If you want to learn about the lucrative frozen food business, this blog post is for you.
The market for frozen foods is expanding at an astonishing double-digit rate as more people stay at home. So, if you possess true culinary expertise or simply a few ideas you’ve always wanted to share with the world, you may launch your own frozen food company and capture a portion of this booming market in Nigeria.
First, a frozen food business in Nigeria involves selling prepared and preserved food. It involves the freezing, keeping, and trading of frozen food products.
Technically, freezing food boosts the value and shelf life of the majority of perishable commodities. But more than simply concepts are needed to be successful. From an entrepreneurial standpoint, you’ll need to know what you’re getting into.
In many regions of the world, but particularly in Nigeria, the frozen food sector is a very lucrative business due to a rise in the demand for convenient foods and population expansion.
The industry is not yet saturated because there aren’t many people involved. The frozen foods business sells fish, turkey, prawns, chicken, gizzards, and some vegetables for eating.
This is a business that can expand rapidly in the least amount of time. Many individuals live sophisticated lifestyles and would prefer previously cooked, cleaned, and chopped meat than to go through all the strains.
The greatest option for those who cannot or do not wish to slaughter chicken is to purchase it already prepared. Food is frequently prepared with frozen ingredients for ceremonies like birthday celebrations, marriages, naming ceremonies, convocations, festivals, etc.
Frozen food is frequently consumed in establishments including hotels, restaurants, bars, and fast food restaurants. Fried fish and chicken vendors are another group of individuals that primarily deal in some of these frozen meals.
The frozen food industry has the potential to expand rapidly. The sophisticated stress-free elite and frequent occasions like birthday parties, marriages, naming ceremonies, convocations, and festivals will keep the frozen food investor in the business because the target client is constantly accessible.
In reality, if you want to launch your own frozen food company, this article will walk you through the procedures to establish a successful frozen food company.
HOW TO A START FROZEN FOOD BUSINESS IN NIGERIA
Before launching your frozen food business, there are numerous things to consider. Several of these include:
- Create a business plan and register your company.
Create a plan for how you will run your company. The strategy should account for the company’s continued existence and growth. Plan strategies for surviving in the face of opposition.
To assist in developing a proper plan, you might consult a business expert. It’s the place where you outline every single aspect of the company, from the location to the alleged profit projected at each transaction.
Additionally, you must register your company with the appropriate organization. Every company registered with this association has its affairs managed by it. They also provide credit options for their customers. Before joining, be sure you can manage their fees.
- Select a suitable location
Your business should be close to food restaurants to increase sales. When they need frozen goods and the like, they start to turn to you.
Students who prefer frozen foods are also more likely to be found in an academic setting.
It’s also accessible in front of your residences or marketplaces. Do not conceal where you are. Don’t change your mind about your choice of location because your firm has stagnated for a year or two. A potential market exists everywhere.
- Select your preferred frozen food brand
You should focus on one area of business rather than trying your hand at everything. Various foods can be sold frozen. fruits, fish, and poultry items. Foods strong in protein are typically more in demand than fruits. However, it relies on the preferences of the patrons at that establishment.
It’s a good idea to stick with poultry-based dishes if you must. However, you should have separate refrigerators for fish and poultry if you plan to blend the two types of foods. This is because of its foul stench, which if placed next to your chicken will transfer.
- Use the appropriate marketing strategy
After completing the previous processes, it is now time to focus on marketing.
First, your surroundings play a role. Red and poultry meat would flourish in regions with more children, while seafood and poultry are the most in-demand proteins in locations with more senior citizens.
This is why it’s important to assess your surroundings and understand who your target market is. Keep in mind that they are the heart of your company. Now, to increase their recurring patronage in neighbourhoods with hotels and bars, you can offer logistics or door delivery.
You can be so kind as to offer after-sales services to bulk buyers as well to keep their business. To guarantee that your neighbourhood is aware of your business, you can even run advertisements. This will result in a large number of orders requiring your attention.
- Verify the functionality of your storage system.
This is the foundation of the enterprise because if you don’t have a system for storing goods, you shouldn’t be talking about the frozen food industry.
Make arrangements for a cooling system or a refrigerator. You shouldn’t purchase anything more than a refrigerator if your business is modest. In this manner, the costs wouldn’t be excessive. In this industry, whether you succeed or fail depends on your storage system.
By keeping the food frozen, this storage mechanism keeps it fresh. Choose high-quality storage solutions.
FROZEN FOOD BUSINESS: WHY YOU SHOULD START ONE
- High demand exists for it.
- People save time, especially those who want to cook quickly, by using frozen goods because they are already prepared. Consequently, it is preferred over raw ones.
- The profit margin is high.
- Employing two people to manage the company will allow you to run it as a second firm.
- There is no requirement for a certificate to operate a frozen food business, thus anyone can do it.
TYPES OF EQUIPMENT REQUIRED FOR THE FROZEN FOOD INDUSTRY
Equipment like freezers, tables, generators, knives, aprons, trash cans, water, and so on are necessities before opening a business.
In our nation, finding electricity is a constant challenge. You should make proper plans for an alternative as you are aware that your products are perishable.
On your property, a backup generator should be operational. This generator needs to be both portable and high voltage.
Additionally, choosing diesel generators saves more money than using that fuel. If you don’t do this, there will be deterioration, loss, and perhaps a strong odour.
Don’t put off taking the essential action until you start losing money.
Knives, chairs, tables, trash cans, and other items are provided for convenience and hygiene. Don’t forget to provide a backup water supply.
STARTING A FROZEN FOOD BUSINESS: HOW MUCH DO I NEED?
N200,000 naira is acceptable when starting small. However, you may need as much as N500,000 naira if you want to start big.
PROFITABILITY OF THE FROZEN FOOD INDUSTRY
The company is extremely profitable. More so, if you are selling them in pieces. If you buy a carton of chicken for N10,000 and sell it for #11,000, and you sell five cartons in a day, that comes to N5,000 in chicken sales. What about turkey, a gizzard, a snail, some prawns, etc? Of course, you’ll sell more in a single day than that.
If everything is thoroughly planned and carried out, you may expect to make at least N100, 000 every month and eventually more as time goes on. Someone claimed he used the money from his frozen food business to fund his education, pay rent, provide for his family, and do many other things.
Make your store inviting for customers to enter, and put benches or chairs there so they can sit and wait while you wrap their goods. Cut the chicken or turkey carefully to prevent wasting them by accidentally shredding the food. For this reason, it’s important to regularly sharpen the knife and chisel.
If you short-change somebody, you will lose consumers, therefore, make sure your scale is properly positioned. After wrapping the frozen food in a nylon bag, use newspapers or any other paper, especially if it’s chicken or turkey that can spill blood.
THE DIFFICULTIES FACED BY THE NIGERIAN FROZEN FOOD INDUSTRY
- Nigerian frozen food companies confront many difficulties, but energy poses the biggest risk.
- The need for power to chill frozen foods is non-negotiable because they are perishable items.
- For the sake of the frozen food industry, having a functional backup generator is best due to the country’s epileptic electrical supply.
- The availability of supplies is also a problem because not everyone can produce everything from scratch.
- Smuggling is not a recent development in the industry, but because it is prohibited, it has replaced other sources as the nation’s main supplier of frozen food.
- The price of importing increases the buying rate, which then raises the selling rate, and this isn’t good for consumers.
WRAPPING THINGS UP
If you stick to it, the frozen food industry will quickly make you wealthy. You can hire staff to manage additional stores that you open. And since you are aware of the potential revenue from the business, it will be difficult for anyone to defraud you.
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