Bakery Business Plan and Feasibility Study - There is no doubt that one of the oldest and most profitable businesses in Nigeria is bakery. The business, apart from helping to develop entrepreneurship in the country, remains one of the most patronized by the people, impacting positively on their food and nutrition needs.
Around Nigeria as a country, the business dots the landscape, as different sizes of bread are produced for over 140 million Nigerians. In fact, scores of people are engaged in it either as marketers or employees of bakeries.
Certainly, so lucrative is the business that major corporations such as UAC and Leventis have their brands competing with other privately owned ones.
Numerous of these brands come with their labels, just as some don’t have at all, indicating that they may not have been registered with the National Agency for Food, Drugs Administration and Control. Virtually every home has bread on its menu, especially as breakfast, with children, in particular eating it with glee.
It didn’t end there. Once spiced with butter or taken with refreshingly chilled soft drinks; tea- hot or cold - bread remains one of the best food that can satisfy one’s appetite.
Fascinatingly, the bakery business had seen many entrants, including small and big operators. The big bakers such as UAC Nigeria Plc and major fast food outlets, through their own brands usually attract higher prices, as investigations have shown, that they always claim that their products are more nutritious and are produced under the most hygienic conditions.
Professionals say if properly managed like any other business, a bakery can rake in fortunes for the owner and can significantly contribute to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product.
Rendering to the Chief Executive of different bakeries, any entrepreneur wishing to invest in the business should first prepare a comprehensive feasibility study as a guide.
Talking with our correspondent on
phone, an investment analyst and professor of Economics says, “Depending on the
size of the bakery, capital, whether personal savings or loan, is necessary to
operate the business.” He adds that skilled and committed personnel, among
others, should also be employed to drive the business.
Nevertheless, the Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer of different bakeries says the business is lucrative, but requires a lot of personal involvement of the entrepreneur to break even.
Permitting to him, “depending on the size of the bakery you want to operate, you would need at least a start- up capital of N5m to purchase an oven; slicer; shelf; pans; milling machine; mixer,” among others.
He says a locally manufactured oven could cost between N1.5m and N1.6m, adding that though imported baking equipment could cost more , the indigenous ones can work perfectly well when properly managed.
The Abuja – based boss of the bakery
outfit adds, “If you don’t have your own landed property on which to build the
ovens, you can rent a space or a warehouse where you can construct them.”
He says that the business can be grown further by involving members of “your family, especially the children, when they are on holidays.”
He says that the business can be grown further by involving members of “your family, especially the children, when they are on holidays.”
Another bakery owner, who retired as a banker, adds that, bread would continue to remain one of Nigeria’s best food, saying, “In spite of the challenges we faced, including the existence of fakes in the industry; high cost of inputs like sugar; flour; the business has a bright future.”
Nonetheless, another operator reveals that although, there are well over 100 bakery outfits in Abuja alone, a potential operator must register with the National Agency for Food Administration and Control for certification and avoid any face -off with the law. The entrepreneur, who preferred anonymity says he has been in the business since the past 10 years, and called for a better regulatory framework by the agency in order to sanitize the food and confectionary sub-sector of the economy.
The Abuja bases entrepreneur added, although, the agency has been doing a lot to rid the sector of charlatans, who use potassium bromade, a chemical that is considered dangerous to health, in their own products in flagrant violation of the law guiding against the practice , it can do more to protect the health of the people by apprehending and prosecuting offenders.
He speaks, “Since the campaign against the use of bromide started by NAFDAC, I think, there had been greater awareness among the operators and Nigerians generally.” He however, advises consumers to shun bread which they suspect might have the chemical, as it could pose a great danger to their health.