A Nigerian man identified as Chukwuma Ezeh, has narrated his inspiring story of how he became a millionaire through starting a wheel barrow business, IgbereTV reports.
Chukwuma Ezeh, with Twitter handle @Gemdeconq7, took to Twitter to explain how he repackaged the unappealing wheel barrow business using modern business ideas.
He stated that he was a houseboy in the Igbo apprenticeship system in Delta state, where he met a business genius and they brainstormed different business ideas together.
They eventually started the wheelbarrow business with only 6 barrows, and it grew over a period of time after rebranding it with innovative ideas. Eventually, the business raked in millions of naira and they have 20 barrow pushers in their employment
Chukwuma Ezeh narrates his story below:
In 2015 I was living in Delta as a houseboy in the Igbo apprenticeship system. One of my duties every weekend was to buy and have processed two old layer hens at Abraka market, Asaba.
There was a man, Boniface, who sold polythene there. He had a small kiosk I’d often buy the bags to package my already cut up chicken from his store.
I had no idea the man has been admiring me. One day he opened up. He told me he just liked me and that he wanted us to be friends.
I was wary at first but I thought, what could possibly go wrong? So I gave him my number and we became friends.
Every saturday I’d sit at his shop as my hens were cut and we’d talk. He looked poor and ordinary, but mentally he was a genius.
He was way older than me but we developed deep respect for each other.
During our discussions we talked about converting the many opportunities that abound in this country, but the nearest attainable one was starting a small scale barrow rental business around Onitsha market.
We wanted to help people out and of course also make money to better our lives. Being the trader amongst us, I did my research. Ran the numbers, sought got permission from my then master and thus we went into the business of making and renting out barrows.
I registered and became the youngest member of the Anambra state barrow owners and pushers association – yes that's an actual union that regulates the barrow business and it costs quite some money to sign up into.
We started small with 6 barrows. I owned 5. Boniface owned one. We charged our employees; The barrow men 200 naira (51 cents) per day for renting the barrows. It seems small but its tiny, consistent drops of money like these, if properly channeled that create ocean of wealth.
We would later grow and expand, own more barrows and employ more barrow men. Thus making more money. Boniface earned. I earned. Our lives got better. But we didn’t stop there.
When we started, our aim wasn’t only to make money. It was mainly to touch other lives positively.
We spent money and resources to rebrand the company and our barrow men.
In Nigeria, being a barrow pusher is a very unappealing job. But in reality these noble men are filling a vacuum in the transportation system of the local markets and they are making a decent living off of it
For people who just left prisons, okada riders who were banned from operating, poor farmers from rural areas, young people without jobs, wheel barrow pushing is somewhat of a last resort. It doesn’t require much skill. With just strenght and stamina a person can make money daily.
A lot of these people go on to raise capital from this job to buy tools or vehicles or machines for other labour intensive jobs and thus improve their standard of living and rise a step higher in the ladder of society and above poverty.
So we decided to repackage this albeit neglected incubation sector of our economy and made it more professional. In a bid to maximise income for these barrow men, we branded our barrows differently. We gave each barrow man a branded T-shirt to show he belongs to a reputable brand.
We also held small seminars for them to educate them on how to be better transporters. How to be extra polite to people so as to build up a good reputation which will in turn get them more jobs around the markets. Hence, more income for them.
We marketed them as polite, professional pushers to the market to encourage people to always patronise them in particular and It worked,
The barrow men started getting more jobs and started making more money than they did before.
We witnessed a number of them go on to save up enough capital to venture into and thrive in businesses of their own like Chibuike who was able to save up and buy a tricycle and started providing transportation services.
As they earned more, they paid us our rental fee promptly thus, we earned too. Today, that little business me and my friend Boniface ventured into has cumulatively made us millions of naira over the years while employing over 20 people and touching their lives positively.
The Capital generated has enabled me to venture into other businesses and generate more money.
Today, over 20 families feed because two Nigerians decided, despite all the obstacles, to DO SOMETHING.
Truth is Nigeria has too many problems. Problems create a need for solutions. Providing solutions creates value and value is simply what makes people wealthy.
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