While haggling for a discount with the owner of this business, he revealed to me what I had already known; they were just producing in order to remain in business. The margins were almost non-existent.

Major raw material prices had hit the roof with some of them spiralling as far as 100 per cent in the last six months. He demonstrated this increase using a 12 month purchase schedule.

Earlier this year flour price was N6,300 per bag but today they are now buying at 11,800.
Butter was 4,000 per bucket of 10kg but today it sells for as much as 10,000.
Vegetable oil has moved from 6,100 to 18,500 and sugar did a mega climb from 6,100 to 22,000.

And yet we are still expecting to buy the same size/quantity and quality for the same price.

These guys have really tried. Maybe that’s why they are the entrepreneurs among us. We need to appreciate them and their efforts instead of complaining.

In attempting a deeper foray into the dynamics of the manufacturer/distributor relationship I would like to add that we the distributors in particular and the society in general owe our Manufacturers, Producers, Industrialists, Processors a high debt of gratitude as a matter of duty.

These giants have borne great disadvantages in sustaining businesses especially in thick and even in thin.

Today, my search for another product to add to my combo led me to a small doughnut company located in Okrika village(town) here in Rivers State. It was a most rewarding experience. Whatever a man can set his mind to with laser focus will definitely become a success.

Dangotes Distributors (ditto for distributors of any other major concern) collectively are bigger beneficiaries of the cement production/sales cycle than he the producer himself.

The turnover and profit of the individual distributors who are scattered far and wide will make their principals' financials appear paltry and pedestrian.

Therefore, I advise that you must always seek ways of keeping the company you sell for alive. The relationship is super symbiotic.

Think about it. Last time I was in Lagos I decided to visit Chi Industries (Chivita) at Ajao Estate.

This was a phenomenal experience for me at the very least.

The beneficiaries of Chivita both direct and indirect are legion.

There are so many different shades of personalities seeking expression there and every day.

Every new product that enters the market creates abundant wealth in the society more for the trader than the producer.

You may think differently but this took me painstaking thoughts to arrive at.

We are wont to conclude and without any effort that immediately our principal or colleague or even a prospective customer states a position that it is etched in concrete and steel.

This is far from the case. You must always reassess a situation for strengths and possibilities which may sometimes lurk in the corners of the proposal/proposition.

In every situation, you must always consider what advantages must accrue to you while keeping the other party in business. This is important. Ensure that this is entrenched in in your souls and must be the driving force of your staying in business.

Two personal incidents that I can share come to mind.

When travelling along Nigerian roads you always come across several hundred Dangote trucks hauling his cement all around the country. The greater advantage of this business does not accrue to Aliko Dangote.

The greater beneficiaries are the distributors, re-sellers, masons, contractors, home owners, banks, insurance companies and the GDP at large. Should Dangote Industries experience losses the greater loser will not be Aliko Dangote but the entire scope of the opposite side of the spectrum.

I hope this was not unnecessarily long and boring.

Just take the message from here and ensure that you always view every product, service, circumstance from different perspectives.

Always recall the fable about the blind men touching the different parts of an elephant and describing it according to their feel.

None of them could actually describe the whole. They could only describe a part which reflected their perception of that part.

When the gentleman stood up to begin his questioning, he completely ignored the price element and kept asking questions about the product and their delivery methods/frequency.

He kept increasing the stakes interposing his speech with a lot of large sales figures. One could see that the Lebanese panel was completely swayed.

The young man finally went for the jugular when he asked them if they could supply a trailer load of the product to him at Ariaria market in Aba?

They responded in the affirmative.

He then went to ask them what incentive they were willing to give him for buying that quantity?

We all gaped at this guy imagining if he was just crazy. Here was a company not willing to budge on its prices but here he was asking for incentives.

Guess their response?

They asked him how much he was willing to invest and he responded that he could muster 5 million Naira. These guys almost fell of their seats and after whispering among themselves rapidly they conceded that a serious incentive could be arranged if he was willing to pay for that much immediately. That guy became the toast of the event.

Frankly speaking the meeting had end abruptly. The Lebanese company had perhaps exceeded their target for the East in one order.
My findings subsequently, revealed that these guys only came to try out the waters and were hoping that they could send in only about One Million Naira worth of products initially and here they were surprised to the hilt.

And the guy….. we all gathered around him after the event and he confessed to us that he wasn’t planning on investing that kind of money for a new product but that he just needed to confirm their flexibility in terms of pricing. On how he intended to go about it now; he told us that he will buy the goods and resell them at the cost price while ensuring that his rebate/incentive would be his NET profit. Vintage!!!!!

This was just too cool to be true.

Right in my presence some women registered immediately with him as off-takers.

Case in point here is that appearance may not always reflect the reality of the situation. An item, product or situation seen from only one perspective may only result in a one-sided conclusion.

This meeting was all about introducing a new product into the market place. And all we were thinking of was how we can benefit from the margins that the market could permit. The actual margin for a 50.00 product in this case was rather minimal. Actually, very minimal. It just wouldn’t justify the investment and effort put into marketing it. So here we were all distraught and looking at it from a very negative perspective.

And then this young man comes in with a very fresh perspective.

The product is a new chin-chin brand that has been launched recently in Otta, Ogun State. The product has been served as a constituent in an inflight snack pack by one of the local airlines. They decided to come over to Port Harcourt to see if they could take advantage of the market here in particular and Eastern Nigeria in general.

The offer they were making amounted to N42.00 per sachet (N2,100.00 per pack of 50) as sold to us bulk buyers and they requested that we sell to the retailers at the price of 45.00 (2,250 for 50 sachets) and the retailers will in turn sell it for 50.00. Reasons being predicated on the cost of raw materials.

For us all it just wouldn’t work out that way as all we could see is the marginal 2.50 per sachet amounting to only 125.00 per bag. And that margin will take care of the logistic costs like offloading into our shops/homes, staff salaries, rent, other bills including the fueling/transportation involved in marketing this product in our various territories.

Now it must be made clear that we bulk buyers are used to making something substantial from our sales and the standard is usually 500.00. Where a product is already well known and fast moving then we may be willing to reduce the margin to as low as 250.00 per bag of 50 sachets.

Unfolding events have confirmed what I thought was a bit twisted about us citizens of this great country. We lack staying power. Today I attended the launch of a new product here in Port Harcourt and there several people in attendance especially those of us seeking new streams of income.

As was expected women were in the majority. Sadly, all most of us could see at this launch were the negatives. How expensive the product would be and how the customers would turn it down and so forth.

I was aghast. Nobody seemed to want to view it from another perspective. If one were not invited as an individual, I would have thought that the audience had met before the launch event but this wasn’t the case even though everyone spoke in one voice.

All of a sudden and from one corner a certain young man in knee length jeans (very obviously, a trader) stood up and began to ask some questions about the product and the marketing plan. The answers were provided by the panel carefully and the young man fired on. More questions begetting more answers. The important thing here was the fact that he kept approaching different angles of both the product, the company and the business plan with the objectivity that was previously lacking in the room.

The room was so quiet that if you had dropped the proverbial pin you could hear it drop. With his not so sound yet passable English backed by cognate experience drawn from the course of apprenticeship, freedom and running his own show successfully he steered the conversation in his preferred direction and eventually got something most people in the house thought was impossible.

As a matter of fact, some people had already left in frustration before this trader stood up. At the end of the discussion he was invited to the ‘other’ office for further discussions.

You can imagine the flurry of questions that followed at this point. So many and so varied.

Please recall that this thread is all about snacks. Any ideas on snack sales improvement and profitability should be raised here.

I saw an advert on the thread for people to buy chin-chin in bulk and to repackage it for sale. I think this is quite a bold and practical approach to resizing for the right market.

It also enables you to identify the right market and to even give the product your identity. Who knows, this could lead you along the lines of production in the future.

Just imagine; Your very own chin-chin brand.

I noticed this kind of arrangement for the first time in Benin. If you travel by road from east to west or vice versa you cannot miss the horde of people selling chin-chin in traffic within Benin metropolis and the Benin/Ore stretch of the east - west expressway.
On inquiring one discovers that these hawkers buy these products in large quantity from the producers and then repack them for sale in small sachets. The profit margin is something in the region of 30-40 percent after all expenses.

A second location I experienced this was in Zuba which is in the outskirts of Abuja. Young men predominantly of the Hausa/Fulani stock also buy chin-chin in bulk and repack to sell at the ever busy Zuba and its environs. I am sure that this model exists in some other locations in this country.

It has a few drawbacks but I also see it as a business that can only work for a certain kind of person. An ambitious and forward looking person would sooner than later be bored by this business and the pedestrian earnings that result from this activity.

Summarily, I would not advise that anyone who has long term perspective to activate this kind of business (apologies to the poster but this thread is really not for that niche). You could however get involved at the level of contract producing of chin-chin where you actually go to a major player and ask him to contract produce for you from mixing right through to packaging where the packaging is what will make you proud.

You must go beyond the level of selling unbranded products in cellophane transparencies. Anybody can do that.

Start selling a good brand and then leveraging on that brand you can create your own brand if you must and then grow it to a point where you can produce from your own stables…..again if you must.

In my absence, I also noticed that a few new products had been introduced into the market.

One of them that caught my attention was the re-defined cup cake from Chi Industries limited. It was christened Muff the muffin and I can tell you that it was never a hit in the market (my personal opinion though). The reigning cakes then had been Kaira, UTC and Fun times or so. Princess cakes came out with a bang offering three small cakes for 50.00 retail price.

This new cake is sold at the same 50.00 by Chi Limited.

Chi Industries also launched a new meatpie which is quite remarkable. This is the very first packaged meatpie I have seen in Nigeria. The reviews so far at least for the few distributors that I met yesterday were raving but there is a major snag; the shelf life is less than a week. This will result in very cautious buying. But all the same it is a great product that has a made a gallant entrance. Please note that every new product that comes out of any company is bound to create value for the entire system from the company itself right through the distribution dynamics so you ought to dust your shoes and get out there and grab a piece of the action before it gets too late.

The recession is for real abi?

So what can we as the traders/distributors/resellers do having watched this closely enough? Certain things do come to mind and in as much as they are not entirely new to us having discussed them earlier on the thread, we are going to revisit it and try to unveil how we can reposition our thinking to reflect and overcome this phase of our economic evolution as a nation.

I have been thinking a lot in the last few weeks and I must confess that I have decided to look critically at my business mode to see whether it is still in synch with the present-day demands.

From observation, the economy is retracting and not expanding( and this is only temporary). This naturally will result in a more careful spending culture. I sell snacks. The volume of sales now for me should be dropping, right?

Apparently, less people should be buying chin-chin and other snacks, right? But supposing I decided to really think and come out with a format that ensures that a drop in sales volume doesn’t necessarily mean a drop in my profits.

How can I go about this?

There has to be some leverage that we can adopt that will enable us retain and possibly if well tweaked may even help us improve our earnings.

All we have to do is really think.

Honestly solutions abound.

I also noticed that a biscuit I like has lost some weight. Hobnobs which was priced at 50 and had four slices inside had made a leap from 50.00 to 60.00 at retail level. This had brought an attendant lull in the sales. The company put on its thinking cap and then took a major decision. It appears now that they have two pack sizes running side by side; one is the traditional 4 slices pack going for 60.00 Naira and a second one for 30.00 with only 2 slices.

For the avid follower of this thread I would like you to consider this analysis and show what this entire exercise has revealed and what it portends.

It would be nice if you put up your recognition up here.

It is important that we take these happenings seriously and put them in perspective. These changes are not as arbitrary as they look, there is a lot more that can meet the eye.

Okay let me start. I just went to the market over the weekend and looked around and behold a few changes have taken place. Not so dramatic are the changes but significant all the same. Indefatigable Gala has moved up price-wise. It now sells at 70.00. I suppose that is to be expected. The attempt to increase this price has taken almost 5 years. The first attempt was in January 2011 after the anti-fuel subsidy removal riots that led to an increase in the pump price of petroleum products and its attendant impact on the prices of all other products. The attempt failed woefully. Gala was simply tamed especially as its main rivals Biggie and SuperBite decided to remain on 50 while weathering post subsidy riot inflation. It wasn’t too long before Gala reverted to the base price of 50.00.

Since then it has been a size deduction galore. Gala has had to suffer a reduction in both length and girth over the years not necessarily to retain its profitability but at least to break-even. Competition is very good. This latest increase has translated to the market rejecting the product. Only Biggie and SuperBite seem to be available here in Port Harcourt.

Hello everyone. It’s nice to be back fully rejuvenated.
It was quite an experience. Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers.

A lot of things seem to have been happening behind the thread. Can we begin to fill each other in?

What has been happening?

I have taken the liberty to plan what we are going to do when I resume. Some of them are quite interesting.

For instance, I am going to ask people to comment on their experiences so far in selling the various snacks from Nutrientrich and Fairy pastries.

I will also set up an exclusive whatsapp group for intending snack sellers who reside outside Lagos. The intention is to create a large bargaining platform and approach the companies we are interested in selling their products as one company/client. My experience has revealed that many companies require that intending distributors from outside proximity of their factory buy a minimum quantity to qualify for healthy discounts, free delivery and a rebate.

For many, that is usually a steep demand. When I first arrived Port Harcourt, I realized that my suppliers were only willing to supply me if my order was at least a bus load which requires and investment pf about 1.5 Million Naira. It was very difficult for me to handle that so I had to be buying from their local depot in Woji area of Port Harcourt until I could order directly from head office and that’s where the advantages start rolling in.

Now assuming we have potential distributors residing in; Ore, Benin, Agbor, Asaba, Owerri and Port Harcourt my take is that we can come together and order as a group and since the company says a bus load then we make our orders reflect a full bus load and then they deliver it to us using a hopping mechanism. (hopping being a logistic term that mimics the grasshopper in terms of carrying out deliveries)

So, at the end of it all this kind of collaboration catalyses our progress such that rather than waiting for the time to build our resources to the point where we can buy a truck or bus load we can immediately begin the business through a groupage or working together.

It should be fun. And please no monies will be paid into any account outside the supplying company’s account. This is part of what we will look at.

Another issue we will address immediately we resume fully is why people are so hesitant about taking action. We have to look at it from all perspectives and them possibly do a pros and cons of immediate taking of massive action. What is the cause of the fear of action and how it can be overcome?

See you next week.

Hello everyone.

May I first start by apologising for the silence of the last one month. This was totally unplanned for and it was a most demanding period for me littered with different kinds of personal experiencing. I must say that I was grateful for the opportunity even though I am greatly relieved that it is all over now (at least almost). Okay, I can let you into the picture; My ailing mother in-law became very ill while recovering from a recent surgery undertaken abroad. I had to sacrifice everything else and take care of her.

It was very tasking and it is such a conundrum that here in our country when you take an ill person to the hospital, a relative must take up all the duties one would ordinarily expect a nurse to perform. So, there I was in the hospital for over three weeks just attending to her. Sadly, she couldn’t survive it and passed on after great pain.

The funeral will hold this weekend and I have decided to take a breather even if it is just for one week. I need to refresh and put myself in the mental frame of mind required to think through the current economic mist.

Hello all,
Just to say that the thread hasn't closed. I had an unexpected situation of the family genre that I had to attend to and that sapped all my time and energy. Fortunately, the end of this demanding situation is already in sight and we will continue. two things deserve mention here though;

I had kind of expected the thread to continue but I was surprised when on checking from time to time I became clear to me that no one was really making any contributions anymore. Rather sad; my thoughts though.

Secondly, I must commend some people who have made some effort so far. I think it was a worthwhile experience. It doesn't really matter whether you succeeded or not. What really counts in the final analysis is the fact that you took ACTION. Please continue with the action. Do not stop for whatever reason. Always bear in mind Newtons Laws of motion. Study them, understand them and practice your understanding.

See you guys next week.

Today 1st of November two major steps are being taken in Lagos even as we get ready to arise, I hope to read on this very pages the experience that was gleaned today.

I may also add here that on Monday 17th, another major stride will be made. In the coming days, I will like to offer more time and attention to those interested participants residing outside Lagos for that project.

This does not however lock out the Lagos participants. Every one should therefore be on their toes. This is also a subtle reminder for those interested in the F.M.C.G project outside Lagos to please indicate their locations together with their Monikers so that the arrangements for commencement/launch can commence in earnest.

I will leave you with a most profound statement drawn from one of my mentors:

'No matter how many mistakes you make,
or how slow your progress,
you are stillahead of everyone who isn't trying yet'

lexaydfg:


If you are talking about spoilt, then I haven't encountered such but I have encountered other challenges.

Do you know why karin001 told us to sell the doughnuts?? She wants us to be able to make daily sells and push it to the market like schools and banks etc, you know as a newbie starting this kind of business you will want to see your profits on a regular basis so you can order for more and meet your daily expenses and also to make you feel encouraged.

Because of the short life span of the doughnuts, you have to start small, if possible sell everything that day or the next, and if you supppy to shops give them as little as possible, you can sell more in schools, banks, churches, mosque, etc, go to places that you know will eat it there and then. If you can do that, I see no reason for it to spoil. It all about determination, hard work and blah blah blah......

Sorry for replying late..

There is nothing to even add here. This is a simple yet direct and very all encompassing response.

Thanks Lexdfg. You have understood it well.

But I will just add that I chose the doughnut because of the simplicity of the product and the urgency that lies behind its sales. it expires in a few days so you must look for ways of selling it off. You will agree with me that this urgency will drive you a bit more than when you have another product that has a longer shelf life like chin-chin. Your first product must help reset your mind and attitude towards sales. It must keep you on your toes and very importantly it must give you a feeling of accomplishment each time you are able to sell specific quantity.

Eventually you will graduate from a mono-product sales person to a multi-product merchandiser. This will translate to more business and turnover and by extension more profitability.

So the key for you is to start selling whatever is on offer and then keep increasing the product line.

You need to take action....now.

You can even start with less than 2,000.00. Buy only what you can exhaust within a two day period and then listen to the feedback and then push forward with the next order adjusting the order quantity to reflect your last experience. But you need to take action.

dosht:
Madam Karin I hope you put me in mind?

Yes I have you in mind at all times.

I think the issue of the whatsapp group was probably misconstrued.

The idea wasn’t originally mine but was presented to the threads audience by one of the posters and her reasons were plausible. Recall that the major intention was to create a closed unit of people who were focused on one goal. In my thinking only people out there in the field selling would be on that platform so that they could share their experiences day to day.

I was also thinking that being a closed group of people we would be able to laugh at our mistakes and errors as we progress. It was never our intention to create a ‘cult’ or to cut off other people who had not taken off yet.

My intentions were also that there would be two groups; one for Lagos and one for non Lagos residents. I must however state here that the concerns of some posters are quite genuine. I had never given thought to people who would be coming in the future and others who would want to take action at their own ‘good time’. Neither did I consider those that would obviously be reading in guest mode (forgetting that I was a guest on Nairaland for many years before finally registering as a member).

It is also important that I state here that there is no intention whatsoever to close the thread, at least not at this point. The thread is useful today and even far into the future.

A whatsapp group was just meant to help us further as we specialize in different aspects of the F.M.C.G trade. It is supposed to be open for those who are interested in that particular corollary of the thread.

I am nonetheless very open to whatever suggestion that may translate to usefulness for the entire participants of the thread. Should we all agree that the whatsapp group be open to all then so be it.

Meanwhile, those interested in joining the Lagos group (people interested in starting as newbies with doughnuts and chin-chin sales in Lagos) can send their names and moniker with whatsapp number to Estwhile via pm or any other method 'she' prefers.

Can you all make suggestions in this regard?

On the issue of the loan, I have always been of the opinion that where there is a genuine expression of determination to do business and it is backed by action the required resources including money as capital will naturally flow in direct proportion of what is needed at that point.

Please note that the resources may not flow to you according to what you want but what you need at that material time.

Now since the majority of people have set minds as per what they want regarding capital, when they get what they ‘need’ they either turn it down without thinking or at best fritter it away. That you have the desire to start a business doesn’t mean that the business will start on your own terms. The ideas you get will have to be tweaked and modified to fit existing realities.

In the course of developing this thread I usually read through every post, sometimes twice or even thrice. The purpose is to go beyond the typed words and to understand the real intentions of the poster. Your words to some extent will betray your intentions. I recall a particular post on this thread where the participant made a statement about not having money but still ordered from Nutrientrich with what was available at that time; the value of one bag. That sentence alone made my day.

That alone is significant moral collateral to attract a loan in whatever form.

I am happy that the young lad is making small ripples that will transform into waves in the nearest future if the momentum is sustained and well nourished.

The loan matter was first hinted at by Allstrasse and it was backed by very good intentions. Another poster, Bionica offered to pay for Lexydfg.

I have reached out to Allstrasse and he has mailed me a reply. In the course of email exchange, we have agreed that he will not give cash to any poster here but he can make a deposit to the producer of his choice and those seriously interested can draw products from this source. I added that what we will also do is that goods will be released in small quantities and the payments made on a daily basis before the next set of goods are released. This way we can allow the person grow incrementally while protecting the investment.

On how we intend to deal with the possibility of default, any default will indicate a possible withdrawal of the loan in its entirety, so fellow Nairalanders consider first those whose lives may change with this lifeline before you go defaulting on the repayment.

At the moment he is checking out the two doughnut producers and their products with a view to deciding which one he will make the deposit to.

His first deposit will be NGN100,000 to be made on Monday October 30th.

Summarily, interested participants can arrange for the delivery/pickup of the products on Tuesday 1st November 2016.

Those interested will have to indicate so on the thread and they will be reached.

This loan is for Lagos participants only.

I hope that suffices for the loan question.

Two issues seem to be the concern of many posters on this thread;The loan matter and the issue bordering on the whatsapp group.

I will deal with it as clinically as I can right away.

I must however say that your posts on the matter was very exemplary and mature. This is a classic example of respecting each other together with our varied opinions. Quite commendable. After all, we can only disagree to agree.

It is the difference of our individual shades of opinion that actually constitutes the very colourful fabric that makes for the strength of our diverse yet potentially unified nationality.

A strength we are sadly yet to appreciate and appropriate to our advantage. A strength that forms the basis for our take-off economically and otherwise. A strength that is varied to reflect our primordial leanings, geographical location and even our ethnic diversity. A strength that gives every constituent a comparative advantage which if harnessed will only result in unprecedented advancement in all ramifications.

May we continue in respecting each other this way on this thread and even in real day to day experiencing as we interact physically.

matoxy:


I agree with rose75. A lot of people are been inspired by this thread, shutting them out and those that will still come across this thread latter will not augur well.
Please, just appealing, let's continue with the thread. A lot of 'ghost' reader still benefit from this.
God will continue to strengthen and bless you.
Thanks


Karin, latestarter, rose and all please let's keep the flag flying.

Thanks again 'old woman'. I am resolved to continue the thread.

I really have no intention of stopping these write ups and updating you guys with examples of real people who have who have accomplished great things through small wins. my intentions are eventually to get 'us'(and by that I mean you all) to meet some of these people I personally describe as being 'personification of success from nothing whatsoever'. We will get to that point I assure you.

I request only one reward for this investment of time that action be taken. The quicker we take action the faster we groa and the faster we grow the earlier our testimonies.

Let us take massive action; albeit intelligent, planned, coherent and measurable action

2ndking:

I felt remembered, because I've been following this thread religiously, though I've gained a lot but location seems to be a problem to be.
I did not reside in Lagos. I reside in far away East "Enugu state per say". Ma I'm really impressed about your move.
Thanks to God for the answered prayers upon your child. once again, I reside in Enugu North, Enugu state
Thanks a lot

2nd King, I assure you that Enugu and other locations is not left out. In the course of evolving this thread will be useful to people as far out as Yobe and Zamfara. Even those in Afikpo and Calabar/Obanliku will be attended to. I think I have a beautiful plan which with a few tweaks here and ther and of course inputs from you guys it will amount to a blessing to all of us. lets just keep 'walking'. I am, really hapy with the turn of events as of now. But there will be improvement as we progress. I expect a testimony here very soon. As a matter of fact I can let you know that Benin, Asaba, Awka, Enugu, Abakaliki and Afikpo will be on the next phase of roll-out which we hope will take place in November or December.

latestarter:


Fellow FMCG adventurers,

Karin started this thread with a large heart of touching as many people as possible. There was no criterion or qualification from the beginning apart from interest to make a difference through FMCG. Not everyone will run with an idea at first encounter which does not mean they don't welcome it. The Good Book says a vision is always for an appointed time & the timing could be individual.
I believe this thread is robust enough to accommodate everybody. Let's not make it a cult by cutting off those who haven't started off & limiting the impact of this good job. There are those who are invisible but following this thread religiously waiting for the 'right time' for them. Whether there's a right time is a thing of conjecture.
I don't see the distractions here to stop anyone serious enough to make the move. I had made a commitment to share my testimony here. Nobody should deprive me of that privilege. I've met a couple of people through this thread & I'm grateful for it. Let's keep things on here. Those who need loan could be managed off the thread which I believe is going on now.
Please let's not put a spanner on the works.
Karin, you had a vision from the beginning. Even though you could admit inputs, don't let your initial vision be twisted. I rest my case

Your point is noted.

As usual your thoughts are cogent and presented with with a high dose of altruism and advanced maturity.

Thank you!

estwhile:
Karin, .... I sent you an email in the morning, hope you got it. Pls revert as soon as you can cos it's very urgent.

Thanks

Thanks. I saw it earlier but couldn't attend to it because of everyday cares. I will reply it tonight. Kindly send me your phone number by this medium, We need to act on the whatsapp group immediately.

Its quite tough attending to so many things simultaneously but all promises that I have made will be kept. That is my assurance. Where I have not kept it may mean that I probably forgot and a gentle nudge might just be enough as a reminder.

estwhile:


I think this is what's best. We could put our phone numbers on the thread or better yet, send to your email address(if you don't mind). I'll suggest we start ASAP.

Thanks for the advice too, it's much appreciated.

Toyin what's up.

Estwhile, you almost escaped abi?
So you are a 'quiet' she who doesn't wear her gender on her sleeves. Good stuff.

Whichever option you choose will be fine by me. I really cannot post my whatsapp number here but we could find a discreet way of selecting those we intend to recruit into the group. For clarity, purposefulness and seriousness the group will be limited to those who have commenced the journey already. As others start selling we will add them to the group and as some stop buying we also drop them as we progress.

Is that alright or does anyone have a better plan?

olutoyiin:
Thanks Karin I love that whatsapp idea,I think from there we can discuss all other modalities. Need I add its been lovely working with estwhile,she's a gem and a real morale booster. Kudos also to nutrientrich for not comprising on integrity.
In all its been a bitter-sweet experience,marketing ain't easy my legs are already sore but the future is bright n I'm undeterred

I will save the bolded and we can look back at it two years time laugh over it together provided you don't quit on me.

I am so wowed. So estwhile is actually a woman. This is super.

And Nutrientrich thankyou for helping out this far. I hope you understand the need to keep feeding us with good products and timely so. We havent heard from you on the thread. Hope you are coping well with the spiraling costs of your essential raw materials.

olutoyiin:
Karin don't forget us here o most times I come back tired and hardly have the strength to comment.I urge everyone to join the train.I was shocked to see that some shops are already selling right under my nose.I noticed some persons visit nairaland to get ideas and they develop it. so the earlier the better
Plus I'm interested in that loan o but I will like to know the terms and conditions
Thanks

The loan issue has been resolved. I dont know whether to put it on the thread or share it among the whatsapp group when it eventually takes off.

But Toyin the loan will cover you and the terms as listed by Allstrasse are fine. No interest and a 6 months repayment period. Some other fellow here also promised to sponsor some people. I hope that still stands.

olutoyiin:
Karin don't forget us here o most times I come back tired and hardly have the strength to comment.I urge everyone to join the train.I was shocked to see that some shops are already selling right under my nose.I noticed some persons visit nairaland to get ideas and they develop it. so the earlier the better
Plus I'm interested in that loan o but I will like to know the terms and conditions
Thanks

Toyin, I may be far from Lagos but trust me we are in this together.

I am happy to know you get that tired and yet you are not thinking of giving up.

Kindly link up with us on the whatsapp group.

We will succeed together.

estwhile:
Also karin,
don't you think it'll be better to create a whatsapp group for those interested to discuss without distraction?

I believe it might be an avenue for us to share ideas without being fearful of having it duplicated in your region by some People who read the thread in ghost mode, like olutoyiin said in her comment.

Wonderful Idea. I will be happy to be part of it.

I think we should only involve those who are participants for now........or what do you think?

Make your suggestions, maybe we can start one this weekend.