THE NATION WEDNESDAY, MAY 13, 2015
38
SMALL BUSINESS AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Essiet_daniel@yahoo.com 08180714151
Buka a name for local restaurant in the country, is fast gaining grounds across Europe and America. It is a trend being championed by Nigerians living in Diaspora; and they are recording successes, OKWY IROEGBU-CHIKEZIE reports.
Buka:The new goldmine
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RACE Shadare, a Nigerian on a business trip to London, United Kingdom, wanted a Nigerian delicacy that she was used to, after four days in the country. And after the fourth day of asking around, she was introduced to a Nigerian Buka at 105, Old Kent, where she had a good Nigerian meal of Amala (yam flour) and vegetable soup. Similarly, Godwin Chukwu, a Nigerian visiting Brooklyn, New York, United States, was determined to enjoy his holiday to the fullest. However, barely 72 hours after his arrival in God’s own country,” he bagan to grow apprehensive. This stemmed from the meals he was offered- pure American foods like burger, salad, lamb-in-tomato sauce. He eventually had his appetite satisfied after he was taken to a Buka in Fulton Brooklyn. Shadare and Chukwu’s yearnings for local delicacies in foreign lands aptly captures the yearnings of Nigerians when on visit to other countries, especially in Europe and America. And because of this yearnings, smart and enterprising Nigerians in Diaspora have been capitalising on this trend to make a good living and smiling to the bank in the process. One of such enterprising Nigerians is Mr. Lookman Afolayan Mashood, the proprietor of “BUKA”a local restaurant in Fulton Brooklyn established in April 2010, that caters for the food requirements on Nigerians living in New York. Mashood’s “BUKA” has created for itself a niche, becoming a reference point for those seeking some authentic Nigerian traditional food such as pounded yam, egusi soup, amala, edikaikong, Isi-ewu, pepper-soup, goat meat, stockfish, snail etc. Entering into Mashood’s BUKA says all about the name. A Buka in typical Nigeria parlance depicts a local eatery without the trappings of a star grading. But Mashood’s BUKA is designed with a touch of class, combining the sassy American touch of decor, blended with home touch of Nigerian pride, enuncited in a green and white banner hanging over the bar. This can be said to replicate the owner’s taste and style. Mashood, without a doubt, is living the American dream, while projecting Ni-
•Mashood
•BUKA... caring for Nigerian and multi-racial delicacies
geria to the global space through the variety of foods and culture. The Buka dream, which cost a whooping $250,000 to bring into reality, enjoys patronage that by far transcends Nigerian tastes, thereby becoming a multi-racial eatery. Little wonder that from the New York Times to the Village Voice, BBC and CNN, Americans are raving about BUKA. The restaurant is indeed unique and offers a taste of authentic dishes to Nigerians who crave good home cooking and non-Nigerians who just want to give it a try. And with a population of over eight million New Yorkers, patronage is huge. “Apart from the traditional Nigerian community, we have about 60 per cent Caucasians and others who have come to appreciate Nigerian dishes. We serve food the traditional way, where people eat with their fingers, chucking,” Mashood said, adding that at times, some Nigerians come in and ask for cutleries. Apart from the sumptuous meal that keeps the clients coming back, Mashood’s disposition to service gives him an edge over any
competition. This is a very vital factor for a business to be successful. He rightly acknowledges that dealing with Nigerians abroad is the most difficult thing that anybody can do. “Restaurant is a service business. We are like our home government’s ambassador as people come in to learn more about Nigeria by asking questions not only about the food but the way we do things as a people. So we have to endure any attitude they put up and be very courteous, no matter what,“ the BUKA proprietor explained. Mashood, who migrated to America in 1996, got his first job as a dish washer at 700 Washington Avenue. When he left the place in 1998, he was inundated with calls by those who knew him as a dish washer and later as a chef to set up an African restaurant. Mashood who sees himself as an ambassador of sort , says he has done so much for Nigeria in terms of positive projection of her culture through the foods served in BUKA and the local music. Are there challenges? “Oh, yes. There are too many regulations in this line of business, such that it is easier to run a hospital
than an eatery. Food must be served with the right quality and standards. We host people of different races and we must keep up to speed with expectation,” he enthused. For him, his business has come this far because he refused to be dettered by people who were aversed to his opening of an African restaurant, believing that it required a lot of money to set up and would attract low patronage.Now, he is vindicated. “What we have now is unique and fantastic! It’s good food. I can tell you, 98 per cent of my food is not processed. I don’t have any regrets. I feel whatever you have, if you do it right, people will love you for it,” Mashood said. He, at some point not only had Nigerian cooks and stewards, but also from British, Russian, German and Japanese decent. He advised Nigerians who intend to immigrate to America to make sure that they have the necessary papers before embarking on such mission and also make up their minds to work hard, noting that without this in a matter of months the person will be frustrated. “The American dream is alive for those on the part of the law, frustrations he said will come in the way of not getting a good job and not being able to meet up with basic needs,” he warns.
Gas demand: A boom for entrepreneurs The power crisis is pushing consumers and businesses to alternative sources of power - and one of most obvious is gas.This has created business opportunities for Nigerians in clean energy business. DANIEL ESSIET reports.
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HE nation’s power crisis is pushing consumers and businesses to alternative sources of power.As a result of of this, there is a wave of demand for off-grid energy products, including solar lights, geysers, gas stoves and generators. Nigerians understood the disastrous economic, health, and environmental impacts of using candles or kerosene-based lighting, and believed using lighter gas could be the first step in demonstrating the opportunity to shift practices. One entrepreneur, who has positioned himself to take advantage of the power crisis is Sir Uchenna Ibuaka, Chief Executive, Lakewood Energy West Africa Limited, who has seen an uptick in people asking about gas as a way to power their households in the bid to slash electricity bills. His due diligence has uncovered a tremendous market opportunity for liquid propane gas (LPG) products with over 50 million people alone not inadequately covered by the electricity grid already spending so much on energy each year . To this end, he has entered the market with a disruptively innovative, highly affordable gas powered generator and then quickly following with a full range of gas powered appliances targeting this nascent consumer class—whose incomes and energy demands were expected to rise along with the fast growing economy. He is encouraged by increasing number of households using liquid petroleum (LP) gas, or propane. Companies are switching to gas.He currently operates within Lagos but it has the ambition growing nationwide. He is very optimistic that his company could therefore make a big difference, not only in Lagos but other parts of Nigeria. But he became interested in “clean tech”
•Ibuaka
more than five years ago while working in the United States. While there, an expert told him it will require a massive breakthrough
to address the nation’s power crisis and that alternative energy was the way to go. It immediately sparked his imagination and thought as alternative energy is a big unexplored area with not much efforts made to tap energy from, LPG,he recalled. Subsequently, he set up a company to do business under the clean tech. He discovered Nigeria was in need of liquid propane (LP) gas generators since it would enable Nigerians us to cut back on the amount of fuel import. Like other products, he said LPG standby gas generators continually monitor home’s connection to the local electric utility. When outages trigger, the system automatically switches to generator power until local power is restored. According to him, there are opportunities for small and business time investors as homeowners can obtain varying levels of gas generators power suitable for running everything from specific applications, to complete whole-home or office building comfort. With the nation’s infrastructure in tatters, many believe it is an ideal time to deploy
‘There are opportunities for small and business time investors as homeowners can obtain varying levels of gas generators power suitable for running everything from specific applications, to complete whole-home or office building comfort’
new power. He believes that gas energy can do more than provide temporary refuge for Nigerians; he thinks it can be a permanent boom to the impoverished nation. As the cost of electricity rises and frustration with load-shedding increases, companies are spending millions to generate their own power are turning to renewable energy. To sustain its economic growth rate, he said the nation will require an increase in power generation capacity—an opportunity that will require contributions from both traditional and renewable sources. He explained that the average household spends quite a fortune on energy, adding that the per-unit cost to generate power is so high that renewable sources are becoming cost-competitive. He saidNigerians need gas power generators to provide emergency back-up to prevent the National Grid collapsing. As long as the demand for more energy continues to grow, he said gas business will continue to boom and become more lucrative. He said there are opportunities for new investors and engineers to invest in LPG business and make a living with gas expected to become the preferred fuel for household cooking and heating . Ibuaka believes Nigerians with investment as small as N500,000 can invest in gas business and make money especially with today’s unstable energy market. With energy prices ,he is of the opinion that individuals and small businesses can make profits off gas business , especially LPG generators as the wave of the future. To assist would-be investors,his company provides training classes focusing on generator selling, sizing, installation, and target either air-cooled or liquid-cooled generator and transfer switch systems.