Am yet to meet anyone who does not love or at least like suya, no matter where in the world. I had the chance to interview Taiwo Ajala of The SuyaSpot Canada and here is what he had to share.
· Tell us a little about yourself, your background
o I was born in Ontario Canada, spent most of my youth in Kaduna & Jos, returned to Canada about 15 years ago and have been shuttling between both countries ever since. I am also an accounting graduate.
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| Taiwo with Ghanian actor MAJID |
· What is your business and what do you do?
o I am a restaurateur, I operate the suya spot
· When did you start the business?
o About six years ago
· How did you get the idea for this?
o My brothers and I used to make suya for friends at parties, it sort of spawned into a business idea.
· What was the biggest startup challenges?
o Leaving my field to startup a company independent of any support system I was used to.
· How did you overcome those challenges?
o My brothers were a great source of support. Couldn’t have done it without them
· What makes your business unique, what’s your “unique selling point”?
o I realized that food didn’t need to just nourish the body, it represents the culture of its people. My business seeks to bring people together through the enjoyment of a good meal
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Sauce Kid at The Suya Spot
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| The Suya Spot at an outdoor event |
· In one word, characterize your life as an entrepreneur.
o Awesome
· What do you feel is the major difference between entrepreneurs and those who work for someone else?
o Entrepreneurs are driven to accomplish more than they can typically handle
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What do you think it takes to become a successful entrepreneur?
o Guts. There are a lot of challenges along the way, it doesn’t take much to become discouraged.
· What would you say are the top three skills needed to be a successful entrepreneur?
o You have to be adaptable, market conditions do change quickly
o You have to be a realist, when things aren’t going as planned, it probably wont get better – make changes (adapt)
o Lucky. Its strange to say that but there are a lot of smart people out there, the next big idea might come when you’re in the shower and not sifting through years of research papers
· What would you say to someone considering starting their own business?
o Don’t be afraid to fail. It is more common to fail than to succeed so you wont be the first or last. Win or loose the experience will teach you a lot about yourself. That lesson will make you good at it.
· What was your greatest fear in starting a business? How did you manage that fear?
o The fear of failure.
· What would say are the five key elements for starting and running a successful business?
o Know what you’re getting into.
o Be prepared for anything
o You’ll need great support
o Know your customer
o Have an exit strategy
· What inspires you?
o Success
· If you were conducting this interview, what question would you ask yourself, and what would the answer be?
o Q: Of all the business choices you’ve made, which single ones were the riskiest, best and worst?
o Riskiest would be the massive advertising campaign we went on even before we secured a location for the store
o Best was the result of that campaign. People were curious about a store that had a secret location. When the next round of ads came in people sure wanted to check it out. Turnout on opening day set the tone for the rest of the years
o Worst would have to be that we didn’t get that creative when we moved to a larger location. We lost a significant customer base for a while, most found us eventually.
Thanks for your time :)
You can check out their website at:
The SuyaSpot
FaceBook:
The Suya Spot
