Dear School Teachers: Here Are 20 Businesses You Can Start With Less Than N20,000

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted our lives more than we could imagine. Lives have been lost. Jobs have been lost, and so many people have become disoriented.

Although, the government at different levels have tried to alleviate the people’s sufferings, and many spirited individuals and organisation have assisted lives, but none of these efforts are suffice to combat the fallout of the scourge.

The worst hit are those in the private sector of the economy. While many of then are been paid partially, many have not been paid for months.

Among the worst hits are the Private School Teachers. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, the take home of many private school teachers had never taken any of them home successfully.

While many are raising funds to do giveaways for these teachers, that seems not to the way out for these teachers. They need to be self reliant.

Recently, a pastor known as Pastor Busari Shuaib Olawale Peter came up with 20 businesses that these teachers can do sustain their lives at the moment without much stress.

You can start this in your house frontage. You can get a clipper for less than #3,000. A fairly used generator costs around #8,500 to #9,000 in Ibadan. Someone bought one around me recently. It’s not too difficult to Barb. I’ve been my own Barber for the past 14 years, not for lack of money, but for lack of time. I barb overnight. If I barb my own head, why can’t I barb others. You may not be able to barb special Styles, but neighborhood Kids pay up to #200 per service.

For ladies, you don’t need dryers or a special salon. If you are skilled in plaiting hair, start earning from your skills today. I pay madam letter writer at least #300-#500 every weekend, and the same applies to scores of neighborhood Kids.

Making and selling chilled Kunnun, Sobo, Soya drinks and small chops like Puff Puff, Buns and Scotched Eggs. (If you are based in Ibadan, my Wife will teach you all of this free of charge). Although it may require hawking this stuffs, but be assured of making a very good returns on this efforts.

If you can cook well, you can start selling food in your area. Sell food to construction site workers. Sell cooked food at parks. You can make local coleslaw’s for sale. Moin moin and others are in high demands by people who don’t have time to cook at home.

Still on Food. You can have an Akara (Beans Cake) stand. I know a place where we queue to buy Akara, in Ibadan. More than 4 boys are working for the man, and they still can’t meet up with demands. Combine it with fried yams and peppered Ponmon in the afternoon. This one na money spinners.

Recharge cards retailing at parks and busy junctions. You may not know, but #100 Glo Card is sold for #93 by dealers. MTN #100 goes for #96.50 and Airtel #100 goes for #95. If you can position yourself at a busy intersection, you can make a good sales. You can combine this with the sales of cold satchel water and bottled drinks.

Do you know vegetables like spinach, Jute leaves (Ewedu) Okra and others are ready for harvesting in a matter of weeks, if you wet them adequately with Water? This can be combined with other businesses, and trust me, the market is always in high demand of them.

I don’t know if you’ve taken note of some women. who come out to sale fresh bread in the evening. Some of the bread they sell at #300-#400 gives them nothing less than #50-#70 per one. Many of them sell as much as 40 or more daily, if they are in busy areas.

Why don’t you think of doing same? Do you see any of them crying yen yen yen around? They may not be stupendously rich, but are they begging to feed?

Now that we are in the season of corns, I’m sure you’ve bought corns for #50, or #100. Haven’t you? Many of those corns don’t cost more than #20 or #30 at the farms, where these women source them from. Yet, many of us won’t be ashamed to ask our Mothers who are making money from such in times like this. For how long?

Do you know Poultry Farmers don’t sell a crate of eggs more than #800-#900? Do you know you can become a neighborhood egg distributor? You can make between #100-#200 per crate. If the turnover is very good, you can make some very good returns from it. After a time, you won’t even need to take them round again. People would be coming round to ask by themselves.

Many of you have phones with very good cameras, but all you used them to take na Selfies. Do you know you can help people to do Photo Shoot with your Phones? Many people can’t afford Studio price, but they’ll be happy if you can help them at prices that is pocket friendly. Fortunately, all that many people want nowadays is the soft copies. For how long will you continue to sit on a whole company like your Phone?

In Ibadan, day old cockerel chicks sell as low as #10 on some days. Broilers at times go for between #100-#200 depending on Market factors. You can raise these birds for Weeks, and reselling them profitably. You’ll need basic training on this though.

Unknown to you, there are people who’ve made millions from these items, since the COVID-19 pandemic broke out. Believe it or not, this scourge is not leaving on any particular day. We may have to live with it for a while. Why not turn the setbacks to items of comebacks? Why not?

Now that the Kids are home, you can continue holding home tuition for Kids virtually. You can do Whatsapp recordings and send to parents who can afford it for a token. It may sound off to you, but many of your Colleagues are making serious dough from this, but they won’t tell you.

Dear male teachers, visit printing centers and you’ll do some jobs like collations outsourced to you. I know folks who make between #2,000-#3,000 at Mokola printing area in Ibadan, and Stadium printing area in Akure. I don’t know of other locations, but all they do is collating, stitching, and helping with other finishing aspects of publishing.

Ladies, do you know there are people who’ll pay you to come round and tidy up their homes? Such busy people won’t pay you only in cash, they may also pay with groceries too.

Guys, there are are people who’ll pay you handsomely, to come round and wash their cars, with their own water supply, Soaps, and on their Compound. They don’t just have the time to waste at any car wash, and they’ll be grateful to have such service rendered to them in the confine of their homes.

I know many people who can drive, but who are begging up and down for stipends, because their schools are under locks and keys.

I know a brother that earns #25,000 driving his clients kids to school, and picking them after closing. The client owns for the car and fuelling.

There are people who need someone to drive them to work, and to come back and drive them back home in the evening. They are ready to pay handsomely for such part time services.

You can help those who are too busy to do shopping. All they need to give you is the list of the items they need, and you help them acquire such, and they’ll pay you your service charge. This is also linked to farm produce retailing. You buy from the farmers and resell to those who need it. In some cases, some people would pay ahead for such items.

How about helping others dry clean their clothes? All you need is a good washing basin, and a good pressing iron. Doing home pick up and delivery will guarantee you a better return on this one.

You can cook Noodles, fried Eggs, and Tea. It will surprise you how much patronage this will bring you in a couple of days. This is a Unisex business and I know people who are thriving well in this. It doesn’t require much to set up, and you are guaranteed steady source of income from it.

Has anyone ever wondered about the profitability of the Meat Barbecues, aka Suya business? Why is it dominated by the Hausa people only? Who told you it requires some rocket science? Who told you people won’t buy if you make Suya during the daylight?