“I have different clients spread across different sectors. We have office workers, we have students, and others who appreciate quality shoes made locally.”

Ayo Alonge

Having started with just N1,500, the CEO of Koko Shoes, Abdulkareem Sanni, never had the slightest inclination that his business could grow big to the level of having his locally made shoes well branded up to foreign standards. Today, the story is such that he now has his products in most Nigerian markets and even abroad.

In this interview, Sanni relishes his success story, while charging governments at all levels on loans accessibility for small scale businesses.

Introduction

I make shoes for a living. I am an entrepreneur too. I have been in the business of shoe-making for 18 years now. I hope to go globally, soon. I have always had the mindset of doing things totally different from what and how others are doing it. I have things that give me motivation and keep me flying. I am a person that is really motivated from within.

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Starting up

I didn’t have so much money on me when I was starting up. I had just N1,500 with which I bought the materials I needed to make a pair of sandals. I bought the materials with that amount and made the sandals. That’s so many years ago.

Early motivation and drive for business

I have always loved being creative and innovative and that has been part of me. I love doing things that people would see and appreciate. Picking up a white collar job won’t have been enough for me to live a fulfilling life. It doesn’t make me superior to others either. I have always had that mentality running in my head.

Regrets

I have never had a day or minute regretting what I started out in business. Rather, everyday of my life, I strive to make certain statements in life. I believe I can always grow better than who I was yesterday. Already, I am attaining that heights I have since projected.

Clients base

I have different clients spread across different sectors. We have office workers, we have students, and others who appreciate quality shoes made locally. I really cannot say these are the specific people who patronise our products. A whole lot of people do.

Making sales in a tough economy

We know that no human being on earth can go without shoes, slippers or sandals. You just must wear one. That we know for sure. You cannot afford to go out barefoot. That implies that everybody needs to buy shoes.

Challenges

The changes are enormous and are basically financial. Small scale businesses hardly get access to soft loans but that is not meant to be so. In this country, if you are going to get N200,000 as loan, you are told to pay back over N240,000. That is not convenient for any businessman in the country at all. Another challenge is that of power supply. Where my factory is, we run generators almost all day. We run it for at least 10 hours, daily.

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Financial implications for expanding scope of business With 15 Million, I believe we can achieve a lot. I need some highly sophisticated but expensive machines that will make the products come out faster and better. We produce more of what you call foreign shoes and a lot of efforts go into that. By and large, you see that we are still lagging behind in the area of the needed equipment for large scale production. For now, the constraint is basically financial. But then, with the help of social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook and the rest, we are really gaining from free social media advertisement. We are growing day by day because people now patronise us than ever before. The advent of social media is really helping matters.

Customers’ satisfaction

If someone gives me any job to do, what I ensure is getting quality materials to ensure the job comes out very well. It is not cheap. Even if you are buying the ready-made imported shoes, you need at least N50,000 to get a very good one. If we are going to make good shoes on special orders, it requires painstakingly doing a great job to make it look exactly like the foreign shoes.

Inspiration on branding the products

Most of the times, I read motivational books and listen to stories that help me grow myself psychologically. Branding is part of the production process. Sales can be boosted when the branding is good or better than what is on ground before. With the advent of social media, people get to be able to differentiate similar products and they tend to always try competitive products to know what special thing the products have to offer. That’s why we went for topnotch branding like you now see all around.

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Going global in business

We have tried as much as possible to spread our tentacles as expected. We have our products in the US. Some in the UK and South Africa too. Gradually, we intend touching every part of the globe. It’s a process and we are getting there. We believe we have to keep producing with the best materials. We also believe we have to leverage more on the social media. It helps us to showcase products and what we have to the rest of the world.

Getting loans in Nigeria for SMEs

I once went to a microfinance bank to get a loan but the interest rate placed on it discouraged me. After going through all the process, I was giving some crazy and unrealistic conditions as to the interest and the mode of payback. That was a huge challenge for me to cope with because I saw that I would just be working for them.

I have always known than government keeps talking about granting loans to entrepreneurs like us. If I have the opportunity to access such loans, I will go for it. Better still, if I can get an individual to personally give me the loan, I will so appreciate it better. I want to produce more locally made shoes that would compete with the foreign ones. The needed machines are so expensive than you can even some for as much as N20 million.

What would you do with N20 million?

With 20 Million, I intend buying a filing machine and a sewing machine. I don’t mean the ones we use in Nigeria today. Every time I go online, I see these huge machines. They are far different from the ones we have in Nigeria. They are very big. For it to look perfect like the Kenneth Cole or Gucci, it has to be with those kind of machines. There is nothing you get out there that we cannot produce here in Nigeria. We only need all of that materials and equipment like the filing machine, the stamper, the presser and the rest.

Empowering others

I have been a part of the “Equip Orile” project. It is a project that has tailors, barbers, photographers, shoemarkers and so many other artisans. I have also helped others to gain the knowledge. I have taught so many people for free. It helps you grow yourself.

Future plans for the business

In two to the years time, I can see myself being a better person with my brands well known, worldwide. The name Koko Shoes will sound very meaningful to the ears of anyone that hears it. It would have been a household name in matters relating to shoes.

Government’s intervention in growing SMEs

People like us can always train others to be their own boss. It is that simple. In my best opinion, government at all levels can help grow small businesses by giving out loans to them. One key problem we face as SMEs is finance. Some already have the skills but are faced with the challenge of money for acquiring the needed equipment to succeed in their entrepreneurial endeavours. If the government can come in in that area, we will be very grateful and motivated.

Profitability

It is a very good and profitable business, especially if the clients are coming in from the expected angle. If clients appreciate quality, they would be willing to go all the way to pay for such service, no matter how expensive it appears.

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