Even your side hustle needs a side hustle. Now imagine if you are just trying to put your head in the business without an existing or stable income source here. We will discuss Businesses to Start in Nigeria with less than 50k.
What kind of business can I start with ₦50,000? In this article, we'll look at 10 businesses you may start with less than ₦50,000
This is enough reason to take each business model in this guide to heart
Just look around, what might be a great business for a rural area resident in Ogbomosho, might be a less than a stellar option for someone in Lagos
So as other 2 criteria or conditions to consider before your kick-start your entrepreneurial journey [budget & Ability]
Before you stumbled on this article, chances are you’ve either discussed liable business to start with 50k with someone but your subconscious keep saying no to some as their potential practically conflict with the intended environment, budget, and probably your ability
Without further ado, let’s quickly run through the list to handpick the ideal business that best aligns with you.
Also Read: How To Set Your Brand Goals
1. POS
What is POS? according to Wikipedia (A payment terminal, often known as a point of sale (POS) terminal, credit card terminal, EFTPOS terminal (or by the earlier name "Process Data Quickly"[1]), is a device that interacts with payment cards to perform electronic financial transfers.
I once helped my aunty manage her shop with the POS machine as an additional income source, to keep her primary business afloat to prevent a financial storm
On a fateful day a lady [tailor] next to our shop sarcastically asked, why POS business is as this lucrative when people can just go to the bank to execute their transaction with little to no charges
No shame, am convinced as I also mulled over the thought myself, it’s not because I didn’t understand the business that much, but because I only helped transact with a shallow knowledge of the business
I never had the opportunity to reply to that lady when the answer struck my mind, that would you rather pay #100 for transport, which is also the average POS charges for #1,000-10,000 withdrawal/deposit to the bank to join the long queue or risk empty machine
There are many Mobile money merchants that use point of sale [POS] as their main device for collection and other transactions
Few of them are [moniepoint, opay, kudi, palm play], scour and review the web and physical vendors for your desired point of sale machine
Also Read: 10 Highly Profitable Handworks To Learn In Nigeria To Make Money
2. Mini importation business
I wished he did not discourage me when I stumbled upon a mini importation advert as far back as 2018.
There was this guy I looked up to in this digital marketing space back then.
I relayed to him how profitable the business could be with the hints and clues from the advert copy, my ignorant digital marketer had to cook up how risky the investment could be, while I sat down there feeding on every misconception he was framing as the best advice I could ever get as I was less of a newbie back then
The story changed in 2021 though. When I took the plunge, my life has never been the same with the #3,500 online course I took and #30,000 first shipped footwear people want but can’t find around.
More reason I love this business model is, it guarantees quick or instant gratification with great rewards, it’s not always mandatory to wait months or years before we reap the wages of some investments, you just need a little movement in the right direction and keep repeating the process to get set up for life while you build more streams of income
Also Read: How to make money online in Nigeria top 12 ideas (2022)
3. Fast Food Aka Mama Put restaurant
There’s a saying that some business models barely run their owners into a loss, food is unarguably one of the businesses in question.
I bet you have walked past boutiques, filling stations, game houses, electronic stores this week, but barely invest a penny into this establishments
If you’re not preparing for lunch now, chances are you await breakfast, to justify how inevitable food is in our lives
This is the 21st century; you don’t even need a building or exhibition to start a food business with just #50,000 or less
If you have magic hands in cooking elegant meals, people will appreciate you bringing their eatery experience to their workshop or office desks
The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.
How much can you put in traditional cuisine? Pounded yam, Amala, Akpu with local soups that take men back to their mother and astonishing meals that make women invite you to their home to replicate your gifted hands.
You don’t need to serve everyone. 50 average or rich customers could put you on #$10,000 daily profit after expenses.
Now tell me how much it is in 26 working days.
Go to banks, offices, factories, and stores to hunt your customers and give them what they want in exchange for your freedom
Lastly, please always dress as if you own these companies/buildings when inquiring about their interest in your offer, you won’t believe the wonders in aesthetic appearance, as it makes them feel more comfortable with the meal they are putting inside their body while upgrading your business standard at the same time
Also Read: Top 12 Best Places To Educate Yourself Free Online
4. Agro products
How much do you think 1 kg of yam sells for? What about plantain?
Have you witnessed or experienced people [female mostly] setting out very early in the morning to rural areas to source for ridiculously cheap farm products?
Don’t worry, allow me some minutes of your time to push you through an unnoticed business idea called Agro product distributor/supplier
Some products are not only in high demand in urban areas but also cost arm and leg, with #50k capital, you could find a rural area market to explore or a geographic location with the largest production of your intended product at cheaper price.
Meet the farmers and negotiate a wholesale price, then haul it to where they want it the most [city or urban area]
Below are a few hot selling Agro-products alongside locations with the largest production hubs
Maize: widely cultivated in all geographical zones of the country
Plantain: Adamawa, Niger, Kogi, Zamfara, Ondo, Ekiti, Ogun, Delta,Oosun
Potatoes: Kaduna, Ogun, Nassarawa, Ondo, Ekiti, Ogun, Delta, Osun
Yam: Nassarawa, Abuja, Taraba, Benue, Niger, Oyo
As a supplier, ensure visiting your marketplace to create the demand beforehand by consulting interested retailers
This way, you’ve already established your own demand rather than depending on the market
Also Read: 7 business lessons from the richest drug dealer [Pablo Escobar]
5. Barbecue Business
The food, health, and fashion industry won’t stop being a billion-dollar industry
People will do anything to look attractive, healthy, and fill their belly
When your business revolves around these industries but gets less in return, then there’s probably something wrong in your approach or mode of operation and not the business
If you serve a hot spot for a barbecue business, you could earn a little over #10,000 in profit daily, starting the business with as low as #40,000-#50,000
Now the turnover may depend on various factors
Location: The first rule of business is demand, but when we further break the term demand down to a layperson’s term, we say the starving crowd
You want an entertaining spot for barbecue/grill business, not just a remote or even well off neighborhood with little to no leg traffic
Grilling machine: You can get a charcoal grilling machine for as low as #15,000 but might need more units to enhance your output afterward
Meat/fish: this is no brainer, as the higher the input the greater the output thus setting you up more for profit, and you don’t want to indulge in a pricey grill to cover more than you offer, this could set you back a big time
Also Read: Starting A Football Viewing Centre In Nigeria: 3 unavoidable steps
6. Social media management business
As businesses rapidly sprout up in this era, the need for social media marketing skills is alarming for businesses to leverage more audiences on the web
Almost every business owner is already using these platforms, Facebook, Instagram, Google, but some haven’t got the maximum revenue potential of the social innovation for their brick and mortar business
If you need to reach out to this set of entrepreneurs, you might have a lot of explanation or persuasion to let out at the expense of your precious time and money
However, the little fraction of already informed businesses with an online presence but getting little to no return on investment for every cash they throw on advert could set you up for life
They are already on these platforms surfing the web aimlessly, hoping to get the messiah who has the expertise to give a better return on investment
This is where you come into the picture, get a credible premium online course/material from your intended platform [Facebook, Google, Instagram, YouTube] to secure your client
Study and implement by offering to work free, get an attractive result, and then start charging for the effort
I assure you already got a nice smartphone, a used laptop should set you back about #40,000#-50,000 then you’re in business alongside a strong internet connection
Also Read: How To Make Money On Facebook The Smart Ways In Nigeria
7. Fairly used Cloths aka Okrika business
We knew fairly used clothes as Okrika business in Nigeria, where you visit the largest hubs [Onitsha, Ibadan, Aba] of fairly used imported goods or products to source for ridiculously cheap quality and appealing wears to flip for profit
Now, you’re thinking how in the world would #50,000 be sufficient for this kind of business? That’s a good thought.
This type of business could gradually get you from 0% to 100% or more return on investment per order
#50,000 wears can swiftly set you up on #50,000 profits at bare minimum if you perfectly position the business so well [standout]
It may be hard to get a nice shop/store for this business with #50,000, thanks to Facebook & Instagram advert
You could display these wears on Facebook ad for buyers to place orders right from the premium marketplace until you hit the required figure to secure a physical store while recycling the process nonstop
Social media advert is powerful than any physical or mortar and brick business unless you’re not investing enough on more digital exposure
Also Read: Affiliate Marketing Guide, How You Can Get Started
8. Snailery Business
Yes, snail business is one of the untapped and underrated businesses to consider if you have the flair for rearing animals with an average budget of #50,000
Snail farming is very easy and profitable without expensive space or intensive feeding
A snail could lay 100 eggs and hatch around 30-50 eggs at once
The average price of adult snail is #400-#600 with high demand
You just need to know your target market [restaurant, hotels, beer parlor], then you are in business.
I’d recommend using this as a side hustle as it takes roughly a year for a snail to grow from hatch to adult
Also Read: How Business Directory Can Increase Your Profit
9. Blogging Business
If you don’t mind years, I mean casting aside the instant gratification spirit aside, blogging is not only a viable income source but a passive income avenue for entrepreneurs
To cut down the numbers of years, there are countless numbers of expired domain pools
You should know what a domain is by now or go do a little research on google about it
Get a relevant expired domain related to your intended niche with a high domain authority of at least 20
You should get one for as low as #5,000 on the platform like expireddomains.net, domcop.com, dynadot.com
Purchase one and tether a basic hosting of around #6,000 -#7,000 to it, start crafting and publishing shareable content, while doing quality backlink outreach simultaneously
Do this consistently for 2 years, then you haven’t only signed your own ticket but also keep getting passive income with proper monetization
Ensure you get as much as possible knowledge of how blogging and SEO works beforehand
Also Read: 2 proven tips to setup a successful bakery business in Nigeria
10. Copywriting Business
Copywriting is by far one of the most profitable business/services with a huge return on investment
Copywriting is not only the art of crafting words to urge readers to decide
It even goes beyond creating and optimizing sales funnel to compel leads to start a financial transaction [pay]
Most businesses fail, even 10-15 year big companies fold up not because they have no capital, but they do when they lack a huge cog in the wheel called a copywriter
Businesses are ready to pay you handsomely when you discover their problem and offer to solve the problem, especially those that could muscle them out of the picture
Get books on copywriting, study to get the concept, and then browse the web for the outstanding copywriting courses to not only take you deeper but also show you to monetize the knowledge at ease
Remember, “people who pay, pay attention” and you are not qualified to earn from what you haven’t learned
Also Read: How to start a successful delivery logistics business in Nigeria
Conclusion
With the state of Nigerian economy, starting a business is a fantastic idea.
Unfortunately, most businesses in Nigeria require a significant amount of cash to get started.
Thankfully, we've identified 10 businesses in Nigeria that you can start for less than #50,000.
Please conduct your own research to ensure that these businesses are lucrative in your area.
Did we overlook any business concepts? Please post them in the comments section. We'd be delighted to hear from you.
Follow us on Instagram to stay up to date on our activities.
