Look for a problem, proffer solution, make money —Folasade Oni

Folasade Kofoworola Oni, a serial entrepreneur, is the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of FolaKofo Consultant, Director and Catering Officer of Alpha Classic Venture and Kofon Caterers and an independent director at Oriflame Nigeria. In this interview by TAYO GESINDE, she speaks about her foray into entrepreneurship and why women should avoid chemical-based beauty products.

You have a Master’s Degree in Management and Business Administration. Why did you decide to study Business Administration?

I finished secondary school at the age of 15 and my father said I was too young to go to the university so I helped  him with his business. He went into business when he retired from UAC. I was with him for a year and that was what ignited my interest in business. Up till now, I like buying and selling.

How did you become a network marketer?

I got into network marketing in 2016. I was introduced to it by someone I met online. Initially, I was not interested because I was into catering and two other businesses.  I was also involved with church and social activities so I felt I didn’t have time for network marketing. Two years after the guy introduced the business to me, I decided to give it a try. What actually piqued my interest in the business was when I went to the company’s website and found out that the company was a cosmetic company and it has been in existence for 52 years. I read the testimonies of the different lives the company  had touched in the different countries  and decided to attend one of their  training  sessions. I attended the training which was held on a public holiday and at the end of the training, I asked questions. From the answers, I was convinced that the company was actually out to impact lives and that was how I registered with the company. However, I  decided to buy some of their products for personal use first. Two weeks later, the company sent a message to me that based on what I bought, certain amount of money had been credited to my prepaid account. That gave me the assurance about the authenticity of the company. I made up to the business  for three months to see if it would be a profitable one.  One of the things I liked about the business was that all you need to register for it is N3,000 and you get to choose the products you want to sell. I attended trainings and followed all the guidelines they gave me, at the end of one month the company paid me close to N50, 000 as referral bonus and I made a profit of over N100,000 on the products I sold. Since then, the journey has been so wonderful.

What were the challenges you faced along the line?

Nigerians have wrong notions about network marketing. Initially, when I signed up with the company, majority of my friends made jest of me. They were asking me, “what are you looking for? Despite having multiple businesses, you want to be carrying products all over the place? I tried to tell them it was actually not about the money. The company offered three things; you will look good with their products, you will make money (which I was already doing) and travelling opportunities outside Nigeria. Yet my family and friends ’rejected ’ me because of the wrong notion that they had about, the business. However, I enjoyed doing it because I was meeting new people and I have been able to impact a lot of  lives. Many people have joined the business through me and they are making money from it. I feel fulfilled by what I am doing and some of the friends who rejected  me then are part of my team members now while others buy the products from me. I think what they needed to see was my passion and consistency.

From your experience so far, do you think network marketing is a line of business young Nigerians should buy into? Especially, our unemployed youths?

The world is going digital. Gone are the days when you must go to shops or markets to buy goods and products. Now people are doing their shopping online. I have customers all over the country. You just place your order and I will package and send it to you. Today, you don’t need a shop to sell your products. Once you display your products on social media, people will reach out to you and patronise you. It will soon get to a stage that people would sit in their shops but they  won’t see customers. So, someone with a good foresight should know that digital marketing is the way to go in this 21st century.

How easy has it been for you to combine this with your other businesses?

Initially it was challenging but now, I have been able to apportion time for everything. Also, when you have supportive family members, it makes the job easier.

What has your experience been like as a caterer?

Catering business is very good but nowadays we have a lot of half-baked caterers. There is a lot of mushroom catering schools where people go for crash courses and they come out and call themselves caterers. When both of you apply for jobs, their prices are usually lower from that of a professional. At the end of the day what you will serve will be different from what they will serve in terms of quality. However, many people would prefer to go for the one that is cheaper and  they would end up being  disappointed when the caterer comes with stories such  as “the food has finished or there is still rice but no meat” when the party is still on and many of the guests have not been served.  The caterer because she has shortchanged herself will not be able to deliver.

You are dealing with cosmetics, what are the things women should look out for when buying their cosmetic products?

Many of the beauty products we have in the markets are chemical-based. Since I joined this beauty business, I discovered that most women want to become oyinbo (White) so they are always asking for skin lightening creams. Our own products are organic, they do not tone, lighten or bleach but they will bring out your natural colour; they will enhance the colour God gave you. So, when buying creams, don’t buy chemical-based products to avoid skin damage and skin cancer.

What advice do you have for the youth?

The way I was brought up, we all do handiwork. I grew up with that mentality that asides from your education or degree, you must have a skill. We grew up seeing our mother selling things though she was gainfully employed. She had side businesses so we imbibed the culture from our parents. I think parents of today should help their children to develop interest in entrepreneurship so that they can have something else to fall back on in the future when the need arises.  If I had not been involved with buying and selling since I was young, maybe I would not have gone into digital marketing. I have always loved doing business. When I graduated from the university, I still went ahead to study catering. I sat for both internal and external examinations in catering. When people said catering was not profitable, I still launched into it and I am still doing it till today.  Young people should be encouraged to go into entrepreneurship. Instead of looking for a white collar job, look for a problem in your area and proffer solution to it, from there you will make money.