“Perfume business is capital intensive, I can’t go into it”
This is response of many whenever I told them about perfume business and I was once like that until my eyes cleared about the business.
It is a lucrative business that has made a lot of money for people in Nigeria, though it can be capital intensive if you go into production but if it is retailing and wholesale it does not require too much capital.
You should congratulate yourself for thinking in the line of perfume business, as stated above many think it is capital intensive which is a good thing for you since you will have less competition to face.
This article is all about how to start perfume business in Nigeria, we touch all the aspect of the business from how to make it, market it and it challenges but before we go into the details I will want you take note of the following subheadings
Why you need to go into perfume business in Nigeria?
For those that are still contemplating, we have written this section for you
Population
Population is the first thing to consider in marketing, then purchasing power.
If you go into perfume business there a lot of people in Nigeria who are ready to buy what you are selling and the purchasing power is also there (rich people)
Demand
Perfume is used by small child and old people, we all love to smell nice which make it in high demand; you will surely make a sale if you follow all the advice in this article
Continuity
Perfume is not once and for all product; people will continue to use it which means you can’t go out of business.
Readily available
Ingredient needed to make perfume is readily available and if you are retailer or wholesaler you can easily import or buy locally.
Its profit is huge
Since perfume is in categories of luxury goods, profit on it is much
Niches of perfume business in Nigeria
There two way to approach perfume business in Nigeria you can become a retailer or set yourself up and become a producer both of them we be explain in details below
Perfume (oil) producer
Perfume oil production is a little bit capital intensive but there is a lot of profit to be made in this niche, one thing that can hold you down is if your recipe is not good such that it bring out poor odor.
You might be wondering that is it possible to make perfume in Nigeria? Sure those that produce it abroad are also human being like you and they follow a recipe and steps such as below
How to make perfume in Nigeria
Note; this perfume recipe and steps is just to show you how, it should not be used to produce commercial perfume, if you are aiming for commercial production you will need to develop your own recipe or move closer to someone who is an expert in it
Material needed to make perfume
- Infused oil
- Alcohol (vodka)
- Spices
- Sodium nitrite
- Resins
- Base oil
- Tree roots
- Flavor
- Perfume oil
- Filter
- Distilled water
Pour base oil inside a bowl
Add small amount of oil into the bowl
Add vodka to the mixture and stir it together
Leave it for 3 days and add water to it once the three days elapsed
Put the perfume in a dark room away from the source of light for about 4 weeks
After the four weeks bring it out and filter it so as to remove the insoluble
Package it inside a container and start your marketing
I will advise you not to start with perfume.production, start as wholesaler or retailer and grow form there but if you insist please try to learn the production process from a person that is already making money from it.
Perfume wholesaling
This is also require huge capital but not as production niche. If you choose this niche your job is to buy from the producer, import and sell to retailer. If you are a good negotiator you should be able to get perfume on credit.
Perfume retailer
In this niche you buy form wholesaler and sell it to final consumer it does not require much capital and you can start with little as #20,000. Some even go as far as buying perfume and splitting into small so that it will be affordable for the consumer but be careful of this strategy, once you register with CAC (Corporate Affairs Commission) don’t even try it.
How to start perfume business in Nigeria
Feasibility study
The first step to take in stating your perfume (oil) business is to check it if it is profitable in your chosen location.
You need to know if the business will be feasible to avoid wastage of resources, because it is profitable in one location does guarantee that it will be profitable in your location.
Check the number of competitor and ask yourself if you can beat it.
How easy to source for perfume or perfume material
What is the purchasing power of the people in your proposed location?
Who are your target markets?
Register your business
Once you are sure of the business, the next stage is to register your business with the CAC to avoid future confrontation with the government. Business registration will also boost your brand image among your customer.
Write Business plan
Write business plan that will contain your goal and dream for the perfume business and how you plan to get there.
If you are not planning to get loan with the business plan write one page plan that will show your dream and guide but if you will use it for loan you need to write the traditional business plan and it should contain the following
- Executive summary
- Company overview
- Marketing strategy
- Financial plan
- Organization structure
- Staffing
Set up your shop
This is step is not difficult, for producer rent a spacious structure where you can produce your product and for retailer you can pend shop for a while and utilize online especially WhatsApp to sell your perfume
Get your perfume or material
The next step is to get your material ready if you are producer and for wholesaler ship your product form abroad or buy locally, for retailer get your product form wholesaler.
Whatever niche you are operating it is better to stick to one or two high demand brand. This is how to know high demand perfume brand; when starting out purchase five to ten brand of perfume and stick to one or two that people buy most
Staffing
You can’t do it alone as your business move you will need to hire people that will help you. I will advise you to hire an experienced person it will save you the time of educating them and don’t forget to test their trustworthiness.
Marketing
Marketing is very crucial in perfume business, since your target markets are rich people you need to use medium they can relate with.
If your feasibility study is done well you will know the best medium to use for your customer nevertheless you can use the following medium
Leg work
If you are a retailer you don’t have a choice than to use leg because you will surely be short of capital.
Go to various churches on Sunday and after the service introduce your perfume to a lot of people and if you are close with some of your target customer you can track them down to their house.
Below are where you can see your target customer in Nigeria
- Churches
- Homes
- Office
- Restaurant
- Social media
- Forum
Both the producer and retailer can use this medium, register social media account and post deferent pictures of what you are selling before you know it people will start contacting you to buy.
To quicken the process find experts that will help you carry out social media ad.
Radio and TV
They are not old fashion, they are still working fine, if your customers are people between the age of 35 and beyond it will be your best bet
Website
If you are a producer, create website that will showcase your product. The website should be double edged such that there will be room for you to sell your product and also post content that will drive traffic from google.
You can contact us to help you create the website and write SEO content that will glue reader to screen.
Distribute flyers
Retailer should be able to afford this. Distribute well design flyers that will create a lead for you. The flyer can be e-flyers and physical flyers.
How to succeed in perfume business in Nigeria
Import form china
If you want to make a lot of money from your perfume business import form aliexpress they are cheaper compare to European perfume.
Build trust
You won’t last in the business if you don’t have a certain wholesaler or producer you can go to when the need arise because you will surely want to take perfume on credit one day.
Mode of dressing
Your mode of dressing should be top notch not that you need to borrow dress as long as it is neat you are good to go.
Always use your perfume when you want to sale to people remember most of your customer are middle income earner and rich people immediately, your appearance will tell them whether to buy from you or not.
Also learn to have a sense of humors, in perfume business you need to be a sale man and you know what they do they sale like crazy.
Sell quality perfume
In business quality beat quantity. Go extra mile to buy quality perfume it will surely pay because people will keep coming back to you.
Identify fake perfume
You need to know how to do this as soon as possible and you can detect it through the package and label of the perfume it will surely be different from the real brand.
When you use it, the smell/odor will go off quickly. If you sell fake perfume even without knowing it, it will cripple your business.
Stay updated
Whatever brand of perfume you are selling always stays up-to-date, perfume is like a luxury goods, people rarely change form one brand to another and they follow whatever brand they are using.
Once there is a new release from the brand alert your customer and let them know you have their product.
Target market
Have a specific target market; do not move from one segment to another if you do you will be throwing your dart around without hitting anything.
Sell on Jumia
Jumia is a now a market place, if you are in Lagos list your product on jumia.
Keep perfume away form sunlight
Perfume left in the sunlight can dry up therefore causing loss. Keep it in a dark and cool place.
Cost of starting perfume business in Nigeria
For retailer you can start with as little as #20,000
For wholesaler you need between #100,000 to #500 million
For producer you will need #1 million and above
Challenges of perfume oil business
There is no business without its challenges below are the challenges of perfume business in Nigeria
Fake perfume
At a start it will be difficult to identify fake perfume and if you mistakenly sell it to your customer it will have negative effect on your business
Solution
I stated the way to identify fake perfume in the tips section but you will still make mistake, it will only get better with experience.
Target customer
It will be hard to get customer at first because those people have a place they buy form before you show up, so be patient you will get your customer
Dry up
Yes perfume can dry up if wrongly kept, always keep them in a cool and dry place to avoid that
Importation problem
If you are a wholesale there is no way you won’t import, and when doing so your product can get lost on its way to you, courtesy of bad shipping company.
Solution
Use premium shipping company
Conclusion
Above is a content on how to start perfume (oil) business in Nigeria and I’m sure you have read it so what next? The answer is not hard; you need to execute, reading without executing is waste of your time.
Enough of dwelling in wantrepreneur space stand up and become startupprenur.
