Supermarkets are by far one of the successful set ups in cities when managed rightfully and wisely. So then, i understand you have an interest on starting up a mini-supermarket in Nigeria, let's build on that. Now quite a lot of persons really do not understand practically the difference between a supermarket and a mini-mart. A supermarket as the name implies is a retail shop running on self-service with the sales availability of Household items and consumables. On the other hand, a mini-mart is a lesser form of a supermarket that isn't as much equiped as a supermarket but has almost the same service format as a supermarket.
Let's discuss five necessary steps to take while embarking on the exercise of establishing a Supermarket in Nigeria.
1... FIND OUT HOW MUCH CAPITAL YOU WOULD REQUIRE
My research reveals that between the years 2000 and 2002, a minimum of 1 million Naira is enough to lunch you a good supermarket if you're planning to start up small. With the present economical crisis and the soaring costs of items and services on the National chart, you should be looking at twice that amount or 1.5 million Naira to be able to lunch it as a system that would begin to yield returns almost immediately. You'll need to inquire from people who are in the system already, my estimate may be slightly exaggerated but to be on the safer side you should go with that. Ask around from dealers and take the mean or average starting capital you learnt of from your survey.
2... CREATE A PRACTICAL BUDGET
With the idea of the supposed starting capital you might need, you should proceed to creating a personal budget which may necessarily not be a photocopy of someone's past budget, this is why it should be a practical budget. It should be a budget that is directly applicable to you.
Perhaps you could have something like this for someone who is planning a starting capital of 1 million naira.
Shop Rentage------- N250, 000 (2 years rentage depending on your location though)
Freezer--------------- N70,000
Furniture------------- N80,000
Stocking-------------- N400, 000
Auxiliary Generator N50,000
Miscellaneous------- N150,000
This is a very practical one.
3... FIND A GOOD LOCATION
The location of your intending supermarket has much bearing on the survival and growth of your business. A bad or not suitable location is most likely to nullify your efforts. Search for a place that is crowed with activities or people but definitely not one that has too many of such establishments in it already as competition would be very high and almost intolerable. Ethically, no one loves an uncomfortable environment or to shop in a place that is quite distant from the nearest busy avenue. So ensure to locate a comfy and very easily accesible place, this is even more important than finance!
4... DECIDE ON SPECIFIC GOODS OR GENERAL MERCHANDISE
Here comes the decision to make on what to trade on. It is more prominent and beneficial to trade on general merchandise, that is having almost all the necessary and wanted stock because most people prefer to shop in a place where they can easily get all their wanted items in bulk and not running in and out of multiple shopping malls. However if your capital is low, you might choose to build on a particular category of goods. perhaps packaged food and consumables, meat, icecream, yoghurt etc. There are certain commodity types that are always wanted which are obvious to you and i but you may also need to carry out a little market research for hidden items that are also on high and consistent demand since you are new in the area and do not know too much already.
Also, do not forget to get the best stock from the best suppliers if you would not be visisting the market yourself.
These aforementioned steps are a brief summary of what you need to do while planning on starting a supermarket in Nigeria.
Best Regards
Written by Ogbaragu Michaels
No comments:
Post a Comment