BUSINESS IDEA – BORN OUT OF SAD EVENT I WITNESSED AT UYO AIRPORT
Waiting at the Uyo airport to catch my flight 2 days ago (on Sunday 1st Sep 2024), I witnessed a sad drama where a girl who works at a restaurant in the airport was screaming and crying because her Madam slapped her severally.
She ran into the customer sitting area from the kitchen so she could get help.
According to her, Madam walked into the shop, complained about some things and started slapping and beating her.
It was a usual occurrence but she had probably gotten to her limit of endurance.
She was crying and screaming that she wants to quit and should be paid her 30k salary which was due since 22nd and was owed.
I couldn’t imagine that someone who works at the airport from 5am till late is paid 30k, and even under such terrible working conditions.
She works everyday without any off days and the Madam said the same thing. Madam explained it is because most days, they have low sales and they just sit down doing nothing.
Passengers gathered to resolve the issue, but I honestly don’t see that Madam paying her the salary, especially since she had no remorse of beating her.
I went into the kitchen to speak with the Madam for a long time. She explained how there was a lot of undone work but I also explained that she had no moral justification to hit someone.
The cook who was also fired a few hours before, under the same conditions came back to join the girl in the fight.
Both of them kept screaming about the very inhuman working conditions with low pay and a lot of physical assault.
The matter escalated as the Madam didn’t want to pay the girl and cook off despite all the interventions from Passengers.
Passengers later left to catch our flight.
I wonder what will happen to the girl and the cook.
I hope the airport authorities intervene and take this seriously.
No one should physically hit another because of work.
Instead, fire the person if she is under-performing.
Anyways, that’s when my mind started thinking of this idea.
A large space where women come to weave or braid their hair, while there is a training school that produces the workers.
I can imagine a place with 30 or more workers, all weaving and braiding and earning on each job while the owner focuses on intensive marketing and customer satisfaction.
A weaving and braiding centre with affordable pricing model.
Women are now wearing 2 major hair style categories:
1. Wigs (with natural weaved hair underneath)
2. Weaved hair (with attachment or without)
It’s a low price, high volume model.
Publish price list.
Be aggressive in marketing.
The workers earn for each hair they weave.
Pay them weekly.
The workers should be uniformed and well trained.
Maybe orange Tshirts on black skirts/pants.
A decent manager who welcomes every customer and listens to your desired hair style, then allocates a worker to make your hair.
Excellent and innovative weaving/braiding styles.
Excellent customer service.
Happy employees who are paid weekly and receive needed training.
Beautiful culture of customer communication and decent billing.
Automated receipts issues to customers
A bill can look like this:
Lossening of hair – 1000 Naira
Deep conditioning and massage – 3000 Naira
Washing and Hand drying – 3000 Naira
Natural weaving with no attachment – 3000 Naira
2 Egg roll – 1000 Naira
Free drink (for services above 10k)
Keep running costs very low using effective management.
Just be that school/centre where everyday, no less than 30 to 50 women come to be served.
I believe the girls will earn more than 30k and they will be so happy to be a part of something so beautiful.
Ofcourse no business is without risks.
There is risk of customers collecting the girls numbers and asking them to come and braid at home for cheaper fees.
That’s why you should create amazing customer retention strategies that makes them prefer to come to the salon.
No business is without risks.
Risks doesn’t mean we should do the business.
I just look forward to a future where no one has to earn 30k in a month, an amount that can only buy one-third of a bag of rice.
Let me stop here.
