Business Through The Eyes of A Baker
TWW: Good day, May we meet you?
OG: My name is Omale Godwin, and I’m the owner of Sunrise
Bakery. I started this place with my then girlfriend, and now my wife, Mercy D. Omale.
TWW: And what do you do?
OG: We’re into bakery, processing of food. We deal in baked products; bread, snacks, smoothies, and shawarma
TWW: How did you get into this business, and for how long
have you been doing it?
OG: Well, I got into
this business precisely on the 4th of August, 2019. That was the day
we started operations, although I’ve been into baking products for a long while
because my mother, my aunty, and most of the people I came in contact with
while growing up were into bakery, especially cake making. So, I picked interest
while I was much younger in bakery activities.
I’ve been doing this on a large scale for three years now,
but if you say how long has been my interest, I’ll say for the past 15 to 16
years.
TWW: What motivated you into it at a relatively young age?
OG: Well, what motivated me was this: right from when I was
young, I always said I didn’t want to work for anybody, be it government or any
private firm, I wanted to be self-employed. This changed my wiring
from a young age. I was always looking into opportunities, what can I do to
create value in my society?
So, I would say relatively, it was my mind set from the
beginning. My mind set was a key shift to how I ventured into bakery products. I
ventured into bakery business at a very young age, so my mind was set right
from the beginning
TWW: How has the journey been so far?
OG: The journey so far has been beautiful; it has been hurtful,
and sometimes terrifying. Starting business in Nigeria, in this part of the
world is not as easy as it is in a country which is more developed. It is
actually very difficult to start in this country because one of the major
problems of Nigeria is high inflation. There is no price control, so anybody
can sell goods at any amount he wants and other things like that. Today you
wake up and a bag of flour is ₦10,000,
tomorrow it is ₦25,000, currently
it is ₦26,000. Between two
years, it has moved from ₦11,000
to ₦26,000 which is uncalled
for in any part of the world.
You would see that at this rate, things would not move well
for business people like us. So, the journey so far has been good, at least the
business is sustainable, we pay our salaries, we pay our staff, we are moving
slowly, in as much as the aspect of funding is still drawing back the business
because we know the in and out of the business but we are not with much funding
to expand to the level we want to be because of the economic situation of the
country.
In all, so far so good, entrepreneurship journey, no
regrets, it’s been good.
TWW: How easy has funding for your business been? It’s a
challenge most businesses face.
OG: Getting funds in Nigeria is a very tough one. It’s a
tough, tough, tough game, because when you know about the business to a certain
level and you know that all you need is finances, and as a young entrepreneur
to get finance here is difficult. You’d rather establish before you get
finance, but the reverse is the case over there (outside the country), they
give you money you go into business. Here, you can’t get money to go into
business. So, practically we are depending on the turnover from the business to
be able to sustain the business.
Funding for business is really difficult, it’s quite
challenging, although when we started out, some people came on board to help us
to move our business forward, although they came in form of investors, so we
had a number. Well, it’s good, but to get extra funds, whether from the
government or from individuals is difficult.
TWW: What would you say has been your highest achievement
and what has been your lowest point?
OG: The highest achievement I would say we’ve recorded as a business is our marketing model. When we started, we were servicing about 17 shops, but right now, we are servicing over a hundred shops. So, I’ll say as we keep expanding, I would look at it as our highest achievement.
Our least point was actually when we started. There was no
vehicle, we didn’t have a car, and we were vending bread using our heads. We’d
use our head to supply bread and all, on and on. Well, it’s all part of the
story, so I’ll consider that as our lowest point, but to God be the glory,
today we are moving and things are going better.
TWW: On a lighter note, how easy is it relating with your
customers? Do they get difficult, and if yes, how do you do it?
OG: Customer relationship is key, if you want to succeed
in Nigeria because a lot of people are coming from different background,
different cities and all, and they’ll expect you to do what they want. Remember
the saying, ‘customer is king, so what we do to combat this, we train our staff
to not look at the behaviour of the customer but to look at the pockets of the
customer. So, while they are there, once we get your money and you have
transacted business with us, we are good to go, everything from your own end will
no longer add value to us.
So, the customer relationship is key, but don’t get
difficult. We already know what we expect some customers are wonderful, they
are good. You talk with those kind of people, they are interested in your area,
you are interested in their area, everything is good. Some people on the other
hand, are already rude from the entrance. “Come on, give me this, come on, give
me that”, so it’s all good, but we already know. We have studied the
behavioural pattern of every customer that comes to us, no matter who you are,
you come, we address you, and everything moves on smooth.
TWW: Okay, back to finances, with the continuing recession
in the country, how affected has your business been especially with respect to
inflation?
OG: Like I stated earlier, inflation is high in Nigeria,
very high and this has taken our profit margin from where we were to a bare
minimum. In fact, with the inflation and the economic hardship, we in the
bakery sector hardly increase money on our products frequently unlike other
products, but what do we say, what do we do?
We have to keep the business afloat, we have to move, we
have to do other things, but inflation has badly affected the bakery business
in Nigeria, not only mine, but entirely in Nigeria. Even in that regard, the
National Bakers Association is planning on going on a national strike from the
13th of July, so we hope the government comes to our aid before
then, if not…
TWW: The elections are around the corner. How prepared are
you and what expectations do you have?
OG: The 2023 elections is going to be a particularly
tough one, and I’m particularly happy with how the youths have come up and are
rallying round the candidates. So, my expectation is that Nigerians should
choose who is competent, it’s not about tribe, religion, or region. I’m very
optimistic that there would be a shift in the political landscape in 2023.
TWW: As we conclude, any word for your customers, present
and potential customers?
OG: Well, my last word for my customers, I appreciate my
customers, you know without customers you can’t grow. So, we tell them to always
continue to patronise Sunrise products anywhere they see it, because they are
the reason why we are in business, they are our most valued people. Thank you
and we hope to transact more volumes of business with you.
TWW: Anything you would like to say to your colleagues, and
fellow entrepreneurs?
OG: To fellow entrepreneurs like me. I’ll say keep your
head high. You can run into debts, you can run into a lot of things, but keep
your head above the waters. Always look out for your health, always try as much
as possible to be on the lookout for people around you, and do the best you
can. I know that better days are ahead.
TWW: Can our audience connect with your brand on social
media?
OG: Yes, they can
TWW: If yes, what platforms and what handles?
OG: We're on Instagram as Sunrise bakery on @sunrise_bakery247
TWW: Thank you for having us.
OG: It's my absolute pleasure.
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