When world rankings
predict that African Businesses have a 5-year life span, do they factor in the
petty traders that man their corner shops for a lifetime?
I visited my parents
in Abeokuta recently and was again amazed at the persistence of these corner
shops.
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Photo by Breston Kenya from Pexels
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When we moved into the area in
1997, 'Iya Tunde' was already there, the official plug for fresh bread, Monday
to Sunday. She had a grinding mill too, where children socialised while they
waited for their turn to grind pepper or beans.
She sold more than bread, pretty
much anything people needed. Her goods often changed with the seasons, balloons
and 'banger' accompanying the yuletide, leap balm and 'Rubb' surfacing in
harmattan and umbrellas to welcome the rains. It appears like she has been
there forever, but she has four educated children and two completed houses to
show for it.
What about 'Iya Bose' popular for
selling fufu, then pepper, then brooms, then garri and other food items. Her
business has run for decades, educating her children and turning her into a
landlord.
There is also Solution drug
store. If he had a marketing team, they would position him as the community's
first stop for health enquiries. The shop might have remained little, but it
has remained for decades.
I could go on with the examples of unsung businesses, with no
business plan or marketing degrees to drive them. No expansion strategy or
start-up grant- yet surviving. Maybe, even thriving in their own little way.
Someone should tell these stories.
Now that I think about it again, that someone can be me.
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