This business I am writing about
tonight is one of the businesses in Nigeria that is quite close to my heart –
Nigeria Local Furniture Business. I recently furnished my home and office and I
can tell you, the amount of money I spent on those furniture is enough to turn
head. Yes, the furniture we bought are imported designer furniture but the
question is — How many Nigerians can afford imported furniture? Local furniture
business in Nigeria is a well kept secret and seriously undervalued business
opportunity.
How many Nigerians know the difference between designer
furniture and Nigeria furniture? This later question is what lead me into
probing deeper to discover the really booming local furniture market in Nigeria
that I want us to take a look into and see how we can tap from the huge profit
in this sector.
The truth is that everyone wants to have furniture
in their home regardless of the quality or where it comes from. To some, it
doesn’t matter if it is imported or Nigeria furniture; while others simply
can’t tell the difference between these two. The best part is that the Nigeria
furniture are actually very good looking, especially when it is designed by a
good Carpenter. For the fact that many people can’t tell the difference shows
that Nigerian local made furniture are nice too, and some of them last long as
well.
Another truth is that they are far cheaper,
presenting something affordable to everyone – unlike the designer version that
after buying, you start checking your pocket to see if there is hole somewhere.
So, if you are in the local furniture business, you are 100% guaranteed of good
sales because average Nigerians (greater in number) who could not afford the
superior type are always going to buy from you.
However, the greatest truth is that you don’t even
have to be a Carpenter to sell this Nigeria Local Furniture. Anyone can do the
business, no matter who you are as long as you have the needed capital to start
this business which in most cases may not be more than N200,000. That is the
truth, N200,000 is just enough to get you started, then as the business starts
yielding profit, you may add more, expand, and add imported furniture or even
begin to manufacture the superior type here in Nigeria.
Many great Nigerians have made it big through the
sales of household and office furniture. One good example is Mrs. Ibukun
Awosika – she is the founder of Quebees Ltd, and Chair Centre Ltd which manufacture
and sell office furniture that runs into several hundreds of millions of naira
here in Nigeria. You too can start small and grow big in the furniture business
like her!
A complete four set of imported SOFA costs from N1.5 m while the same complete set of
chair, made with good materials (the Nigerian way) cost about N70,000 from the local carpenters. With
good negotiation, you are sure to get it cheaper, sell for N100,000 in your showroom, and make N30,000 pure profit from that single
sell! Is that a good business or not?
Now that I have tickled you a bit, let me take you
through the 2 easy steps you need to take to get your local furniture business
started as soon as this week.
Look For A Good
Carpenter
Every Carpenter can hold hammer and nail but not
every Carpenter is capable of producing good quality furniture job. Some
Carpenters are very good at producing good furniture job but not all of them
can deliver it on time. Very few does! Look for one or two among these few and
negotiate good deal with them.
They will be responsible for supplying you the
furniture you need to sell to your customers. A full set of Living Room Chairs
(N70,000), 2 Beds (N40,000), and a Dinning Set (N20,000) is all you need for a
start. You may add very good Foams on those Beds which you are going to sell
together with the beds and make profits from both.
Get A Showroom
For Your Local Furniture Business
You need a showroom to be able to display your
furniture to the public. Make sure it is by the roadside for passerby to see
them. Advertising is everything in business, if your furniture is hidden, no
one will see them and you wouldn’t make a sell. You must by all means get your
product where people can see them for you to make sells.
If you don’t have money for a showroom, go for open
place by the roadside. Many Nigeria furniture sellers, sell at the open place
by the roadside and they still make good sells.
When you have these two things in place, you are
ready for business but don’t forget that your Customers are the lifeblood of
your business, give them good services and treat them well.
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