How to Start Fruit Business in Nigeria

When it comes to starting a fruit business in Nigeria we all must know it’s no longer business as usual because we are dealing with delicate goods and limited time to sell them off. Usually, this would not have been a problem in Nigeria if Nigeria has 24/7 power but unfortunately despite everything we are not there yet.

And we cannot because of this lack of electricity stop businesses that will benefit all Nigerians and benefit those that are willing to invest in the business. Fruit business in Nigeria is related to the frozen food business in Nigeria and both of them demand the same energy and attention but the frozen food business in Nigeria cannot survive without electricity.

However, you can successfully start a fruit business in Nigeria if you know how to preserve fruits for a short while to sell. Some of these methods I will be sharing with you as we go on in this article. In this article, I will all share with you multiple ways on how you can sell your fruits fast in your fruit business and make profits easily.

If you’re able to follow these tips and follow them squarely you will be able to use the profits in the business to take care of your expenses like paying your child’s school fees, paying house rent, and maybe buy land and build your own house having a peace of mind. It’s all about not leaving any stone unturned. Farming business in Nigeria where you plant and harvest crops is good.

And I wish both harvesting and selling of fruits and crops can be done alongside the fruit business in Nigeria but this is almost impossible. Nigerians that are into farming only do it to sell at wholesale avoiding mass spoilage of their huge harvested crops. So if you want to really go into the fruit business in Nigeria you have to strictly the buying and selling of fruits or at best do other businesses that are related to the fruit business instead.

Is Fruit Business Profitable?

Yes, the fruits business is highly profitable and lucrative asides from spoilage – the short shelf life it has. It is profitable because of all Nigerians or let me say 95% of Nigerians eat fruits. Asides from this, it is also profitable because fruits are very important to the body when it comes to replenishing the body with vitamins.

They are the cheapest. During fasting seasons fruits are not optional for Nigerians but are necessities and during these times you can easily increase the prices of your fruits to make higher profits.

Equipment Needed to Start Fruit Business

Here are the tools or equipment needed to start a fruit business in Nigeria. In no particular number, we have:

1. Knives

2. Trays

3. Umbrella

4. Display Shelves

5. Baskets

Common Fruits Sold in Nigeria

There are different types of fruits that are commonly sold in the fruit business in Nigeria. These are:

1. Oranges

2. Grapes

3. Berries

4. Mangoes

5. Bananas

6. Plantain

7. Cherries

8. Pineapples

9. Pawpaws

10. Cucumber

11. Watermelon

12. Cabbage (vegetable)

13. Carrots (vegetable)

14. Green peas

15. Green pepper

And so on.

An important thing to note here is that not all of these fruits can be sold all the time in Nigeria (year in, year out) because many of these fruits are seasonal, and due to lack of preservation of fresh fruits these fruits cannot survive outside their season. So you can only sell these fruits when it is in their season.

How to Start Fruit Business in Nigeria

What are the steps to start a fruit business in Nigeria?

1. Conduct Market Survey

Doing your market survey in any type of business is very important as it opens your eyes to a lot of things when starting in this case – fruit business. It will make you take note of a lot of things like fruits Nigerians buy the most in that area or state. It also opens your eyes to whether the selling of fruits in that area can be lucrative or not.

In as much as Nigerians eat fruits a lot, we also need to know that some areas in Nigeria are not prone to buying fruits because fruit trees are around them. You must be sure of all these that is why a market survey is very important. Your market survey should also involve you going to the market (markets like Ketu or Mile 12 in Lagos) or any other fruit market around where you reside where fruits are sold for wholesale to ask about fruits that sell fast and fruits that stay for a short period on shelves.

You will be surprised at the amazing advice these fruit sellers will share with you as regards how you can go about your fruit business. All you have to do is promise them that once you are ready to start you will be buying fruits from them. And they will be friends with you telling you everything you need to know as regards the fruit business. Read our guide on how to get funding for your business in Nigeria.

2. Get the Capital Needed

The capital needed for starting fruit business in Nigeria is not capital intensive. You can start fresh fruits business in Nigeria with a minimum of N50,000 to a maximum of N500,000 depending on how large you want to go and how much you have as capital. Asides from the fruits to start your fruit business, you need to buy other tools and utensils like knives, trays, and so on.

You will also need to make or buy display shelves to display the fruits. You can either borrow the capital (money) you want to use to start this business or simply raise the capital (money) yourself.

3. Get a Location for the Shop or Space

The next step to take after you have gotten your capital is to get a location for your space or shop. You need space if you cannot afford a shop and you need a shop if you can afford one, all these boil down to your budget and how much capital you are willing to invest. When getting a shop or space for your fruits business in Nigeria, there are 2 major things you must put in mind.

One of these is to make sure your shop or space is properly located at a place where thousands of Nigerians pass every day – making sure your shop or space is where you are likely to meet fruit lovers. The second is to make sure you got your shop or space where the rent is not expensive. You don’t want to blow all your capital in the name of renting a shop or space in as much as our location also determines how much you will sell your fruits.

For example; if your shop is located in GRA or any high-brow area it will be reasonable to increase the prices of your fruits a bit more and if your shop is located in a very local area you can just increase the price of your fruits by 10% as long as the sales are fast. Selling fruit in a space, especially on open grounds has its disadvantages but these disadvantages can easily be managed.

One of these disadvantages can be the hot sun. The sun in Nigeria can be so hot sometimes that it can boil water or even fry plantain. You must prepare ahead of this by buying big umbrellas or a large canopy to protect you and your fruits from the blazing sun. Fruit does not do well at high temperatures. Also getting a good watering can to water the fruits that need water can be helpful in sustaining the life span of your fruits.

4. Buy Fruits from Farms

To make big profits easily from your fruits business in Nigeria you must highly consider buying your fruits from wholesalers. To do these easily on all kinds of fruits you will need to go to any fruit market near you. I mentioned this earlier. If you are in Lagos you can go to either of these markets to buy your fruits (assorted) and get a car or truck to move your fruits home.

Put in mind that these truck drivers will charge you a fee for transporting the fruits. These charges depend on the distance they have to cover. But if you have a car or truck you can simply pack these fruits into your vehicle and move them to your shop yourself. Also, keep in mind that when buying fruits you should buy unripe ones to reduce the spoilage of the number of fruits in your shop.

If you bring the fruits in unripe it will make them naturally take time before they become ripe. Except for spoilage or in the case where the fruits have been damaged, fruits do not get spoilt unless they are over-ripped.

5. Stock and Keep your Fruits Well

Stocking is very important in any buying and selling business in Nigeria especially when it comes to the food business because it lets you know how many fruits you bought, which types, which ones arrived in good condition, and which ones arrived in bad condition. After doing the proper inventory of all your fruits it is now time to place them properly in a cool place to avoid fast ripening and spoilage.

6. Start Selling your Fruits

Now is the time to start selling your fruits. To start selling your fruits it is advisable to sell ripe fruits first and only sell unripe fruits like plantain and banana on special requests. One of the ways you can reduce the loss of fruits that are ripe and about to spoil is for you to sell them at cheap prices. It is better to make little gains on them than to watch them get spoilt all in the name of trying to make a big profit.

Also, consider reducing the prices of fruits if customers are willing to buy more at one time. Example: buying 3 bunches of bananas. This will motivate them to always buy from you and it will also make you make more profit faster. Fruit business in Nigeria is a game of numbers and time so you have to be very watchful and sell when you have to sell.

7. Increasing Profits in Fruit Business

There are many ways you can increase profit easily in your fruit business in Nigeria and I will be sharing many of these methods below.

Diversify Your Fruit Business: The fruit business can be diversified into different arms to make sure that money is not only coming in regular profits but also increasing on a daily basis.

8. Fruit Business Ideas in Nigeria

The 2 major ways you can diversify your fruit business in Nigeria are by:

A. Fruit Salad Business

Fruit salad business in Nigeria is a business in Nigeria where fruits and cut and diced for immediate consumption. In the fruit salad business in Nigeria, all you need is a clean environment to make the fruit salad and a good selection of fruits.

So since you already own a fruit business you can simply start a fruit salad business alongside your fruit business in Nigeria to increase your profit in the business rapidly. Read our article on how to start fruit salad business in Nigeria.

B. Fruit Juice or Smoothie Business

Fruit juice or smoothie business in Nigeria is a business where fruits are ground to extract their liquids. These liquids are then sold to consumers for immediate consumption. Just like the fruit salad business in Nigeria, the fruit juice or smoothie business in Nigeria also needs a clean environment to make them. You can add this business also to the regular selling of your fruits to increase profits. Read our guide on how to start smoothie business in Nigeria.

9. Do Fruit Deliveries

Doing deliveries for your fruit business cannot be underestimated especially in today’s world. Many of your customers will be the average Nigerian youth and these youths prefer to shop online for everything even down to fruits to the fruits delivered to their doorsteps.

So if you are not ready to sell your fruits online and also do deliveries you will be missing a large part of the market. You should consider doing deliveries to increase the profit of your fruit business.

Conclusion

Never underestimate a business like the fruit business in Nigeria. It might not look lucrative to you now but it is certainly a business that will yield you profits easily as long as you’re open to every part of the business. Start now with what you have and as time goes by you can gradually invest the profits you got from the business back into the fruit business to expand.

That is all in this article. Do not forget to share.

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