How to Start a Company in Nigeria

Do you wish to learn how to start a company in Nigeria? If yes, this guide will help you to get started. The billionaire Aliko Dangote started his company little by little until he grew it into a multi-billionaire dollar conglomerates? You too can do it.

I must tell you that you have found the right piece as I will reveal to you step-by-step guide on how to start a company in Nigeria and subsequently grow it into the business of your dreams.

In this piece, with my vast wealth of experience in research, I will explain to you the right things you need to start a company in Nigeria with using hands-on technique which has worked in the past.

Every company that wants to really survive in Nigeria must employ all the steps I will be discussing in this piece. This is because I have sought the opinions of many successful Nigerian entrepreneurs and they seem to converge on these points.

That is why you need  to thoroughly go through this piece on how to start a company in Nigeria. Read on as I take you through the well-explained steps.

Follow the following steps: 

Step 1 How to Start a Company in Nigeria: Draw a plan and area of interest

If you wish to start a company in Nigeria, you must define your goals and area of interest as well as draw a plan for it.

Your goals are those things you wish to achieve through your company. We all know that every company is set up to affect lives and make money, but you must clearly define how you wish to achieve that.

Furthermore, you have to define your area of interest. You may want to go into manufacturing, consultancy, repairs, marketing and sales, construction, training, advertisement, etc.

All of these areas are a possibility. Also, determine the type of company (Limited Liability Company, Unlimited Liability Company, Public Liability Company, etc.).

Well, this is the first step you must take if you are thinking of how to start a company in Nigeria. Now, when you have this defined, you take the next step.

Read: 10 Avoidable Mistakes Entrepreneurs Make and Solutions to Them

Step 2 How to Start a Company in Nigeria: Source fund for your company

Money is the driving force behind every company as the initial capital mapped out for your company determines its startup capacity.

This will also determine your initial staff strength, office or plant, quality of your goods and services. There are many sources of ffundand they include personal savings, friends, family, NGOs, philanthropists, government funds, relatives, commercial banks, partnership, and any other feasible source you can think of.

Even though money is important, but do not allow finance weigh you down when you are pondering on how to start a company in Nigeria as you can explore all the means I mentioned above as sources to fund your company with.

Remember that people have started a company with just fifty thousand naira in Nigeria, but today they are multi-millionaires. Therefore, if you are thinking of how to start a company in Nigeria, you must have a source of fund to run most of the things you need to start up the company.

See: 10 Sources of Capital and Funds for your Business in Nigeria

Step 3 How to Start a Company in Nigeria: Acquire or rent an office or factory

Now, the amount you have for starting your company will determine whether you will rent a building, acquire existing one or build from the scratch.

If you do not have enough money to fund your company with, then you must have to rent a building, an existing plant on lease or an office complex. The decision of the nature of place to use is entirely yours, but there are also factors you have to consider before acquiring or building your company in an area.

These factors you have to consider are nearness to raw materials (for manufacturing industry), local laws, stable power, proximity of market, availability of labour (manpower), security, accessible roads, availability of suppliers and other services (if applicable), weather conditions, and other conditions that matter to you.

Therefore, to start a company in Nigeria it is important that you have to acquire or rent the location for your company so you must always think of it as important when thinking about how to start a company in Nigeria.

Step 4 How to Start a Company in Nigeria: Choose a corporate name and register it at Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC).

This is one of the fundamental steps you must take if you wish to start a company in Nigeria so that your company is fully recognized by Nigerian laws.

The Corporate Affairs Commissions (CAC) acts give the CAC exclusive reserve to register all companies in Nigeria. CAC acts say that you must register your business under it before it is recognized by Nigerian government as being different from you, the owner.

Note that registering your company will cost you some money. Visit https://infoguidenigeria.com/register-incorporate-business/ to learn more about all the requirements for registering and incorporating companies with CAC in Nigeria.

Also, understand that choosing the right names for your company immediately sends the right signal to people as to what your company is into. Alternatively, you can use dissimilar names, so it depends on you.

Note also that you will need to go to CAC with at least two names as the company name you wish to give your company might have already been taken by someone else, and no two companies are allowed to bear the same name unless it is owned by the same person(s).

Choosing the right name and registering it at CAC is a very important step of how to start a company in Nigeria.

Step 5 How to Start a Company in Nigeria: Employ experienced and trusted hands

This is another step important in your quest to start a company in Nigeria. People run processes; formulate programs, procedures and policies, and practically do everything that is done in companies.

Be sure to get experts to drive your company in the right direction. Employ experienced and trusted engineers, I.T. experts, accountants, cashiers, lawyers, mechanics, marketers, carpenters, cleaners, etc.

The right people will in the long run determine the dimension your company will assume. Therefore, using the right people to drive the company is key.

If you are not so sure about who will do a great job, you can engage the services of recruitment agencies to get the best hands that you require to run the company. This way you will have the best hands to kick off your company with.

Remember the people you employ depends largely on how much you have projected for staff salaries. Therefore, people are important consideration you have to take into account if you are thinking of how to start a company in Nigeria.

Step 6 How to Start a Company in Nigeria: Design a website for your company

Let us get something straight here. Over 45% of Nigerians go on to the Internet to search for information they care about. This is figure amounts to over 60 million people.

Now understand that your company having a website means you want to expand its horizons. For you to compete in today’s market place, you must own a website where people all over the world can easily access your company and know more about it.

Remember that it is just about designing a website but designing a rich website. Depending on your financially capacity, you should get experts to design it for you so that those who access it will immediately get the right impression about your company.

In 21st Century, the Internet is the easiest way to access and get information, therefore, the Internet presents an opportunity where you can seamlessly and effortlessly market your products and services all over the world.

More importantly, your company’s website should also have links to popular social media like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. on it. Thus, people who prefer to navigate on those platforms can equally access your page and learn you’re your about your company.

This is the final step you will take when you are thinking about how to start a company in Nigeria.
In conclusion, Nigeria is a virgin land and a lot of opportunities abound in it. This piece on how to start a company in Nigeria is not just for Nigerians but for everyone who is thinking about doing this whether based in Nigeria or not.

There are many untapped potentials in Nigeria and the population of over 160 million people creates a market for your goods and services no matter what the line of business you intend to go into.

I strongly believe that the steps I have discussed in this piece are very explicit. To start a company in Nigeria, all you need do is to clearly follow the steps I have discussed above.

Remember also to thoroughly consider the factors I listed that affect your choice of locating your company in Nigeria; they all affect your company in immeasurable ways.

I believe that the steps discussed in this piece are all you need to start a business in Nigeria, and what matters more is step 2. Yes, money goes a long way towards determining the decisions you make towards your company as regards location, staff and general start up and running costs.

Read: How You can Start Your Own Giant Telecommunication Business In Nigeria Now

But do not let money weigh you down when you are thinking about how to start a company in Nigeria as so many people have started in little ways and today they are counting in millions. Go and start a company in Nigeria now. Success!

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