DOGS Corner

Nigeria is the easiest place to make money in the world. Just have capital and the opportunities are endless. We are a nation of 260 million after all. But access to capital is difficult in Nigeria, and that's why the nation remains poor.

I wouldn't have believed it myself if I hadn't seen the setup. What does this young man do? He sells ice blocks. Just that. Ice blocks. 

At a minimum, he gets net returns above 2 million monthly.

He has 3 staff that he pays 30k monthly. Their job is just to tie water in Santana and stock the freezers. They do this every morning and evening. Each block goes for 200 naira. He told his staff he doesn't care how much they sell; he only wants to receive an alert of 100k daily. Imagine that level of motivation. The staff have off days, but they don't take them. Why should they?

He rents 3 shops to house 9 solar freezers, and he pays 900k for all 3 shops yearly. His capital outlay for the solar setup is 11.9 million naira. His sales in a day pay all his staff for the month. How insane is that?

Who will believe that just producing ice blocks can give someone this level of income? Admittedly, the business is seasonal, but it is a business that can generate maximum returns for 6 months or more in a year at scale.

I don't know if something like this can move nationwide. I went to Nasarawa State on business and stumbled on a long‑time friend, and this is what he is engaged in even though he has his PhD already.

There are countless opportunities like this nationwide. It doesn't necessarily have to be ice blocks. Business is capital. Huge amounts of it, for that matter. 

10 million will take you far as a poultry farmer, eggs particularly. 

10 million will give you access to Dangote or Coca‑Cola distributorships. 

20 million will give you Nestle. 

My knowledge here is quite rusty though. 

I don't know about Flour Mills, Dufil Prima, or other fast‑moving consumer goods companies. I know someone who sells just Tom‑Tom sweets as a major dealer, and bank managers are begging for his business.

 I don't have an idea how much major cigarette and beer dealers make monthly, but Nigerian Breweries and Guinness Nigeria Plc are some of the companies with the highest market capitalisation on the Nigerian Stock Exchange. So that should give you an idea. There is good money in sin after all!

To have ideas for business and have no capital for execution is a curse. Nigeria works, but limited access makes it appear an impossibility for most of us.

I'm not engaged in any of the businesses listed above. I'm just a young man with his face pressed on the glass looking in. Some day though, I may be able to knock on that glass for access. But today, I'm just one who believes so much in this country and the vast opportunities it holds to provide wealth.
Nigeria is working. We need it to work for all of us.