Starting A Provision Store In Nigeria – Essential Things You Need To Know Before Starting A Provision Store In Nigeria

Starting A Provision Store In Nigeria – Essential Things You Need To Know Before Starting A Provision Store In Nigeria

Have you been thinking of starting a provision store in Nigeria? Well, that would be a very good idea because provision stores are the hearts of our neighbourhood today. Without them, things would be hard to get in our various localities.

What, then, is a Provision Store?

A provision store is usually a store that is smaller than a supermarket but has almost all, if not all, the basic necessities of living, which include provisions, toothpaste, soft drinks and beverages, bathing and washing soups, body spray, baby diapers, biscuits, bread, body lotion, umbrella, bulb light, tissues, insecticides and lots more that are used in the day-to-day lives of people. 

You may wonder,” Is starting a provision store in Nigeria a lucrative business?” Well, the answer is a big Yes. This is because people cannot live without these basic necessities you provide. So a provision store grants you a steady source of income while still solving the daily problems of people. And this can only be possible when you maintain a steady supply of goods and services which you provide to your customers. 

How To Start A Provision Store In Nigeria

Before venturing into the provision store business, although it’s a simple business to operate, there are certain things you need to know as a beginner who is just starting for the first time or for someone who has started before but along the line stopped. These things we discuss apply to everyone wanting to start a provision store anywhere in Nigeria. The things you need to do include:

1. Create A Business Plan

2. Get Your Startup Capital

3. Rent Or Purchase A Store

4. Brand And Register Your Wholesale Business

5. Get The Needed Equipment And Furniture

6. Stock Your Provision Store

1. Create a business plan: As a first-timer, you don’t just venture into the business without making plans on how you want your business to be. This is called a business plan. It is like a map that helps you know what you need and where to go. Don’t just take this lightly because it could guide you on your way to success. 
2. Get your startup capital: This is crucial because it helps finance and fund your plan for your business. So when you’re done planning, you have to have to provide the capital which helps fund that dream of yours’.
3. Rent or purchase a store: This can be considered very vital because, most of the time, this goes a long way to either boost your sales or make them deteriorate. When you want to rent a store, rent it at strategic places where there are lots of people around who are in need of your services, and such a place must be safe, too, for you to carry out your business with ease.
4. Brand and register your wholesale business: For everything to run smoothly, you must register your brand and business with the right agency. 
5. Get the needed equipment and furniture: It is important that your store should have a look of quality. Whether small or big, create a conducive environment in your store for the intended customer to feel at ease in. 
6. Stock your provision store: This cannot be over-emphasised. Your ability to stock your store with the best and most needed items makes it outstanding from the rest. So do your research and always restock before you run out of products.

How To Promote Your Provision Store Business In Nigeria 

As a retailer who wants to succeed, you want to make sure that your customers know about your store and the products you sell. The following are some of the things that can help improve your brand and customer base, and they include the following:

1. Make a website and post pictures of your products.
2. Create a Facebook page and post pictures of your post.
3. Make an Instagram account and post pictures of your products.
4. Make a Twitter account and post pictures of your products.
5. Post flyers at strategic locations.

When you do all these, there’s a great chance of boosting your customer base. 

Problems Of Provision Stores In Nigeria

Although the provision store business is known to be a very lucrative business, it still has certain challenges which retailers battle with sometimes, and they include the following: 

1. Fluctuating price of goods: This can be frustrating for most retailers, especially in an economically unstable country like Nigeria. All you have to do is watch out for changes in the prices of goods and adjust the prices of your goods accordingly. And when the cost of things is low, consider buying in bulk. 
2. Competition: This is known to be a lucrative business, and as such, many people venture into it, thereby increasing the competitive rate amongst retailers, which is sometimes unhealthy. You must identify your competitor’s strengths and weaknesses and differentiate your brand with something different.
3. Theft and insecurity: Some retailers suffer burglary when their stores are in unsafe locations. This is why, for whoever wants to go into the provision store business, renting a store at a safe location is always advisable to avoid theft stories.
4. Poor infrastructure: Nigeria’s infrastructure can affect the arrival of your ordered goods if they come from a long distance. All you have to do is pre-order before you’re out of goods to sell to your customers. 

If, as a retailer who owns a provision store in Nigeria, you are experiencing any of these problems, it can be considered normal. All you have to do is follow some of the solutions given to handle some of these problems. 

Conclusion

As someone who wants to start up this business, you must follow the above-listed instructions if you want to succeed. Above all, be consistent while diligently following the market trends and changes. Only with consistency can you grow your business from a small scale to a larger scale provision store with a large customer base. Nothing comes easy, so be consistent in your business, and you will reap the benefits. 

After having gone through this article, we hope it has been helpful. Till next time.