sandler said. And this is just as important as fulfilling whatever role you choose for yourself, she said.

    No. 2: PassionThe next personality trait on Sandler’s list can’t be taught at your typical leadership-training workshop: passion. But the great thing about this intrinsic quality, Sandler explains, is that everyone has the capacity to develop it. So what is passion, really?

    “It’s the source of incredible energy that feeds on one of our most powerful emotions and compels entrepreneurs forward with excitement and enthusiasm,” Sandler said.

    No. 3: A fighter’s instinct. Like a seasoned boxer, a successful entrepreneur knows that winning takes more than a few swift punches. Both in the boxing ring and in business, the best fighters, Sandler explains, study their competition to identify opponents’ strengths and weaknesses, and then use that knowledge to develop a strategy to beat them.”When things are going well, the entrepreneur who thinks the fight is over and he has won will quickly find himself knocked to the mat,” Sandler said. “Equally important is having the mental fortitude to keep fighting when you’re at the bottom, bruised and bloodied.” (Accepting Failure: When It’s Time to Give Up on Being an Entrepreneur)

    No. 4: VisionWhile entrepreneurs need to be deeply enmeshed in the here and now of their current ventures, they also need a sense of the bigger picture.

    Successful entrepreneurs, Sandler explains, are always thinking ahead, planning the future with equal measures of imagination and wisdom. And in case “planning the future” seems like a daunting task, Sandler has a few tips.Her go-to resource for future planning? Strategic coaches. These professionals, as Sandler explains, can help you define your vision.Sandler herself relies on something else to help crystalize her vision of the future. The BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal) from “Mastering the Rockefeller Habits” (Gazelles, Inc., 2011) by Verne Harnish, is Sandler’s favorite strategising tool.

    No. 5: A rebellious streak Sandler, whose catch phrase is, “What you visualise will materialise,” clearly believes that entrepreneurs can create their own realities. So if you’re a conformist, you might consider another career path. Entrepreneurs, Sandler said, need to be agents of change.”You can’t be content with maintaining the status quo,” Sandler said. “You must push the limits. Dare to be different!”

     

    •Culled from www.businessnewsdaily.com

  • How we made it, by young entrepreneurs

    How we made it, by young entrepreneurs

    At a seminar in Calabar, the Cross River State capital, young entreprenuers revealed the secrets of their success. DANIEL ESSIET reports.

    When Aniekan James Ekah,  Chief Executive,  Wetinhappen.com.ng, uploaded his first  material to  his blog  in 2009, he never have imagined what would follow. Today, the blog has many  followers in Akwa Ibom  State and beyond.

    His blog compete with traditional media, offering a range in tone and coverage. Ekah is one in a new breed of entrepreneurs – and along with fellow  bloggers, online shop owners, and app developers, he is proving that the internet is big business.

    He is considered one of the nation’s most promising entrepreneurs, thanks to his  online  presence that has tapped high demand for Nigerian movies.

    He addressed  the Afterschool Peer Mentoring Project, “Prep2Grad Symposium”, held in Calabar ,the Cross River State capital.

    The event , which held at the CES Auditorium, University of Calabar, was attended by many students.

    The symposium sought to inspire and equip young people, engaging them to plan for life after their graduation.

    The  event provided a spring board for young Nigerians who are about graduating from secondary schools and universities to learn from their peers who have accomplished it in their chosen fields.

    Ekah knew he was going to do his  own thing, because even when he  was working, he had an  ambition.

    “Every great brand begins with an idea; that  is how I began my blog; seven years down the line, I am happy I made that decision, because it did pay off in all ramifications,”he said.

    Even with the proliferation of ‘How to make your blog pay’ stories, social media platforms, and clever online marketing and web analytics tools, creating a profitable blog is no meaan feat.

    The blog represents a substantial part  of his income (his other money comes from books as well as magazine, online and corporate writing,) but his  blog has created more career opportunities for him. Other journalists often call him due to his expertise in  reporting  events in Akwa Ibom State.

    The blog has become Ekah’s brand, a chance to expose him and his writing to a global audience. And it’s not just Ekah  alone, other online entrepreneurs are also using the online world to promote their brand.

    Reaching this  level of success has not been easy for him. The strategy he uses is to get a  good grasp of what his audience likes. That has helped him to build  a solid readership  base which is vital to any successful blogger.

    According to him, trust is the foundation of his business. From day one he believed he had established trust among his readers.

    He encouraged the youth to be prepared to take a risk, learning   how to have confidence, faith in themselves, and a willingness to jump in entrepreneurship.

    As an information technology entrepreneur, he has been involved in numerous IT-related projects  and has been an outstanding youth personality in the state.

    He is the brain behind the Usem Akwa Ibom Project on Facebook-an online project that creates awareness on the use of Akwa Ibom languages on the Internet which is celebrated yearly to commemorate the State’s creation anniversary every year.

    By dint of hardwork, he was selected to represent Akwa Ibom at the 2008 Nigeria Youth Stakeholders Forum in Nigeria.

    Another speaker was  the Chief Executive, Laffhouse Entertainment, Awade Friday, one of the few young leaders in Cross River  State who are doing well in entertainment blogging.

    He said: “If you are in search of  a job and you are not willing to  work for free, you need to rethink your strategies; my popularity and value grew from doing free shows”.

    Chief Executive, Lizzy’s Beauty Touch, Cross River State, Lizzy Ekpenyong, said :  “Passion is a great separator; where others follow and fail, your passion will keep you through the storms; before you set out on your career journey, find your passion first”.

    Chief Executive,UK Sally Resources, Cross River State, Ukemeobong Silas: “I have engaged in a lot of craft works in the creative industry; the most outstanding is my woolworks; even when it was less fashionable for a young  person, I persevered.”

    Executive Director, Kids and Teens Resource Centre, Ekiti State, Mary Falana said :”I found my feet during my National Youth Service Corps(NYSC) days that I was passionate about working with young people. I stayed on the path and at the moment, we run one of the best safe spaces for teens and kids in the South western Nigeria.

    Executive Director, Brave Heart Initiative, Edo State, Priscila Usiobaifo, said: “Beyond finding your passion, you need to have a plan, share that plan with your significant others, probably a mentor and seek guidance; implement and review; you will be glad you did.”

  • Businesses that require little start-up capital

    Businesses that require little start-up capital

    Nigerians are looking for businesses they can start with little capital. Daniel Essiet presents businesses they can start with N100,000 or more.

    There are businesses that with as little  as N100,000 one can  lift off the ground. A range of these enterprises are suitable for the unemployed who can  source up to N300,000 to begin. Here is a list of them

    Making and selling crafts

    Making and selling crafts is a  business one  can start with little capital. It includes fabric, yarn, and thread crafts. There is a big market for beautiful hand-made sewing, knitting and creative products for people who enjoy the simple pleasure of old fashioned craft.

    The kits are cheap and easy to put together. It involves cutting and hand-sewing tools. These include pins and needles, scissors, glue, stuffing, sequins, ribbon and patterns with step-by-step instructions. All that is required is imagination and creativivity. Products  can be  made and sold on a customised, made-to-order basis.

    To start small, one  needs a sewing machine and materials to make fabulous and exciting projects. There are fabrics and yarns in the market as well as hundreds of digital products and craft books packed with idea to help new entrants.

    An   important ancillary to promoting any arts and crafts business, is setting a reasonable price that the market can absorb. This process starts in the trenches – that is – with controlling one’s raw material costs.

    As in any other service business, one needs skills   to churn out quality products at a price that customers can afford, while still making enough money to cover business and personal expenses.

     

    Food business

    The food business is super-hot.   Growing need for event managers have created a booming interest in the food industry. One  needn’t  own a restaurant, or hot bar to get into the food business. The business can be  started right at home, or at the  kitchen table. The food industry is vast and includes every type of enterprise. It’s also an industry heavy with regulatory burdens. One  must learn inside out before one even takes the first step.

    However, it is an industry in which many entrepreneurs flourish. Unlike most other business opportunities, street food selling offers individuals a chance to start their own business with reasonably little investment. There are very few restrictions, low overheads and little, if any specialist knowledge, skills or experience.

    One advantage of street-food hawker, is that in most cases, one will be in the enviable position of being able to ‘move-on’ should a particular pitch prove to be unsuccessful.

    People will always  need to eat and drink, andtoday’s busy lifestyle often means that many are either unwilling, or unable to cater for themselves, turning rather to fast food or ready-prepared meals.

    On the whole, starting any business is no easy task, and becoming a food entrepreneur is a special challenge.

    One will have to prepare oneself for the hard work and dedication it takes to succeed in  food business.

     

    Rabbit rearing

    Rabbit farming is a lucrative agri-business.The domestic rabbit is a prolific breeder, and  produces large quantities of tasty meat. Rabbits provide meat and other products, and can be quickly sold for cash or turned into nutritious meals when needed.

    One needs a doe (female) and a buck (male) to start. Once the kindling begins, the colony increases rapidly. One doe is capable of yielding about  40 rabbits a year. If one starts the business, having borrowed the initial rabbits, within half a year, one can return live rabbits of the same age. Rabbits produce litters of six to 10 offspring after a gestation of only 30 days.

    The rate of production is faster than that of pigs, goat or sheep.

     

    Fish farming

    Fish farming has  become a good source of additional income for farmers when done in the right way.

    It requires a lot of technical knowledge, which farmers can only acquire through proper training and correct information from the right sources before they can start.

    All one needs is a space in the  backyard, or ready-made tanks. Required fingerlings sell for  between N10 to N20.

    Then  feed them for about  six  months, then sell from between N200 to N1,500 per kilogramme depending on weight and size. The type of fish to be produced depends on the market, climate and whether it is actually possible to grow it in fish farm settings.

     

    Snail farming

    Snail meat is a safe and nutritious delicacy. Anyone can start snail farming and make profit within six months. It is very cheap to rear. The profit in snail farming is encouraging because each snail can produce at least 100 eggs in a year.

    The best period to commence snail farming is the rainy season. One can start with about 50 – 60 snails to have a good knowledge of how snail breeding works.

    Snails are sold in bunches of 20 pieces each and price depends on the size- the bigger ones are sold for between N1, 800 and N3, 000 per bunch. It is better to buy the big ones because they can hatch after about 35 days on location. About N10, 000 should get a new entrant into the business.

     

    Ice block production

    The good thing about this business is that one  can start on a small scale  from the comfort of the  room.  To start, one needs a freezer, or preferably an ice-block making machine; a generator that can effectively power the  freezer or machine; a water source and nylon bags.

    This business thrives well in areas where there is incessant power outages, and also in over-populated places such as motor parks, market places, schools, commercial and business areas. The ice block business is a volume business; the more blocks one sells, the more money one make.

     

    Plantain chips

    Plantain chips production is a money spinner because it  is a well-loved snacks .

    It requires very little capital to set up.

    With a start-up capital of less than N20,000, one  can generate income of at least N10, 000 daily if one is able to produce 1000 packets of plantain chips.

    The equipment one needs include frying pan, plantain cutter or table knife, nylon sealing machine, gas burner or kerosene stove and a weighing scale.

    The raw materials include unripe plantain, vegetable oil, table salt, sugar, packaging nylons and printed labels

    After removing the skin, unripe fruit can be sliced (1 or 2 mm thick) and fried in oil to produce chips. If the chips are made from sweeter fruits, they are called ‘Banana chips.’ They can also be sliced vertically to create a variation known as plantain strips.The market prefers labeled chips.

    The more one produces,the more money one makes.

  • How to start online export without capital

    How to start online export without capital

    The world has become a global community, with the introduction of Information and Communication Technology. Now those without capital can make money as export agents, DANIEL ESSIET reports.

    Information technology has continued to make the global economy vibrant. It has opened windows of opportunities. With one click on the web, one can find and link up foreign buyers to reliable suppliers of export commodities.
    The Chief Executive, Anjorin &Anjorin Investment Limited, Sunday Anjorin, said the internet has created opportunities for brokers to find buyers and sellers of various products. He said there is a great opportunity online for export brokers with several companies itching to expand into foreign markets. The business is very profitable since there is no need for start-up capital. A broker’s role is to link exporters with buyers and draw huge commissions. He only needs to invest in a few basics, such as good training programme, a website, office supplies, a computer, phone and an internet connection. A nroker needs to know the export business well.
    Describing export brokerage as a very lucrative business, Anjorin said one doesn’t have to buy stock or warehouse any merchandise, nor does one need an office space. Many export business are done from the home to keep costs down.
    Anjorin said many Nigerians are into export brokerage, making millions from the comfort of their homes, just by connecting local exporters with foreign buyers of solid minerals and agricultural commodities.
    Once a deal has been struck, and shipment made, Anjorin said the broker is paid a certain amount of money as commission or finder’s fee.
    For instance, with Nigeria having a large deposit of cocoa, cashew, snails, ginger, bitter kola, Arabic gum, charcoal and others, many manufacturing companies abroad look towards the country to source for cheap industrial raw materials for their finished goods.
    Through membership of online business groups, Anjorin noted, one gets potential clients.
    He said export brokerage is one of the easiest and the most rewarding means to raise money for full-time export business.
    According to him, the business is highly competitive and those desiring to enter the business must be adept at with sales and negotiations.
    “As a broker, one would simply be playing the middleman by connecting the manufacturer with consumers and to establish commission fee with the manufacturers,” Anjorin said, stressing the need for brokers to have a signed agreement in place that defines the relationship, commission agreement and payment terms.