One of the students fronting unusual entrepreneurship at the University of Ibadan is Ifeoluwa Olatayo Tryphena; an English major and CEO of Soupah Kitchen. She's been able to make good use of her opportunities, ideas and leverage. As a student entrepreneur model, She shares with us her journey so far in sprouting a mountain from a magma.
What in the world
inspired you to start a business like this?
Well, first
is that I’ve always wanted to do something very relevant. Let me take you on my
memory lane: When I was quite young,
before I sat for WAEC, my Dad bought Robert Kiyosaki’s book, Rich Dad Poor Dad and gave it to my
brother, my brother in turn handed it over to me. I think that book was the
spring board. I read it and never remained the same again. I just got hungry
from then on. I think that was the genesis of my inspiration.
So your quest for
relevance started then?
No. The
thing is I’ve always had it in me from a very young age. My Dad is an
entrepreneur. When I was about the age of 12, I’d sneak into his office, sit on
the desk and act like the boss. I’ll pretend to press the caller bell and call
for the secretary, I’ll re-arrange the files on the table, speak to myself as
though I was having a meeting with some people, and all sort. So it’s been
there all the while. My background and the book just exposed me better.
Is this your first
venture?
No. While I
was in secondary school, my aunt who was a caterer used to fry meat for me, and
we’ll sell them. I also sold cakes for her.
While I was studying Public Administration at
Rufus Giwa Polytechnic, I didn’t necessarily sell anything, but I handled some
responsibilities that have been very helpful in my business today. I was
Administrator at Saxifrage Company, and was in charge of managing over 300
singers. There, I learnt Leadership.
After my
Program at RGP and before I gained admission to study English here in U.I, I
learnt to make knapsack bags for kids, and I sold many bags. That business was
a joint venture and we made some good money.
So what’s up with the
bag business?
I stopped
the bag business when I got admitted into U.I because of logistic purposes and
I ran a pay phone business. The pay phone business didn’t really work out very
strongly and I also didn’t feel fulfilled or satisfied with it. So I stopped
that one too.
You seem to have done
quite much; did you start your current business afterwards?
Well, from
then till my second semester, 200 level, I didn’t do anything. Though in 100
level, I did a bit of freelance marketing for Live Way TV and Salve Incorp. We
sold magazines.
I held on
to the idea of this business by ‘accident’. It was during our exam that
semester. I was in a friend’s room at Queens hall to take a nap when a girl was
announcing to her friend that she was going to Bodija market to buy some food
stuff. Suddenly, on hearing the announcement, so many other ladies rushed out,
begging this girl to buy them several things. She became fussy and could only
take some.
That scene
caught my attention. It immediately dawned on me that this could turn out to be
a business opportunity. That was the conception of the idea.
I immediately
garnered the money from the bag sales I had made and that I was saving prior
that period, and I started ‘Mama Foods’ immediately. I sent out questionnaires
to my potential buyers to sample their opinions. I got someone to get fresh
farm goods supply from at Bodija Market and at a cheap price and I began to
sell them in school, at Bodija Market price.
Wow! So you didn’t
basically have any challenges to starting Mama Foods?
No o. There
were enough challenges. People started mocking me somehow. They called me
several names and saw me as very unserious. I didn’t get a place to put my
stuff, but a woman at the basement of the Faculty of Arts helped with a little
space. In fact, Mama Foods was a mobile business. I was delivering food to
people’s doorsteps at Bodija Market Price, and so I had to sell my Laptop to purchase
a bicycle to move around. There were so many challenges from finance to having
the right suppliers, etc… I just kept praying and working hard.
Why did you change the
name of your business from Mama Foods to Soupah Kitchen, and what’s the
difference between both?
I wanted to
register the business name at the Corporate Affairs Commission, and I was told
that someone had picked Mama Foods so I chose Soupah Kitchen. Soupah Kitchen is
not necessarily a mobile business, unlike Mama Foods. I now have a shop (this
one) and people come here to buy.
So what’s Soupah
Kitchen basically about?
Well, my
greater vision for this company is to give a new look to the food industry in
open convenience. I’m basically
passionate about providing food to professional women who have less time to
cook.
You don’t
spend much time cooking when you buy from Soupah Kitchen because our foods are
all half cooked, so you save time, energy, and money. Our pepper is ground and
parboiled, meats are parboiled too, Vegetables have been chopped and steamed,
and then we sell food ingredients too, plus other services. We run a system
here, and everything is timed precisely.
As a matter
of fact, the name Soupah Kitchen was gotten from home. My siblings would, in a
funny way, say Hahh! when they taste my soup. So we developed Soup…ahhh!
For me, I
prefer the production line. My plan is not just to be the middle processor or
retailer in this business; I actually want to have farms and then produce much
healthy food. I plan franchising the business too.
How do you manage this
business with studies in a school like this (U.I)?
It’s not
been too easy. The major thing is that I understand myself, and I’ve learnt to
manage myself in respect to time. It’s been challenging, but it’s been possible
too. I don’t do the normal girlish stuffs. I don’t chit chat or do unprofitable
things. I believe that there’s nothing that can’t be achieved. I know Medical
and Law students who handle bigger businesses than mine.
What’s the worth of
your business, currently?
#300,000
plus!
Really? Did all the
money come from Mama Foods?
Not at all.
While Soupah Kitchen was conceived, I was saving aggressively. I had to do
sales for Etisalat during my holiday, I did some text book editing, I applied
as an usher at some events, just to raise money.
A major
character of an entrepreneur is discipline. While I was saving, I didn’t buy
any single thing for luxury. My only belt got cut and I didn’t take from the
money to fix it or buy another one. I’m used to changing my tooth brush every 3
months, but through that period, I used a single brush. It wasn’t that I didn’t
want to spend from the money, I only nurtured the fear that I may not meet my
target if I spent from the money.
Any exciting and
embarrassing periods?
Well for
me, I’ve discovered that every day here is always exciting. I’m always excited
to see students, my colleagues, bring 10 to 15 students to my shop very often. They don't window shop, they always buy, and they admire what I do.
Many people
always say that I’m quite old school because I don’t use the Blackberry or
trend in the latest fashion, but I’m just sure of one thing: The ‘pingers’ of
today will bring their CV’s to my office tomorrow. I'm focused on reaching my goal and adding value to lives and to the economy of this country.
Embarrassing
as it may seem my last accident, to me, was just another avenue to become enlarged.
I was making pepper for sale when the pipe running through my gas cylinder
began to lick. It resulted in a terrible inferno that put all these scars on me and I
was admitted at the UCH for a while.
My business still ran during that period
because I have two workers, but I demanded that they stopped afterwards.
My parents
and siblings have been very supportive. In fact, they prepared the first set of
foods for sale when we re-opened. Now, I’m back, bigger and better.
Any advise for students who intend to go into business like you?
I believe Passion, Poise and Prayer are key if you ever want to venture into anything meaningful. They have been major ingredients to whom I am today, and they will take anyone to any length that they desire to reach. Nothing less.