How to Start Suya Business in Nigeria

How to start a barbecue business in Nigeria also known as suya business in Hausa. After reading the article, you will be able to start a successful barbecue business in Nigeria and make continuous profits. You will also be able to diversify your barbecue (suya) business unlike the average mallam on the streets of Nigeria that is also in the business.

You will be able to brand your barbecue business in such a way that you will stand out from every other barbecue business in Nigeria. Let’s get into it right away. Barbecue business is a business in Nigeria that became popular by the Hausa’s. In fact, according to some Nigerians, it was a business that was invented by the Hausas.

And it has been in existence as far back as any native food in the northern part of Nigeria. At first, the food or snack was not used to make money rather it was food that was consumed during celebrations and festivals in the north. But as time went by when the demand for food or snacks started to increase, so many northerners saw the opportunity and turned it into a business.

Suya is related to kilishi but it is a bit different however most Nigerian eats suya as compared to kilishi. So many Nigerians have also gone into kilishi business just like suya business and they are making huge profits by the day. One of the advantages of this is that Kilishi is that last longer on supermarket shelves and can be preserved for a long time for as long as months before it can be consumed.

According to the history of Kilishi by the northerners, Kilishi was invented as a way of preserving meat during the old days. The Hausas had no fridge or any other preservative methods than to dry their meats adding all necessary spices and when these meats are ready to be consumed they are brought out of the store and eaten without the need the warm or cook them again.

Fast forward to today in Nigeria, suya (barbecue) is now a different food with almost a different purpose. The average Nigerian buyer sees the food as snacks that should be eaten alongside bear or garri and should be shared with family and friends.

Is Barbecue Business Profitable?

Suya business in Nigeria is another profitable business in Nigeria because every Nigerian eats suya. There’s hardly a Nigerian that does not eat suya, unlike kilishi. This is why if you are going into this business now in Nigeria been properly informed you will make profits and continue to make profits year in and year out.

Capital Needed to Start Barbecue Business

To start a barbecue business in Nigeria you need at least a capital of N100,000. This capital will go to 2 major parts of the business. The first is to the buying of the grilling machine or smoker that will be used in making the barbecue. While the second is to renting of the space where you will sell your barbecued meat.

These 2 are important because without them the business cannot be existence.

Equipment Needed in Making Barbecue

There are equipment needed in setting up a barbecue business or suya business in Nigeria. Below are the listed ones.

1. Grilling Machine

2. Knives

3. Plates

4. Forks

5. Barbecue sticks

Ingredients Used in Making Barbecue

1. Meat (Mutton or Beef)

2. Salt

3. Pepper

4. Black pepper

5. Onions

6. Cabbage

7. Suya seasoning

How to Start Suya Business in Nigeria

How do you start suya business in Nigeria? Here is the step-by-step guide.

1. Learn How to Make Barbecue

Yes, this is the step you need to take if you really want to start a profitable barbecue business in Nigeria. You need a first hand on how to make barbecue – all the processes involved like cutting of meat, drying of the meat, spicing, and roasting. In a barbecue business in Nigeria, they use different kinds of meat to make barbecue. Some use ram while others use beef.

Depending on the one that is consumed the most you need to learn all the processes involved in making them. To learn how to grill barbecue asides from want you have learned online through YouTube videos you need to learn from someone who makes barbecue for a living in your area.

You can pay a mallam who is in your area to teach you or pay anyone you know is simply good at it. If you do not have any money at this time to spend you can simply make the mallam your friend. Visit him every night and offer to help him to do one or two things for free and while you are helping pay attention to his technique of grilling.

As time goes by with practice you will be able to start making barbecue successfully. The moment you have succeeded at this you can now move to the next stage.

2. Get the Capital Needed

After learning how to make barbecue, the next stage is to get the capital needed in starting your barbecue business in Nigeria. The capital needed in starting a barbecue business in Nigeria is not much because you don’t need many things. As far as the barbecue business is concerned in Nigeria the only major equipment you need to start your barbecue business is your smoker otherwise called grilling machine.

The most common type of grilling machine used in Nigeria is the charcoal one. This kind of grilling machine is very cheap. This is why the capital needed in starting a barbecue business is very small.

3. Buy Barbecue Equipment

After this, the next stage for you to plan and buy the equipment you will be using in making a barbecue. As I said earlier the major equipment is your grilling machine but asides from this you will need other cooking tools. You need to do the estimate of all these equipment and then proceed to the market to buy them.

When buying the grilling machine, make sure you buy the one that will really last you for a long time. You might not be able to recognize the original ones well so ask well and make your findings before buying.

4. Buy Suya Ingredients

Since you are not starting the business immediately after purchasing the grilling machine, it is not necessary for you to buy the meat you will be needing to start the barbecue business but you can buy every other ingredient needed.

5. Get a Perfect Location

Getting a location is the most important part of a barbecue business in Nigeria because it determines the success of your barbecue business. If you are properly positioned at the right place customers will be able to easily locate you and buy from you. But if you are at the wrong place i.e. a hidden street or closed street people will not know your business exists.

Many businesses that are successful in Nigeria today are not successful because of the quality of goods or services they provide even though they try as much as possible to do this. They are successful because they are located in the right place – where thousands of likely customers pass every day.

A good example of this is a puff puff business located at a closed street and another puff puff business located at a popular bus-stop. It is certain that the puff puff business at the bus-stop will make more profit than the other one. So location is very important when it comes to starting a barbecue business in Nigeria.

When looking for a place for your barbecue business make sure it is at a location where thousands of likely barbecue customers will be. This space can be for free and it might be for rent it totally depends on the owner of this land.

6. Start Selling your Barbecue

Before you start selling your barbecue at the location you got; you need to first clean the place. Depending on how the place looks you might need to wash it with soap and water or just sweep it. Hygiene is very important in this business since it is a food business.

After making the place is clean you can now set up your grilling machine and every other equipment needed to start your barbecue business. On the first day of your business; make some barbecue (suya). But do not make too much as there’s a high probability that demand might not be much due to the fact that it is your first day. But as time goes by you can be sure that your sales will improve.

7. Diversify your Business

Asides from being at the right location to make huge profits from your barbecue business in Nigeria the other ways to increase (triple) your profit in your barbecue business in Nigeria is to diversify your barbecue business. By diversifying, I mean you selling other foods that can go along with your barbecue business.

For example, you can add asun, roasted chicken, grilled fish (croaker), roasted snails, gizzard, and even sell drinks alongside the suya you sell in your barbecue business. This expands your scope in your business which in turn increases your profit because if one customer is not buying suya from you he is buying roasted fish from you, if he is not buying grilled fish from you he is buying grilled gizzard or snail.

8. Making Money from Barbecue Business

I have shared some of this earlier. One of these is to be at the right location – a place where thousands of like customers pass every day. Another way you can increase profit in your barbecue business is by providing good customer service. Providing good customer service will help you to retain each and every one of your customers while having new ones every day.

Remember ‘people will never forget how you make them feel when you attend to them well’.

Provide Barbecue at Carnivals and Party

You can increase the profits of your barbecue business by also providing barbecue to carnivals and parties. Carnivals are usually full of suya lovers. You can simply sell your barbecue to these crowds and also make huge profits.

9. Advertise Online and Do Deliveries

If any business is not online today that business is missing half of the profit that it is supposed to make. This is because there are thousands if not millions of Nigerians who now stay online nowadays.

To further increase the profit of your barbecue business in Nigeria, you can advertise your barbecue business online creating different profiles on social media and describing that you make asun, grilled fish, and the likes. And when customers order online you can then do deliveries to the apartments or houses.

Conclusion

The barbecue business otherwise known as the suya business in Nigeria is a profitable business if you take your time to understand the business before starting and you follow these steps. It is a business that will make more money for you than you have invested as capital in a hundred folds. All you have to do is just start and be flexible.

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