Nwoke: How Technology Can Help Small Businesses Restore Integrity In Market Pricing System

Entrepreneurship is a lifeline for millions of Nigerians, with many running small businesses as part of efforts to put food on the table and find viable alternatives due to widespread unemployment. Many young school leavers have turned to crafts such as art, photography, baking and fashion design, and trading in different goods and services. 

Businesses such as these make up Nigeria’s informal sector, a key component of the economy which employs a large number of people. In this interview by SUNDAY ABORISADE, a trader and tech entrepreneur, Mr. Nwoke Chibuzo, explores the opportunities available to Nigerians in the informal sector and how they can take advantage of tools like technology to grow their businesses. 

Can you please introduce yourself?

I am Mr. Chibuzo Nwoke Emmanuel, a BSc Holder in Economics from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka and a Certified Entrepreneur by the Central Bank of Nigeria. I am an entrepreneur who believes in the emancipation of the Nigerian economy and I strongly believe that technology has a very big role to play. 

Can you tell us about your journey into trade and entrepreneurship?

My journey as an entrepreneur started back in early childhood. I was raised by a trader and a mother who taught me how to create wealth and how to overcome difficulties through persistence and determination. That early childhood orientation gave me a clue about what I was going to study at the university. I embraced Economics as a bridge to the destination of a successful entrepreneur. Back then at the university, I learnt sales which I perceived as the backbone of any entrepreneur who wants to succeed. Finding my feet in the real sector after graduation was not a walk in the park, although I had already decided as an undergraduate to establish my own business. 

Before my final year, I co-authored a book titled ‘Nigerian School System – Doubts and Realities (The Missing Link)’. This book portrays my mindset about what we are taught in the classroom and the reality on the streets. From my observation, I noticed that the curriculum we were being trained with could not solve the present-day problems in the real sector. As such, I discovered that money is an idea, so I decided to be self-employed.

Capital is a major challenge for young business owners. How did you raise capital for your business? 

It is not easy to raise capital as a beginner, but I discovered one element which is integrity. This should be the first capital of any entrepreneur. When you have integrity, it will help you to build trust and the trust will build capital. In practice, when I came back from the university, I searched for a place to raise money but I did not find. I decided to get a little value in a nearby market close to my village. The market had no electricity as at that time. The little money in my possession was used to buy a small generator and I used my primary knowledge of electricity learned from my Introductory Technology classes in Secondary School to provide electricity for this market, though it was not big enough to cover the entire market. I selected the shops which needed electricity the most and these are the ones which got access to the power source. Over time, they noticed my person in the market through the value which I created. 

Though the revenue was not that much, it solved my daily needs and created trust for me among the traders. My second business idea was born from the platform of that trust, and it was Esusu (in Yoruba) or Akawo (in Igbo). The entire market gave me their trust and my customer base increased. I then bought a bigger generator to capture the entire market and the power generation business became profitable. In order to scale the business, I enrolled into the CBN Entrepreneurship Training programme where I was mentored in the area of bakery and confectionery. At the time, the government promised to fund the project based on the business proposal we submitted. The promise went unfulfilled and that shattered the hope of many trainees. I refused to give up. Eventually, I was able to raise funds by leveraging on the trust that I had gained and I rented some shops inside the market in order to start the bakery. When I started the bakery, it was not easy but I started with the market as a stepping stone because I had no vehicle to convey the bread outside the market. To cut the long story short, the bread was very tasty and irresistible. My sales grew and I began to employ people to work with me. Some of the challenges I faced include market imperfections and price padding. On one occasion, I fell victim to an unscrupulous middleman at Alaba International Market while acquiring my baking equipment whose fake price system made me lose a lot of money. These are some of the issues I have faced along the way, and this made me to seek ways to solve it for others by leveraging technology. 

What would you say are the major lessons that young people need to learn before they go into business? 

Young people should be resolute in their decision making when going into business, knowing that it is not a rosy road but the key to surmounting attendant challenges and problems are determination and a positive attitude. In addition, they should make integrity their first capital. If you can build integrity, the road will become much easier for you. 

What are the major challenges that small businesses face in Nigeria, and what kind of opportunities do you think prospective business owners should be aware of? 

Business owners in Nigeria, especially the small and medium-sized business owners, face a lot of challenges in the area of finance, market penetration, and public relations. Gone are the days when banks trusted startups. As a business owner in Nigeria, I advise you to take your mind off the possibility of banks coming to your rescue at any stage. It is better to start with what you have, deny yourself some things at the beginning so that you can build your capital faster. Venture into marketing your product because it is the key way to grow very fast. Going into the media might not be easy because of the high cost of media publication so use one-on-one marketing and explore your immediate environment with your quality product. Also use social media to reach a wider audience. 

You are the founder of an app which helps to connect small businesses to clients. What made you decide to go into tech and why did you focus on this specific issue? 

In the 21st century, I don’t think any business will thrive without having technology as its backbone. In my startup experience, I had limitations which was national spread. All my success came from my immediate environment and I thought about using technology to enhance and widen my reach. As I mentioned earlier, I also faced challenges while starting up my bakery, such as price padding and the activities of middle men. In response to this, I decided to create a platform which creates a win-win scenario for small business owners and their customers. The app is called ‘Tradabook’, and it allows small business owners to be visible to customers and also build a strong customer base. The app also allows shoppers to compare prices of commodities among different traders, thereby correcting market imperfections in the area of information sharing between traders and buyers. Essentially, I focused on visibility and information sharing because those were the challenges that I faced in my business journey. From interacting with and observing other businesses, those were challenges that they faced as well. 

What has the tech experience been like? 

I have had positive and negative experiences. Being a non-tech expert, embracing technology was not easy for me. In fact, I wanted to be the one to build the app myself but I realised that I was very limited in the tech knowledge required. In my journey into tech, I still encountered the same problem I was trying to solve with the app, in that I was scammed by a friend who had promised to deliver the app within eight months, and this was after making 75% of the required payment. Although I became very sceptical owing to that experience, I did not relent and I decided to find another person to build the app but this time, after doing more research. I eventually discovered a woman named Coach Barakat Awoyemi, who also trains children on tech skills, and after engaging her, the app was delivered in 12 weeks. She has been very professional in her approach and for me, the experience has highlighted the importance of supporting our women in tech. I have also had to build a team of vibrant young people in the startup and this has also further highlighted the industrious and vibrant nature of our youths, and the hard work that they do in Nigeria’s tech sector. 

In what ways do you think technology can impact small businesses? 

As I have previously mentioned, the role of technology in business growth cannot be overemphasised. It is only technology that can transform a small business to a multinational. As such, I would like to encourage business owners to leverage more on technology, even if it is just social media marketing for a start, to promote their businesses. There is a very large market out there, outside of their geographical location, that they can access by using platforms like social media and expanding their customer base through apps like ‘Tradabook’.