The next African story will be written by Africans, and there are people crafting the narrative now. Join Dotun as he hosts a series of conversation with people whose ideas and work is shaping the African future.
My guest today is Sangu Delle. Sangu is an entrepreneur, an investor, author, and someone who is deeply rooted in Pan-African ideology. His latest book Making the futures: Young entrepreneurs in a dynamic Africa explored similar themes and topics that I've often explore on this podcast. So it's not surprising that we started the conversation in this episode talking about the book. We discussed the challenges and opportunities of building a business in Africa. We also deep-dived into the competitive advantage of raising capital and having a longer runway as a startup, the outsized importance of foreign venture capital in African early-stage businesses and the role of government in facilitating a successful startup ecosystem. This episode is packed as we move from one serious topic to another. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.On this episode, we spoke aboutSangu's book and why he wrote itHis investment thesis on Africa and her economic growthWhy it's not the best ideas that win and find out what winsThe relationship between reputation, intentionality and luck(grace) and their impact on the probability of successHow philanthropy and unhindered dreams helped him achieve his goalsThe outsized importance of government and foreign investor in facilitating the African startup ecosystem.Recommended bookGuns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies By Jared Diamond
My guest today is Andrew Alli. Andrew is a real-life and virtual mentor to a lot of investment professionals in Africa. He is the Partner and Group CEO at Southbridge a pan-African financial advisory firm. Before then, he was the president and CEO of the Africa Finance Corporation, where he was responsible for over $4,5 billion of investments in 30 countries. Andrew's career is an inspiration and signpost to upcoming African investors like me, and it was a real pleasure to deep dive into how he got started and the lessons learnt till date. We also talked about how to reduce investment risk through temporal and geographical diversification in portfolio construction and the importance of a strong ESG framework in a weak socio-political environment that most African countries operate. I really enjoyed this conversation, and I hope you do too.In this episode, you'll learnThe importance of numerate and logic skills as a good basis for career optionalityWhat it means to be an investor in Africa, despite the obvious contradictions and challengesThe role of boards in corporate governanceThe importance of ESG in mitigating investment riskRecommended booksWorld Order: Reflections on the Character of Nations and the Course of History by Henry KissingerAndrew's twitter handle - @afalli
My guest today is Eloho Gihan-Mbelu; she is the founding Managing Director & CEO of Endeavor Nigeria. Endeavor is a mission-oriented, global organisation that is supporting high-impact entrepreneurship in close to 40 underserved markets across the world.Eloho and I got introduced a few years ago when she started her role with Endeavor Nigeria, and I find her intellectual honesty very refreshing. You can get more of her thoughts on her twitter handle @elohoGM. In this episode, we discussed her early career journey as an investment banker and then in private equity focussed on African growth companies. We discussed her perspectives on the infrastructural and the regulatory challenges of building a startup to scale up in Africa. We also discussed the opportunities that COVID presents for accelerating digital demand on the continent. And how to set up a board at different stages of company life. I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I did.In this episode, you'll learn...Why did Eloho choose to work with Nigerian companies?The two key factors that contributed to the growth of the African startup EcosystemFormulating investment thesis for growth-stage companies in AfricaThere are numerous infrastructural and regulatory challenges to building a startup to scale up in Africa...what's her take?Infrastructural, regulatory and macroeconomic challenges of building a company in AfricaThe difference between startups and scaleupsWhat is the right size for a board of a growing company?Her tested methods for making the most from your board meetingTimestamps(03:00) Her journey to Endeavour Nigeria, why she wanted to work with Nigerian companies.(15: 22) How resilience helped build the African startup market(27:32) Factors founders need to consider in making the right decisions in the face of competition(31:07) Her thoughts around how to set up a board of directors at different stages of a company's life.(33:57) How board members should be engaged to get the best results(43:00) What she thinks is the right support that businesses need(48:52) Her approach to achieving a healthy work-life balance(51:12) Her current reading list and the new perspective she has recently garnered about businessBooks she's currently readingWater dancer by Ta-Nehisi CoatesThe hard thing about hard things by Ben HorowitzSocial Media@ElohoGM
My guest today is Tokunbo Ishmael. She's the co-founder and Managing Director of Alitheia Capital, an African focussed PE and VC firm. Alitheia Capital investments include businesses that enable the provision of financial services to the unbanked, and underbanked through traditional and branchless banking models. Alitheia Capital focuses on doing social good and also having a good return on investment.Tokunbo Ishmael is an alumnus of London Business School, and the University of London, she's a chartered financial analyst, and she used to be an investment banker before starting Alethia. She's a member of CFA Institute, she has sat on several boards in the different organization across Africa, including First City Monument Bank in Nigeria, and the African Venture Capital Association.In this episode we discussed...Why Alethea capital is both PE and Venture capitalThe necessity for developing the ability to reason and present a sustainable argument on the basis of numbersParallels between early 2000s dotcom burst and the disruptive impact of COVID on startup investingKey success factors for surviving as an entrepreneur during unpredictable times be grounded on core mission but flexible to make opportunities out of the current challengerethink the value you're bringing to the tableunderstand their existing developmental gaps and where to collaborate to fill up the deficienciesamplify their powers and use that to innovate and re-imagine themselvesOn discovering the riches at the bottom of the pyramid by building essential goods and services for the mass marketsWhy entrepreneurs should expand their view to stakeholder value creation and not just profitBooksHow Women Rise: Break the 12 Habits Holding You Back - Sally Helgesen and Marshall GoldsmithConscious Capitalism: Liberating the Heroic Spirit of Business - John Mackey
My guest today is Eric Idiahi. Eric is the co-founder and partner at Verod Capital, a private equity firm based out of Lagos Nigeria. Verod is one of the top PE firms in the continent with a significant number of successful exits as well as admirable money multiples record from their previous fund. Eric is someone I've known from a distance, so when we met at a dinner late last year I invited him to be a guest on this podcast and he graciously obliged. In this episode, we discussed how he and his partner, Danladi, started Verod in 2008 by working with other investors on a deal by deal basis. We talked about the fundamental differences between PE and VC model, especially the way it's done in Africa, how to maintain a balance between portfolio support, value creation and investor control. We discussed exits and how investors can think about it and position their portfolio companies for that event. And of course, we discussed COVID, what it means for businesses in Africa and how to frame its inherent challenge and opportunity. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did.
My guest today is Nnena. Nnena is a Principal at Digame Investment, a growth capital investment firm that back tech-enabled businesses in Africa. Their portfolio companies include GetSmarter an online education company based in Cape Town and London that work some of the top global universities to offer premium online short courses to working professionals around the world. GetSmarter was acquired by 2U in 2017 for $103m, demonstrating that the possibilities of a successful exit.We talked about the key difference between the venture ecosystem in Africa and the silicon valley or Europe in terms of startup valuation, capital allocation, returns expectations and timelines. We also spent the time to discuss how COVID is creating both opportunities and challenges for startups in Africa. Why execution matters in building a startup
This is the second part of my conversation with Yele Bademosi, you can listen to the first part of this conversation in the last episode of this podcast series. Apart from being the founding partner at Microtraction, Yele is also the founder and CEO of Bundle a social application for cash and cryptocurrency transactions. Yele is the first person I go-to for any question I have on blockchain and cryptocurrency.In this episode, Yele and I discussed his previous role as a director at Binance LB and his highly optimistic views on blockchain and cryptocurrency in Africa. We also discussed his thought on credit and other alternative funding instruments for tech startups apart from equity. I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I did.In this episode we discussedHow economic development in Africa is like telephone technologyCapital formation, advantages of blockchain technology and how value is created through crypt(12:54)The role of credit in the African tech startup ecosystem (18:59)How to build an organization; learning from the Binance Model (28:15)QuotesCredit is taking a bet on the futureCulture is important, but organization structure is as importantRecommended BooksLoonshotsTractionHigh output managementThe libertarian mindThe lean startup
My guest today is Yele Bademosi. Yele is the founder of Microtraction, an angel investment platform that funds Africa's technology entrepreneurs in their early stage. Microtraction is one of the most active pre-seed investment firms in Nigeria. Yele and I have known each other for some time. We've worked together closely in the past, when he became the first person to join my previous company, Starta, barely a few weeks after it was founded in late 2015. It is quite fitting that Yele is the first guest on season 4 of this podcast after a long break. We recorded this episode in late 2019, before COVID, so a lot of the things we talked about might be out of kilter with the current post-COVID world realities. This is the first of the two-part interview. In this episode, we talked about how he started his career and why he left medicine to pursue a whole different path. We also talked about leadership, growth and how good relationships often create a funnel of positive serendipity. I hope you'll enjoy this episode as much as I did.In this episode we discussed;How he left medicine to pursue his Startup dreamHis first idea for the Nigerian market and why it failedThe hype around blockchain and the possibilities it holds for the African startup ecosystemYele's definition of success and what growth looks like in tech startupsIf regular management hacks can work for the new tech startupsThe role good relationships played in his journey and what it means for upcoming generationsThe two things new tech founders should focus on in their early stage and why
Venture-backed startups are disrupting existing business models, redefining market potentials and creating new verticals. In Africa, startups are finding innovative models for addressing underserved market segments, repurposing under-utilised resources and facilitating efficiencies and visibilities where none exists before. These companies have catalysed wider conversations, policies and actions from both government and non-governmental institutions on how to leverage democratised access to technology and innovation across the continent. Although the long-term 'financial success' of these companies is still yet to be proven, their potential impact on market opportunities and social benefits in Africa is undisputed.
We have now come to the end of season 3! It has been such an exciting journey, one I hope you enjoyed as well. Please listen to my review of the season, what you can expect from next season and when we will be returning.
Steve Grin is the Managing Partner at Lateral Capital, a firm that invests in early and growth stage opportunities in sub-Saharan Africa. Their Fund backs technology-enabled businesses that profitably solve significant pain points across critical infrastructure verticals: financial services, energy, healthcare, and education. Steven is a seasoned entrepreneur and investment professional with twenty years of experience investing as a principal and fund manager across the globe. He has extensive experience in real estate development, energy, and venture investing. Prior to co-founding Lateral, Steven was a Director in the Office of the President of Guyana where he held responsibility for the implementation of their low-carbon development strategy and the execution of large-scale initiatives in the energy and infrastructure sectors. Steven graduated from the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University and has a B.A. in Finance and Philosophy from New York University. In this episode you'll learn: How he got into the business of venture capital How did he make the transition in his career from real estate investing? According to Steve, “Big ideas hit brick walls fairly quickly”. Find out what he meant What are the market gaps and opportunities in Africa? How did Lateral Capital start? Where were the initial funds sourced from? The importance of SMEs to every economy. What is Lateral Capital's thesis about? What is the basis for the thesis behind Lateral Capital? What they have learnt and invalidated about investing in Africa? What is the length of time an investor should be expecting returns? Steve has some reservations about the 220 investment model, find out what they are. What is the best way to do venture in Africa? Other ways to get returns on investment without selling it. What kind of LPs do they target and what are the terms of their fund? The growth drivers for your business. Distinction and importance of financial, human and physical capital in a business. And more Selected links from this episode Building The Future Podcast Season 3 is sponsored by Flutterwave Flutterwave drives growth for banks and businesses across Africa through digital payment technology. You can learn more about their activities
Dustyn Winder is the co-founder and managing partner at Akili.Vc Akili is a pre-seed to Series A fund tailored for Africa. Their philosophy is based on the belief that there are very interesting problems that are often difficult for entrepreneurs to execute on, whether because they are hidden inside corporations, neglected in disaffected communities, or in geographies that present different challenges than traditional startup markets. Thus they are bringing the Prehype model (an organization Akili spun out of) to Africa to help finance African entrepreneurs solving African problems. Prehype is a venture development firm that focuses on building products and companies through collaboration with corporations and venture capitalists. Dustyn has lived in Kampala, Uganda for 10 years and has immense love for Africa as well as big hopes for the African tech ecosystem. In this episode you'll learn: Why Akili is more focused on generating capital than raising money. Does their approach limit them to the types of businesses they go into? What is the importance of portfolio construction? How they manage venture and corporate funds. The reason behind the decision to Invest majorly in east Africa. What is distinctive and differentiative about their thesis? Why are they in Africa? The Technicalities of raising money from corporates. How to manage the investor/investee relationship. What is Dustyn's opinion on Exits? Their plans for 2019 and how it will create opportunities for other investors. An introduction to corporate venture. And more Selected links from this episode
Adam Grunewald is the co-founder and CEO of Lynk, a platform designed to provide technology-based solutions for the massive informal labour sectors in Kenya. Adam has worked at Google as a project manager on new and emerging projects in the United States and Kenya. Driven by the urge to create a reliable employment system for manual workers in Kenya, he created Lynk in late 2015. Lynk has raised $1m in funding and is currently fundraising. In this episode you'll learn: Adam's love for Kenya and how he began living in the country How was Lynk ideated? Why Lynk sticks to a manual vetting process for labour getting on their platform How to ensure a successful match between demand and supply? What is the difference between the Lynk model and an open marketplace? The difference between a horizontal and vertical marketplace What are the three questions you have to answer before building an online marketplace? How to ensure your total addressable market is big enough for scale Dealing with quality control in a lead generation market place How do you minimize platform leakages? How does Lynk reduce friction for platform users? The disadvantages of scaling prematurely And more Selected links from this episode Selected books from this episode Don't miss new episodes of Building the Future Podcast Building The Future Podcast Season 3 is sponsored by Flutterwave Flutterwave drives growth for banks and businesses across Africa through digital payment technology. You can learn more about their activities
Ekechi Nwokah is the CEO and founder at mines.io, a startup that provides technology infrastructure which enable local institutions such as banks, mobile phone operators, retailers in emerging market to offer credit to their customers. Mines use a combination of big data, AI and Machine learning algorithm to provide on-demand credit ratings and decision-making where there is no existing credit history. In 2018, Mines raised $13 million Series A funding from several VC within and outside Africa. I have a strong view and criticism against micro-lending businesses, especially in places where the poor pay disproportionate high interest rate, Ekechi made a strong counter argument to my criticism, and offered good explanation that changed my mind on a lot of them. Ekechi has PhD in computer engineering, and has extensive experience working as a software engineer at Amazon. In this episode you'll learn: Lessons from his early days as an upcoming musician in United States How he fought depression after his music career did not take off How was MINE-IO ideated? Why did he go back to paid employment for 8 years? How and why did his milk importation business from Uganda to Nigeria fail? What were the challenges? That Ekechi tried for ten years to create a successful business before he finally hit with Mines.io What was driving him in the midst of all that failure and challenges? Moving back to Nigeria, the challenges and overcoming them. How to mitigate business risks without the support of a strong legal system. Why does he think the banks do not need to be disrupted? The importance of local founders in building the Nigerian future The importance of partnerships in the success of a business At Mines.io, how do they intend to deal with the challenge of people not paying their loans? What delivers business success in Nigeria? Taking tech built in Nigeria outside the continent And more Selected links from this episode Echo VC Singularity Trans sahara Greenhouse capital Flutterwave Paystack Interswitch 9mobile
Tunde Leye is the author of four novels, including his latest: Afonja, The Rise. He began his writing as a blogger during his mandatory National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). Tunde ran this blog for three years during which he wrote seven series including wildly popular Finding Hubby. He studied Computer Science at the University of Lagos and tried numerous things including music and lecturing. In this episode you'll learn: The process of publishing books in Nigeria, challenges and opportunities The two publishing options available to a Nigerian writer How do you know if your work is good as a writer? How was Tunde able to self-publish successfully? How to make your writing a product The importance of checks and balances The difference between a strong system and a strong leader A breakdown of his book - Afonja, The Rise What the sequels you can expect from Tunde? A brief but thorough history of the old Oyo empire And more Frequent Yoruba words in the podcast and their meanings Alaafin - King of the old Oyo empire Aremo - Crown prince Bashorun Gaa - Military leader in old Oyo empire Oyo Mesi - King making council of the old Oyo empire Ajele - Loyalists to the Alaafin Selected books from this episode
Abisoye Ajayi-Akinfolarin is the founder of Pearls Africa Foundation. Pearls Africa Foundation is a non-governmental organization that provides young girls living in underserved communities through training in technology, skill acquisitions and mentorship. One of their projects, “GirlsCoding” has reached more than 400 beneficiaries, including girls from orphanages and correctional homes, in addition to young women fleeing the Boko Haram insurgency. Abisoye was recently named “CNN Hero of the Year”. This year, she joins nine other people in the world who will receive $10,000 in support of their heroic endeavours. In this episode you'll learn: How she fought the stigma of not gaining admission into the university on time Her struggle to gain admission into the university How did she turn to programming as a succour during these times? Abisoye thinks a lack of education makes you voiceless. Find out why That she was delayed for two extra years after becoming a university student Her frustrations about wanting to travel outside the country for greener pastures How did she learn to code without a background in sciences? How to combine schooling and working efficiently About her first trial at registering a business Why is volunteering so important to growth? The difficulty in getting access to the Makoko community About her nomination for CNN Heroes How the Makoko girls built a working product What are the next projects Abisoye and her team have in mind? And more Selected links from this episode
Nnamdi Azodo is a product owner at ALAT by Wema bank, Africa's first mobile-only bank. ALAT is a fully digital bank in Nigeria, designed to help customers save more. A savings account can totally be opened in 5 minutes with a debit card delivered. To open an ALAT account, you need your BVN, a phone number, email address and a few documents. Nnamdi joined Wema Bank as a youth corps member during his mandatory 1 year National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) period. After his service, he stayed on in the bank for a couple of years before being drafted into the initial 13-man team that gave birth to ALAT. ALAT was launched on May 2nd 2017, and as at November this year they have almost 400 thousand accounts. In this episode you'll learn: The history behind Wema bank becoming a regional bank and later expanding operations to become a national bank. How ALAT was ideated within the bank itself. The difficulties tied to incubating a bank within a bank Why did Wema bank decide to build ALAT? What were the different options they tried before settling for ALAT? Nnamdi thinks “innovation can be scary”. Why does he seem to think so? ALAT chose to go after a small segment of the market. Find out why The Nigerian banking industry is subject to numerous regulations. How were they able to scale through? The challenges of innovating inside a corporate The importance of simplicity in building a new product. What are the differences in the culture of ALAT and that of Wema bank? The cost of acquiring users and their acquisition process. How they were able to modify the Paypal referral model to grow ALAT effectively What are their plans to innovate for startups in the near future? How to build on the infrastructure of a national bank. The results, challenges and solutions of their Facebook onboarding trial And more Selected Books from this episode Selected links from this episode
Olumide Soyombo is the Co-Founder of BlueChip Technologies. BlueChip Technologies is a systems integrator specialized in Data Warehousing, Analytics and Business Intelligence Solutions. Olumide is also the co-founder at Leadpath Nigeria, a seed capital fund that specializes in providing short, medium and long-term funding to small and medium-sized start-up businesses. They have invested in companies like Paystack, Fashpa, Piggybank among others. He is a systems engineering graduate from the University of Lagos and holds a masters in Business and Information Technology from Aston University. In this episode you'll learn: What got him interested in angel investing? The usefulness of having mentor networks How did BlueChip Technologies come about? What were the first businesses they invested in? Which is more important when building a product? Scalability or Profitability? The evolution of the Nigerian startup ecosystem How did they raise $1million without actually looking to raise money? Olumide is focused on tech consumer based products. Find out why What was the flaw with their initial accelerator model? The selection criteria for the accelerator Olumide has written a lot of cheques. Some succeeded and others did not. Which businesses survived the cheques he wrote and why? What is the risk of focusing on profitability at the expense of growth? How they became profitable within a very short time How big data helps businesses How the invention of ai and machine learning is shaping their business model Learn about Blueprime a new product they developed and are pushing out to the market The biggest challenge he thinks founders face in Nigeria in being able to sell Why repeatedly backed the Piggybank founders And more Selected Books from this episode Selected links from this episode
In 2012 Lexi Novitske moved to Nigeria from The United States. Lexi worked for Verod Capital Management, a Nigeria-based private equity firm. Prior to joining Verod, she had spent her career developing an expertise in financial services through her time at New York-based Sandler O'Neill Asset Management. In 2014, Lexi joined Singularity Investments as the Principal Investment Officer where she oversees the firm's operations in Africa. In this episode you'll learn: Why Lexi decided to move to Africa from the United States The key unique qualities unique to the Nigerian tech market What were the key assumptions Lexi had about the Nigerian market before coming here? How many of them have proved to be true? How to deal with the barriers to infrastructure and regulation The difficulty of the African market “In this market, the management or entrepreneurs drive the success of the business”. What does Lexi mean by this? What are the disadvantages of giving away too much equity as a founder? How much power the Telcos wield in this ecosystem Despite numerous challenges, why did Lexi choose to stay in the African market? Why did she move from Private Equity to Venture Capital Investment.' The crucial differences between Venture Capital Investment and Private Equity What do investors look out for in early-stage deals? How private equity works What is Lexi's personal thesis about the African ecosystem? Find out the kind of entrepreneurs she wants to back And more Selected links in this episode Flutterwave Paystack Andela Singularity Investments Wifi.ng Cars45 Selected books from this episode Anti fragility Profit first
Frederik Obasi is the co-founder of Hypebuzz, a platform that connects top-tier influencers with businesses looking to build their brand and expand their reach. Frederik is also the co-founder and MD of Colour Me Digital, an African sports and entertainment marketing agency that has worked with notable Nigerian football players including Alex Iwobi, Ola Aina, Ademola Lookman; and brands including LG Electronics and DStv. A serial entrepreneur, he also ran a business called UniSmart, a university aggregator and application platform, that enables African students to discover and apply to universities in the UK. Frederik attributes some of his experience to his his time at Rocket Internet. He takes us through the pivot of Unismart to Study Search, the lessons he learnt from raising money, and why he decided to bootstrap his business. In this episode you'll learn: The similarities and differences between the Nigerian and UK tech ecosystems About his experience at Rocket internet What are the assumptions he made before coming to Nigeria? Did they prove true or false? What is the difference between the way technology is used in Africa and how its used in the UK? The first business he ran when he returned to Nigeria shut down. Find out why What was initial business model they had in mind when they were validating and testing their business idea? “Seed rounds are usually a gamble”. Find out why Frederik think so Importance of content marketing and social media to businesses Why they stopped running the study search businesses before pivoting to their current business How to launch an MVP (minimum viable product) without a tech platform The logic behind building tech platforms to raise money from investors The flexibility of running a business without the pressure that venture capital bring And more Selected Links from this episode Savannah Fund Accelerator DealDey Paystack Andela Rocket Internet Selected Book from this episode
Dr Joe Abah trained as a barrister in Nigeria. Afterwards, he gained extensive experience in the governance sector, working on public sector reform programs for the U.K. Prime Minister's Office. He has spent more than 10 years managing governance programs in Nigeria for the U.K. Department for International Development, including on the DAI-led State Partnership for Accountability Responsiveness and Capability project. From 2013 to 2017, Joe took a post with the Government of Nigeria as Head of the Bureau for Public Sector Reform. He has now returned to DAI to serve as Country Director for Nigeria, where he provides technical and strategic inputs to DAI's existing portfolio of projects, in addition to supporting business development initiatives. In this episode, you'll learn: About Dr Joe Abah's childhood growing up in FESTAC part of Lagos The dynamics of population in Nigeria. According to Dr Joe, the population of Abuja for instance defers by time of day What are the difficulties in planning for infrastructure in Nigeria? Why does Nigeria need a fundamental rethink in the societal structure? How does this directly impact our economy? The structure of the current Nigerian constitution and how it creates challenges What is Dr Joe's political ambition for the future? Why we should or should not consider constitutional reform About Dr Joe's ideas on achieving social cohesion in Nigeria. What are the key learnings you should know from governance in Nigeria? According to Dr Joe, “Government does a woeful job of explaining to people how things work.” What does this mean? The complexities within government. About Dr Joe's greatest achievement in public service He is currently the country director for DIA in Nigeria. This is a $600M company. What is the biggest business pain point? And what are their growth metrics? And more Selected links from this episode Selected Book from this episode
Akin Oyebode is the Executive Secretary, Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF). The fund was established to provide financial support to residents of Lagos State, for job, wealth creation and to tackle unemployment. Established in 2016, the fund seeks to invest N25 billion over four years. Though he began his career as a Research Assistant at the Lagos Business School, Akin has an extensive record of working in the Nigerian banking industry. Before his appointment, he was the head of SME banking at Stanbic IBTC Bank and prior to that, He was the Head Research, Insight, strategy Department at FCMB.In this episode you'll learn: The influence of books on him as a young child Akin thinks feminism has been alive in Nigeria for a very long time. The stories have just been untold What was growing up on campus like? Akin says it was a sheltered make-believe life because basic needs were met Why aren't the best brains Nigeria taking up teaching jobs? What was the effect of the collapse of the Soviet Union on its sustainability as an economic model? The importance of ideology in shaping the economic and political landscape in Nigeria The government and startups have similarities in the problem that they deal with. What is it? How and why governance is more than politics Akin has a long history in the banking sector. How did he make the switch from banking to holding a political position? What does LSETF seek to critically and radically change? What is the runway for LSETF? Is there limitless cash to make the mission a reality? And more Selected Books from this episode Selected links from this episode
Obinna Okwodu is the founder and CEO of Fibre.ng, a real estate company looking to provide middle-income tenants the option to pay monthly for rented properties. Renting real estate in Lagos is a lot of hassle especially for the demand side. Landlords would typically demand 2 years rent upfront. Fibre set out to solve this problem and is growing fast in Lagos. Obinna who is an MIT graduate and ex-Morgan Stanley Investment Bank analyst has been listed as Forbes as one of the most promising young entrepreneurs in Africa in 2018. In this episode you'll learn: How and when Obinaa got the idea to establish Fibre.ng The previous he ran before Fibre Majority of Fibre's market are the millennials. How did this happen? How do you build a solution for a particular age bracket? How do you validate your business idea? Obinna shares how they validated their idea using a flash page and a tweet There has been a shift in the problem Fibre is solving. What is it? What were the challenges they faced from property owners? How did they solve these challenges? How will they deal with the challenge of new competition? How to use data for predictive analysis when developing your product What are their expansion plans into other markets? Fibre.ng has raised a total of $800k so far. Find out what their plan is for raising money in the future What is the biggest pain point of this business? And more Selected Books from this episode Selected links from this episode
Uche Ofodile is the CEO of MTN Liberia. Uche has extensive expertise in building businesses in emerging markets. Before her role in Liberia, she was the CMO of Vodafone Ghana. In this position, she was instrumental in the transformation of Vodafone Ghana from a struggling business, with deteriorating market share, into the country's #2 telecommunications provider. Uche is somebody you can call a fixer. Uche was recruited to serve as CEO of Tigo DRC and transform the business. In 18 months, she rebuilt the business strategy, ignited 20% year-over-year growth, positioned the company for rapid market share gains, and revitalized the workforce through strategic cultural and diversity programs. In this episode you'll learn: The institutional, cultural and economic barriers for a woman to become c-level executives in Africa How are women rising against this challenge? The impact of more women being educated and going to school How technology is accelerating the empowerment of women The importance of the opportunities women get to lead companies The difficulty of being a CEO as a woman with a family Why did Uche move to Nigeria from America? How did she cope with the transitioning? The big shift in internet marketing and how you can be a part of it The importance of partnering with other businesses to reach new markets What are the challenges faces Telco operations in Africa? How do you understand and use customer experience to your advantage? The Telcos plan to expand the ecosystem. How do they seek to do this? Tips on leading an organization that operates in multiple countries. And more Selected books from this episode Homecoming Children of Blood and Bone
Tonje Bakang is the Founder and CEO of Afrostream. Afrostream is Afrostream is subscription video on demand (SVOD) which provides millions of fans with unlimited access to Afro-American and African movies and TV series. In 2017, Tonje penned an open letter announcing the closure of the business. The service closed in France, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland and in 24 African countries including Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Senegal and Togo. This is the second part of his two-episode conversation with Dotun. In this episode you'll learn: Why it was hard to raise money as a startup in Europe How they tested the idea of Afrostreams with a Facebook fan page and got 50k fans without a product The importance of clean design to brand reputation Why did his project not last as long as long as he wanted it to? Affordability or competition? Why adoption rate became a problem? What was the cause of the churn? The intricacies of a subscription-based model Why Tonje chose to go ahead with running Afrostreams even though he knew he had not raised enough money The biggest challenge they had communicating with investors and what you can learn from it The one thing he would do if he had to go back in time The importance of data in the sustainability of VoD Tonje does not intend to try a VoD platform again. What does he have in mind? According to Tonje “I don't know any VoD platform who is making money”. If no one is making money where's the value in VoD platforms? What he is doing now after Afrostreams? And more The first part of this conversation was published last week
Tonje Bakang is the Founder and CEO of Afrostream. Afrostream is Afrostream is subscription video on demand (SVOD) which provides millions of fans with unlimited access to Afro-American and African movies and TV series. In 2017, Tonje penned an open letter announcing the closure of the business. The service closed in France, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland and in 24 African countries including Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Senegal and Togo. This is the first part of his two-episode conversation with Dotun. The second part will be published next week. In this episode you'll learn: Why Entrepreneurship is not just about becoming rich About growing up in Paris and his love for the creative industry How did he stumble intro entrepreneurship? Why being an inspiration to other immigrants was important to him How he moved from being an intern to being a music video director Why he decided at 21 to own his own production company The role of mentors in his decision to become an entrepreneur The alternative to studying business if you can't afford a business school Why testing your MVP is important and how Tonje was able to test his before launching his first business At the age of 24, he launched a comic street show in France. How successful was it? What were the challenges? His pilot for his debut as a movie director failed. Why? What lessons did he learn? What decisions did he make afterwards? Why and when he started attending hackathons and bootcamp to understand how tech works for business Why did he quit from theatre, production company and entertainment? And more
Jason Njoku is the co-founder at IrokoTv, a web platform that provides paid-for Nigerian films on-demand. It is one of Africa's first mainstream online movie streaming websites, giving instant access to over 5,000 Nollywood film titles. Jason is who you can refer to as a serial entrepreneur. With several failed businesses under his belt, he went ahead to create what is largely regarded as the “Netflix of Africa” Jason founded IrokoTv alongside his friend and then flatmate, Bastian Gotter. See Bastian's interview on IrokoTv here. This episode is the first of 2-part conversation I had with Jason at his office in Lagos, as part of the mini-series on African video on demand platform. In this episode you'll learn: When IrokoTv started out, they had no competition. How did they cope with the sudden influx of players in their market? How they had to innovate faster than competitors to maintain their lead in the market What is the importance of winning for small companies? What does winning mean for small companies and why should they focus on it during the initial stages? IrokoTv has raised $40million so far, and yet they have been losing money constanly. According to Jason, Angel investors who invested $80k got bought out for $2.4million. How was this possible? How to raise money from four different investors Why Netflix coming to Nigeria has no impact on their revenue About Jason's dream to IPO IrokoTv In 2015, they had to let some staff go. Find out why and what they had to do to fix the problem Jason thinks IrokoTv would have died in 2015 if certain action had not been taken. What is it? Why he thinks the FinTech space in Africa is overheated The future of tech ecosystem in Nigeria People in early stage companies have a massive valuation disconnect from reality. And more
Jason Njoku is the co-founder at IrokoTv, a web platform that provides paid-for Nigerian films on-demand. It is one of Africa's first mainstream online movie streaming websites, giving instant access to over 5,000 Nollywood film titles. Jason is who you can refer to as a serial entrepreneur. With several failed businesses under his belt, he went ahead to create what is largely regarded as the “Netflix of Africa” Jason founded IrokoTv alongside his friend and then flatmate, Bastian Gotter. See Bastian's interview on IrokoTv here. This episode is the first of 2-part conversation I had with Jason at his office in Lagos, as part of the mini-series on African video on demand platform. In this episode you'll learn: About the early beginnings of IrokoTv and what brought about the idea The moment Jason realized he was unemployable and set out to run his own businesses About his struggles growing up and keeping himself n the university. How he became independent as a student The different businesses he tried and why they failed How his investment in hotels.ng helped shape the business Jason made one of the classic mistakes first-time entrepreneurs make. He built a platform before finding out if people wanted the product or not. The importance of company culture The initial revenue model of IrokoTV How were they able to compete with the thriving piracy market on Nollywood movies? Why they raised money even though they were making a lot of money How they spent the $3million they got from Tiger Global in 5 months
Bastian Gotter is the co-founder of Iroko TV, one of the earliest, most successful and largest video on demand platform for Nigerian movies. Bastian founded the business alongside with his university flat-mate, Jason Njoku, who is the CEO of the company, and a later guest in this show. This is not Bastian and Jason Njoku's first project together. In mid-2010, Bastian invested in several businesses that Jason was running in Manchester, England, many of which failed. But they stuck together as partners and Bastian invested in Iroko TV after Jason started it, and he then moved to Lagos and joined as a full-time co-founder. This episode is the first of 2-part conversation I had with Bastian in Cape Town, as part of the mini-series on African video on demand platform In the second part of this episode you'll learn: The current challenges IrokoTV is facing How Nigeria is becoming close to the west in their content consumption Bastian thinks the answer to business growth is sub saharan Africa “Always”. Why does he seem to think so? Why he thinks you cannot make a lot of money in the sub-saharan African VoD market The importance of timing when launching a new business. How Spark was created on the back of Iroko and how they invested in companies like hotels.ng, tolet.com.ng, drinks.ng and paystack. Why and how irokoTv raised money every year Why he left IrokoTv. (He still sits on the board and is a shareholder) What he is doing now. And more
Bastian Gotter is the co-founder of Iroko TV, one of the earliest, most successful and largest video on demand platform for Nigerian movies. Bastian founded the business alongside with his university flat-mate, Jason Njoku, who is the CEO of the company, and a later guest in this show. This is not Bastian and Jason Njoku's first project together. In mid-2010, Bastian invested in several businesses that Jason was running in Manchester, England, many of which failed. But they stuck together as partners and Bastian invested in Iroko TV after Jason started it, and he then moved to Lagos and joined as a full-time co-founder. This episode is the first of 2-part conversation I had with Bastian in Cape Town, as part of the mini-series on African video on demand platform In this episode you'll learn: The first business he bet on went bankrupt He didn't go into entrepreneurship early. But Bastian says he doesn't regret it. He came in at the right time. Why? Bastian isn't exactly sure how much money he actually put in. There was no contract or incorporation or vesting period. How did they reach that level of trust? It was a personal journey for Jason to make it a success and Bastian thinks that kind of determination is backable. Why does he think so? How did they raise their first investment? What was unique about the process? How much did they raise? How piracy did Nollywood a favour A venture capitalist has to be convinced about your passion and determination for your business to succeed before giving you money Why a company without a founder is like a company without a heart The importance of a founder's emotional connection to a business Why does Bastian love investing? What is the most interesting thing about being a VC? And more
Telling the African story is not new. For a very long time, Africans have expressed the narrative of their culture, beliefs, fears and exploits using stories passed from one generation to the next. Through oral traditions and accounts of eyewitnesses, we know about the riches of Mansa Musa, the exploits of Sango, the majesty of Nefertiti, and the conquests of Shaka Zulu. What has changed is the medium through which these stories are told. In this season I will be chronicling part of that story. I will be starting with a mini-series that features some of the key figures that have built video on demand platforms specifically for African content. Sponsors Season 3 is in partnership with Flutterwave. Flutterwave's business is about connecting global businesses to Africa and building new businesses out of Africa through payment and technology. All opinions expressed by me and the podcast guests are solely ours and does not reflect the opinion of Flutterwave. To get started, go to Credits Truth don die by Femi Kuti Eddie Quansa by Peacocks Guitar Band Ti Oluwa Nile by Mainframe Studios
Its been a great pleasure to do this. To have conversations with interesting, smart and awesome people who are shaping the future of Africa. This show has been one of the most exciting things I've done as an entrepreneur. It's fun and I get to learn from a lot of people. We've now come to the end of season 2. And I want to take this time to reflect on some of the lessons I learned in the conversations I've had. I will be touching on 4 of them. These not all the lessons learned in this season, its a snippet. It's my reflection of some of the things that stood out for me. And I'm sure you may have a longer list than me. I'm grateful to the entrepreneurs and thought leaders who shared their stories with me. I'm also grateful to the British Council in Nigeria for partnering with us in season 2. Their financial support went a long way in making this season a success. So many thanks to Tomi Soyinka and Maria Williams from the council. Season 3 starts on July 30th. So see you then!
Prince Kwame Agbata is the co-founder of Coliba, It is an early stage waste management platform that leverages on SMS to help users separate their waste, schedule and request a pickup and get waste picked at the comfort of users home. Coliba pays the user for the waste generated. Prince is a first class graduate of Information Technology, being the only member of his family to have completed university, his initial goal was to end up working for Google Ghana. As fate would have it, things changed for him. In 2016, Coliba won the British Council Ghana Investor's pitch session. In this episode you'll learn: How Prince lost his close friend due to defective waste disposal system in Ghana How did he cope with this tragedy? That prince met his three other co-founders on a bus during a trip Prince was the first member of his family to complete university education. How did this shape him? The importance of partnering with established companies and how they can help your business Prince and his co-founders have an ambitious 5 year plan. What is it? Most businesses face the challenge of breaking into a new market after being successful in one. Coliba currently runs in two markets, and they've done so from inception. Find out how? How to run a company with four co-founders in four different companies. Coliba has a co-founder each in Ghana, Nigeria, Abidjan and Burkina Faso. And more Selected links from this episode Google Ghana British Council Wecyclers EcoFuture
Timothy Kotin is the co-founder of SuperFluid, a data solution platform helping businesses to harness untapped potential through predictive data analytics, business intelligence and dynamic customer insights leveraging both traditional and alternative data sources. Timothy grew up in Tamale, Ghana and had to flee along with his family as a child due to ethnic violence and unrest in the 90s. Kotin holds an MPhil. in Engineering for Sustainable Development from the University of Cambridge and a B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from Harvard University. Prior to co-founding Superfluids Labs, he worked as a research scientist at IBM as part of a team which developed financial services innovations for multinational enterprise clients in Africa. In this episode, you'll learn: How Timothy was able to rise above the trauma of nearly being killed as a teenager The many ways businesses can take advantage of data SuperFluid has some challenges they've been dealing with. Listen to Timothy explain What is the importance of value proposition to your business? How and why should you create more value for your clients? “You should frame the outcome, rather than the tool”. What does this mean for your business? About SuperFluid's pricing model and what you can learn from it Timothy seems to think machine learning helps computer learn data better than humans. Find out why About Timothy's dream for a scholarship foundation And more Selected book from this episode Selected links from this episode
Seun Onigbinde is the co-founder of BudgIT, a non-governmental organization that helps citizens access and understand public budgets. BudgIT breaks down the national budget in simplistic charts, and track contracts and projects the government are working on. This is a classic case of doing good with tech. In 2012, he was awarded the Future Awards prize for Science and Tech Innovation. In 2014, the Omidyar Network invested $400,000 in BudgIT, In January 2017, BudgIT raised an additional $3 million grant from Omidyar Network and Gates Foundation. Seun is an ex-banker whose goal was to become the CEO. Along the line his goals changed after coming second in a hackathon organised by CCHUB. In this episode, you'll learn: How Seun got the idea for BudgIT while working for Firstbank Seun's initial dream was to become the CEO of a bank. Why did that dream change? What is the spirit of timing? Seun referred to it as a crucial factor in the success of Budgit How do you determine the right time to launch your product/startup? After the hackathon where BudgIT was born, Seun forgot about the idea. Why did he go back to it? Seun was reluctant to leave his paid employment to run BudgIT full time. But he eventually did? What was the deciding factor? What can you learn from this challenge he had? Why every Nigerian should be involved in governance? The importance of believing in Nigerian youths Seun said technology gave BudgIT a big jump. What did he mean by this? Seun's first startup failed. Why did it fail? The importance of hackathons and how you can take advantage of them That Seun is interested in politics and looks to going in at some point And more Selected links from this episode Selected book from this episode
Opeyemi Awoyemi is a tech entrepreneur with 10 years experience in internet startup business development. He has founded and managed three technology startups including WhoGoHost, a web solutions company. He is also the co-founder of Jobberman. Jobberman is Nigeria's largest job search portal with over one million job seekers and 10,000 companies registered. Jobberman's mission is to solve the unemployment problem in Nigeria. Opeyemi Awoyemi calls himself an ‘unrepentant entrepreneur' and is enthusiastic about Africa, web startups and any innovative business idea. His life goal is to be a world business leader in the tech space and to die empty.In this episode you'll learn; Opeyemi's journey into entrepreneurship and his first business – a design agency – founded while he was a student at the university How he was able to intern at his own company as a student How Jobberman was ideated and how the name came to be Why the initial excitement to launch Jobberman fizzled out and how one of his co-founders helped put them back on track At what stage of the business did Tiger Global reach out to them? How were they able to get investors in the early stages without trying? It was a struggle getting job seekers and companies on the platform. How did Opeyemi and his team hack this? How they were able to track growth in the early days How to validate your business idea Why should you focus on SEO for your new business? How did this help Jobberman? And more Selected links from this episode Selected book per episode
This was a live podcast with an audience Nasir Yammama is the founder of Verdant, an agritech platform that aims at providing agricultural data science, market information, managerial support, and access to financial services to rural farmers for improved food production using mobile phones. Verdant though a simple low-cost technology, is solving one of the biggest challenges and transforming Nigeria's agriculture sector. Verdant is working with Oxfam and GIZ to help 25,000 farmers double or triple their yields. Nasir's passion for Nigeria's agricultural development has taken him to unexpected heights – from being mentored by world-renowned business tycoon, Sir Richard Branson, to landing on the Forbes Africa 30 under 30 list. In 2017, Nasir was recognized by The Queen's Young Leaders Programme for his work in AgricTech. In this episode you'll learn: How Nasir's background influenced his interest and decision to go into agriculture Nasir started building his business prototype while he was in the university. Why didn't the prototype work out? How did they solve this challenge? As at the time of this interview, Verdant had 18,000 farmers on the platform. Learn how they got the farmers on the platform and the challenges Why does Nasir think the banks are not in tune in farmers? Why the pyramid of Kano disappeared and Nasir's opinion on whether it should come back or not. The validity of problem solving and how it can propel your business forward. What you need to do to get government intervention for your business Nasir's goals for Verdant and how he intend to achieve them. And more Selected links from this episode Selected book from this episode
This was a live podcast with an audience Lola Shoneyin is a Nigerian poet and author who launched her debut novel, The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives, in the UK in May 2010 She is currently the director of Book Buzz Foundation, Nigeria- a non-governmental organisation whose main aims are promoting literacy through the creation of reading programmes for children and developing reading spaces. The foundation also organises the Ake Arts and Book Festival, an annual literary, cultural and arts event that takes place in Abeokuta, Nigeria Lola is also an award-winning writer and a cultural activist. In this episode you'll learn: How she developed a relationship with the late Bola Ige. In 1996, she got 10000 from Bola ige to publish her poem Lola wrote her first literary piece when she was six years old. How? How did Lola cope as a 6 year old boarding school student in England? The importance of making a connection between a book and the writer What is the advantage of engaging with and consuming literature at a very early age? “It is important to be in a space where you love what you are doing” What did Lola mean by this? The difference between approval and acceptance The biggest tragedy of the country. What is it? How does it affect creative young people? Ake festival has always held in Abeokuta. Why is it moving to Lagos? What is the vision for the festival? Lola is working on a reader app and an innovation hub for creatives. What should you expect? The importance of data in leading the future Lola says she is jealous of scientists. What does she mean? And more Selected links from this episode Sterling bank Amazon Kindle Roving heights Ake festival Select book from this episode
Onyeka Akumah is the CEO and co-founder of Farmcrowdy, an agric-tech platform. Farmcrowdy gives Nigerians the opportunity to participate in Agriculture by connecting farm sponsors with real farmers for the purpose of producing high-quality farm produce. Onyeka returned to Nigeria from India in 2016 and has since then worked with business like Konga, Wakanow, Jumia and Deloitte before going ahead to start his first business, QuickGist. Though QuickGist did not work out, Farmcrowdy is doing phenomenally well. In 2017, they raised a $1M round. In this episode you'll learn: The importance of transparency to your customers and investors when running a business Understanding the demand and supply side of the market at a macro level and how to use that to your business's advantage Why starting small is important to the success of your business especially if you need to test your idea Farmcrowdy uses sponsors. What does it mean? How does it work? How can you implement it for your business Why you need four streams of income to be successful The challenge of replicating successful business models in other markets in the Nigerian market How to handle your public relations for a new product with a relatively low budget Onyeka left Wakanow to join Sabunta. When he did so, he took a 40% pay cut. Find out why About QuickGist, his first business, the triumphs, challenges and why it didn't work out Why repeat founders are important for the African ecosystem Why did they go with a crowdfunding platform? And more Selected links from this episode Travel beta Wakanow Jumia Konga British council Deloitte Tiger global Rocket internet Cregital Techstar Selected book from this episode How to sell your startup from the beginning Start with why Good to create
Akin Alabi is the founder of Nairabet, an online sports betting platform. Akin grew up with the hopes of being rich. According to him, he wasn't too particular about his profession as long as it was legal and it made him rich. He started his career by selling ebooks, CDSs, audio tapes and manuals. In 2009, he launched Nairabet. Last year, he launched his book...Small Business, Big Money. A book that teaches how to start, grow and turn a small business into a “cash generating machine.” Akin is the founder of Youth Enterprise Conference, an annual conference held in March every year where successful young experts and business people share their success stories with Nigerian youths . In this episode you'll learn: How the business model of a sports betting company works How to understand and use to your advantage the effect and psychology of your customers buying power Why was Akin not interested in looking for a job after his HND? What is the most valuable pricing lesson Akin learnt has an entrepreneur? About the previous businesses he started before and failed at. And his determination to keep trying again What are the factors you need to consider if you are going into publishing? What are the lessons from Akin's story? What is the disadvantage of selling your products for cheap? How does it affect upselling? There are many ways of building a minimum viable product. One of them was mentioned in this chat. Find out what it is Who should be your biggest investors? And how can you appeal to them? Akin is a politician and intends to run for Federal House of Representatives. What is his motivation? How does he intend to innovate the process? And more Selected links from this episode Selected books from this episode
Erik Osiakwan is an entrepreneur and an investor with 15 years of ICT industry leadership. He is the manager partner in Chanzo Capital, a growth capital firm investing in Africa's digital economy. Erik is a consultant for the world bank. He has worked in 32 African countries setting up high-tech startups He serves on the board of Farmerline, Forhey, Teranga Solutions, Siqueries, Amp.it, SameLogic, eCampus, Bisa App, SeeSayDo and Wanjo Foods, - some of which are his investments. Erik describes himself as a pan-African and is fully confident in the ability of African entrepreneurs. In this episode you'll learn: The countries Erik described as the KINGS of Africa. Why does Erim think they will be at the forefront of developing the African ecosystem? Erik is currently an investor and has successfully created several businesses. How did he become an entrepreneur and an investor? What steps did he take? What was the main attraction of investment into the early African tech ecosystem? Africa has a lot of young people. Why does Erik see that as an advantage? The struggle to build mobile networks and how entrepreneurs made it work for Africa Africa is witnessing a lot of innovation today. What is the catalyst? According to Erik, the GSM evolution was started by entrepreneurs “The next 20 years will be a creativity era” What does Erik by this Why Africa is moving on from consuming content and why it's time to create our own tech The emerging middle class to the African market and how the ecosystem can take advantage of it Selected links from this episode Selected book from this episode
Adeyinka Adewale is the co-founder and CEO of Kudi.ai, a financial service provider that allows you pay people and businesses over messaging interfaces like Messenger, Skype ,Slack and Telegram. He is a graduate of Obafemi Awolowo University. Kudi.ai is not Yinka's first foray into running a business, he was the co-founder and CEO of Sanwo Touch2pay, which started out as a payment platform for universities in Nigeria. In 2014, he also co-founded clinicfy , a cloud based financial software for hospitals to track their revenues and invoices for both walk in patients and health insurance patient. Kudi.ai is a graduate of the Y Combinator Winter 2017 batch. They raised an additional seed funding from a group of angel investors in the valley and in Nigeria. For payments generally, trust is a key factor. Adeyinka discusses getting people to understand and trust Kudi.ai with their financial information. In this episode you'll learn: In this podcast, you will learn: What was the idea behind Sanwo? The business he co-founded as a student. How did he juggle being a final year student with running his business? Yinka takes the African tech ecosystem very seriously. He doesn't think he has earned a place in the ecosystem yet. Why does he seem to think so? Building Getting people to make payments through their chat boxes is phenomenal. But Kudi.ai also has to contend with earning trust. How has the journey being so far? His previous business clinicfy was not running on a sustainable model and as such it had to close down. What was the model? There was a make-or-break challenge for the team when they were about to launch. They had help with one of the payment companies and solved that challenge in a week. What company is this? And more Selected links Selected book by Brad Stone
Raphael Afaedor is the CEO and co-founder of Supermart, an online store for groceries and basic home amenities. Raphael describes himself as a pan-african entrepreneur. He is a graduate of the Harvard Business School and a former CEO at Jumia. Raphael was a co-founder and co-CEO of Jumia and he set up Supermart shortly after he resigned. Supermart.ng is an online grocery delivery service that partners with local stores to upload their inventory online and deliver everyday items to customers. Supermart tries to tackle the problem of time wasting that people face while trying to shop for their homes. Raphael's story is one of hardwork and persistence coupled with good thinking and great planning. He tells us about his entrepreneurship journey and if you're an entrepreneur or you're planning to start a business you'll surely find this podcast interesting. In this podcast, you will learn: The skills he learnt to make him a pan african entrepreneur How his work experience prepared him for his entrepreneurship future. Why he chose to build his business in Lagos How he made the decision to go into e-commerce The limitations of his first business and what he learnt from them How Jumia came to be How he got a cofounder His beliefs on teams and the principles behind working together Why he left Jumia How Supermart works and is gradually being accepted How they have raised money And more Selected links Kluklu Dealfish Selected book by Michael Wolffe by Mark Manson
Fikayo Ogundipe is the CEO and cofounder of ToLet, a real estate company he founded with his friends while in the university. ToLet is a web-based platform for property, rentals and sales. The founders all made a monthly contribution of N20,000 to start the business. Interestingly, they had to hit the ground running as there was a competitor they needed to beat to the market. Starting out involved a lot of ground work such as reaching out and getting landlords/agents listed on their platform. In 2016, they raised $1.2million from Frontier Digital Ventures. A year later, they acquired Jumia House Nigeria in a bold and unexpected move. In this episode, you'll learn: Their inspiration for running a business together. How have they managed to keep the team together? What are the dynamics involved? The importance of having startup capital no matter how little. Fikayo and his co-founders all committed to contribute N20,000 every month to their business. They did this for a while before joined Spark Incubators and later raised $250,000 The importance of business models and how to find one that suits your business. What was ToLet's previous business model? What were the challenges? What competition validated their market? How did they validate the market and why did ToLet accelerate their market launch. How they raised $1.2million. How many investors did they reach out to? How many got back to them? Why ToLet acquire JumiaHouse? What is the proposed outcome of this acquisition? And how has it helped them so far? Despite raising close to $1.5million, Fikayo says they are still not profitable. Why is this so? And more Selected Links Selected book Peter Thiel
Franz Struwig is the cofounder of iKubu, Franz started out as a lover of technology before going on to study Computer Engineering at the University of Pretoria. He is a lover of technology, business and people. He started with advising, consultancy, building products for others. Looking for interesting solutions to problems was the bane of the company. A totally random cycling day happened to give birth to a whole idea of helping cyclers prevent accidents. Over time they developed their product and started working on taking it to the next level of marketing it and releasing it. In this phase, they learnt a lot of lessons as they had to keep on trying new methods as the old ones were developing hiccups. They eventually succeeded in selling not just the product but also the company. If you are looking to start a business and learn about the various roles one can assume in achieving success, Franz's story is one you'll find captivating. In this episode you'll learn: How he went from playing with technology to working in tech and then building his own company Initially, we were all over the place. We were building products that were complete failures. What did Franz mean by this? How did they turn the situation around? Franz and his team tried to raise funding and according to him “it was a complete waste of time” Why did he think so? What were the challenges? And how can the story help your business? Why big companies have less capacity to execute than small companies. How to take your product to market. That crowdfunding is not a way of getting money. Why does Franz think it's going to cost you a lot more money than you are going to make? How to market and brand your product yourself. How can you take advantage of influencer marketing to help your business growth? And more Selected links from the episode Selected book from this episode By Adam Makos
Trevor Kimenye is the CEO of Ongair, a web based social CRM tool that enables businesses to interact and communicate with their customers on popular Instant messaging platforms from a single dashboard. This is a global solution built in Africa. Businesses, regardless of where they are stationed need to communicate with their customers. This is what Trevor and his team make happen. The journey of Ongair is one that businesses should monitor and study closely, as it is one of the most successful ways of starting and running a business. They had an idea and tested it using Whatsapp. Then they allowed a business use their service for free, thereby validating their idea. The next step was to build a landing page and see how many people wanted their service. And that's how the journey began. If you are looking to start a business and validate your idea, Trevor's story is one you'll find interesting. In this episode you'll learn: Trevor left a well-paying job in Australia to come back to Kenya and start his business. He was inspired by a lot of things. Find out what they were. He met his co-founder at a hackathon called Garage48, how did they move forward to starting a business together? What were the dynamics involved? The idea for Ongair was developed while having an off-day at work. How did they come about it? How do you build a CRM from Whatsapp? That's exactly what they did. They started their business from Whatsapp. Find out why What is the importance of having an MVP? How did it help the business? Ongair made use of growth hacking. It is responsible for 35% of their customers.How can you take advantage of growth hacking? What should you learn from the relationship between Ongair and zendesk? Trevor looks forward to a good accelerator running in Africa. What were his reasons for this? What was their initial payment infrastructure like? What challenges did they have to deal with? And more Selected links from the episodeSelected book from this episode By Jake Knapp
Rasaq Ahmed is the co-founder and CEO of CowryWise, an automated savings platform. CowryWise aims to make savings worthwhile for everyone by making it simple to do and highly rewarding. Rasaq has one of the most interesting stories in the Nigerian ecosystem. His family narrowly escaped death while they were living in the northern part of Nigeria. They relocated to the south and that gave him the opportunity to attend the university - something he probably wouldn't have done if he had stayed in the north because he was learning to repair generators. Rasaq graduated with a first class degree in Economics from Obafemi Awolowo University, and is also a CFA Charter holder. In this episode, you'll learn: Why the definition of success should be relative and different. Success means different things to people. How do you define what success is to you? Getting caught in a tribal crisis as a 14 year old must be difficult. How did Rasaq deal with it? The best experience he had as a student in the university was outside the classroom. What did he mean by that? He was learning to repair generators while in secondary school. When he moved to the south, he decided to move to the university. What influenced him? “I felt very bad because I wasn't very used to rejection” What did Rasaq mean by this? Why is it hard for FinTech companies to fit into the current regulatory framework? What is the solution? Corporate governance is important to the longevity of businesses. Why? Trust is CowryWise's biggest pain point. What does this mean for the business? What is your view about private universities and federal universities? Dotun and Razaq had a bit of discussion on the topic. Find out what they think in this episode And more Selected links from this episode
Adia Sowho was the Head of Digital Media and Director of Digital Business at Etisalat Nigeria. She started her career as an engineer with United States Cellular, a CDMA operator in the US. She obtained her MBA from the Kellogg School of Management. After a stint at Deloitte Consulting, she returned home to Nigeria. Adia's story is one that resonates with Nigerians who have spent a long time abroad and have returned home.
Aisha Pandor is the co-founder and CEO of SweepSouth. An online platform for booking, managing and paying for home cleaning services Sweepsouth is the first South African startup to be accepted into 500 Startups. Aisha did not start out as an entrepreneur, she is a scientist who completed her PhD in Human Genetics at the university of Cape Town. In 2016, Forbes Africa featured her as a top African millennial. In this episode you'll learn: What growing up with parents who were deeply involved in the anti apartheid struggle was like. Her family had to move to Botswana on exile before returning back to South Africa. Aisha was part of the first crop of black students to go to an all white school. How did that shape her? She recalls the times she had breakfast with Nelson Mandela and visited Archbishop Desmond Tutu's home. She made a move from human genetics to founding a startup. Find out why she made this decision The consequences of doing something that is not impactful Why she couldn't stand being an employee. 1. She hated the bureaucracy… How she and her husband quit their jobs at the same time because they weren't fulfilled as employees. What did they do next? That SweepSouth wasn't the business they tried to run. What was it? And why did they make the decision to drop it? How they raised upwards of $1m in three funding rounds And more Selected Links Uber 500 Startups Forbes Selected Books from the episode Connect with us
Odunayo Eweniyi is the co-founder at Piggybank.ng She is also the Chief Operating Officer at SharpHire Global Limited, the organization behind Push CV, Piggybank and a new product in the pipelines. Piggybank is an online savings platform that securely makes saving possible by combining discipline plus flexibility to make you grow your savings to reach your savings target. The idea of Piggybank was born out of the desire to do something for people after they had gotten jobs (Push CV). The next logical thing was...how to help people save their salaries. Odunayo is a Computer Engineering first class graduate. In this episode you'll learn: How she joined SharpHire Global Limited immediately after graduating. She turned down a regular 9-5 job and decided to take her chances with a startup. Why did she make the decision? Why Odunayo thinks investors need to take more risks with startups. Piggybank came as a result of the team wanting to do more for people after PushCV. There was a defining moment on social media. Call it the “lightbulb” moment. Find out what it was. The culture of Piggybank is humanity. Being careful with customer service. How has that helped piggy bank so far? And how can it help your business? In 2016, they had saved 26 million Naira on the Piggybank platform. By the end of 2017, almost 1 billion naira had been saved! What was responsible for the spike in growth? Listen to find out! SharpHire has 6 co-founders. How easy has it been running their businesses? There are tons of lessons you can pick from their structure. Selected Links Selected Book from the episode Connect with us
Chika Uwazie is the CEO of TalentBase. TalentBase makes it easier for businesses to manage their HR processes such as payroll, benefits, staff evaluation and time tracking. Chika joined the startup as the VP of business development immediately after moving back to Nigeria from the states. She has since then risen to the position of CEO and has gone on to represent TalentBase at 500 Startups. She has a lot of tips for young people looking to start businesses especially if you are just moving back to Nigeria. In this episode you'll learn: She met the founder of Talent Base in 2013. And she decided to come home in 2015 to join the startup. Why did she make this decision? She was in a race to come back to Nigeria before she hits 40. How did her father influence that decision? She didn't think working in HR for any of the big corporations in America was going to be enough fulfillment for her. Why did she think so? And has moving to Nigeria to work in a startup paid off? She joined TalentBase as VP of business development. That basically meant bringing in more business. As someone who just moved back to the country how did she get the job done? There is a distinct change in the mindset when you own a part of the business. Your approach is different, the decisions you make are different. How did Chika move from employee to CEO? What challenges did she face? 6 “There's a big difference between being a founder and an entrepreneur, even though most founders are entrepreneurs”. Why was this statement made? Find out at 14:38 Chika credits 500 Startups for helping her tell the TalentBase story. She is confident about pitching her story in any gathering. Why is this important to her? And what is the importance of being able to pitch your story as a business? Moving back to Nigeria? lessons from Chika Uwazie 1 Build your network before moving back fully Chika has been coming to Nigeria for years, forming a network and building her connections. Having that network made a difference when she decided to move back home and work in a startup. 2 Move home with your relatives If you are moving back to Nigeria, have someone; could be an aunt or an uncle you can stay with for the few months. It helps provide a soft landing while you prepare to be on your own and run your business. Join this thread at 10:00 Fire Round Questions Q: What is your business pain point? A: Talent Q: What is your number one growth metric? A: How many companies we are adding on every month Listen to other fire round questions and her answers at 56:00 Selected Links
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