Young entrepreneurs in the South East of
Nigeria have started applauding Life Continental Lager Beer, a brand from the
stable of Nigerian Breweries Plc for the maiden edition of its innovative
entrepreneurial talent hunt radio show. The entrepreneurs said the initiative
has addressed the challenges hitherto militating against their smooth
operations.
The entrepreneurs, whose applications for
lifeline have been considered outstanding so far in the scheme primarily meant
for young tycoons of South-East extraction, described the talent hunt
competition as a relief that has assisted them in realising their dreams.
Life Continental Lager Beer initiated the N12.5
million worth talent enhancement and empowerment competition to encourage and
enhance the dreams of budding and talented businessmen and women within the
South-East.
One of the past winners in the scheme, Mr.
Madubuike Maxwell, whose application focused on Palm Produce, disclosed that
the grant given to him for winning in the radio show has taken his business to
higher level.
Maxwell said the fund came at the right time
when his business was in dire need of vital implements. According to him,
personal attempts to source for grants from other sources failed because of the
prevailing lull in the nation’s economy. Again, he said banks in the country
are not helping promoters of the SMEs as they are always asking for collaterals
that are not available.
His words: “My business has moved to another
level following the grant given to me by Life Continental Beer. In fact, we
have employed more hands for the business and in two years’ time, we should be
using foreign machines instead of the local machines we currently deploy.”
Similarly, Mr. Benjamim Ukwuora, an indigene of
Anambra State who is into mechanical engineering, expressed gratitude to Life
Continental Beer for the entrepreneurial talent hunt scheme, which he said gave
him a ray of hope that Nigeria will be better very soon.
Ukwuora, whose application focused on
transparent bar soap production, disclosed that he was building a machine for
his production plant when the Life Continental Lager Beer talent hunt project
was flagged to him. He disclosed that for two years, he had been struggling to
raise money to complete construction of that machine.
He said: “For two years now, I have been
yearning for finance to inject into my business and to complete the building of
a machine for the enterprise. That was not forthcoming until I got the grant
from Life Beer. I am very happy and grateful because the money will surely fast
track our process. Before now, we could not meet up with demand because we did
not have enough tools, but by the time we finish with the machine we are
building, there would be improvement.”
For Stella Okechukwu, who is a Hair Dressing Salon
Operator from Abia State, her immediate plan is to open her personal hair
salon. She said in the past six years, she had been working with another
stylist who paid her peanuts. Okechukwu said: “I have been into this business
six years now. I have been under somebody throughout the period because I could
not open my own shop. I could not afford the monthly rent, but with this grant
from Life Continental Beer, I intend to open my own saloon.”
No comments:
Post a Comment