Food Entrepreneur - Women of Rubies

In Inspiration February 2, 2023 By Women of Rubies

Abimbola Oki: I’m Teaching Women How To Turn Their Passion For Cooking Into Business

There is a popular saying that the easiest way to a man’s heart is through food; a well prepared meal could make an African man give you a blank cheque some say.

While cooking shouldn’t define the worth of a woman, It is always an addition when a woman knows her way in the kitchen, Abimbola Oki is helping many women , not only navigate cooking tasty meals, but educating them on how to turn their passion to business.

The founder of D’Potters Catering Services which started in 2014, is one of the most sought after caterers in Nigeria at the moment, catering for several top events, and using social media to also showcase the beauty of cooking.

Abimbola Oki decided to turn her passion into a corporate business by aiming to provide healthy and delicious meals for busy people, thus satisfy their cravings at affordable prices with poise for prompt delivery . Her mission is to provide amazing food experience for everyone irrespective of their status, tribe, pocket and taste

The caterer whose passion started from supporting family members during festivities, share her Inspiring journey with Esther Ijewere in this exclusive interview.

Childhood Influence

My mum used to sell bread even though I wasn’t involved as per last born child. My sister had a restaurant back then too and I helped to run it. I never thought of running a food business then, but I was able to learn one or two things from that experience.

Inspiration Behind D’potters Catering

I love hosting people in my house especially during festive seasons. I noticed my guests enjoyed my cooking a lot so much that they give me money. I was still job hunting as at 2013. My husband and I had a discussion about starting a food business and that was how I started fully in 2014.

The Journey So Far

Oh it’s been bitter and sweet with so many challenges but absolutely worth it. God’s grace has brought us this far and everything is going just as I wanted it.

D’potters Catering Academy And It’s Impact

Alot of people know how to cook but they don’t know about the food business. I started D’potters Catering School to educate women not just about learning how to cook but also learning about the business aspect. It has been an amazing journey so far. The first set of students graduated last month and some of them already started their businesses and doing well.

Educational Background, And My Aspiration As A Woman

I attended Lagos Anglican Girls Secondary School and graduated from University of Lagos with a BSc in Estate management. My aspiration as a woman is to see my fellow women doing well for themselves.

Challenges Of Being A Vendor

Trust-Getting customers to trust me, because we usually do payment before delivery. We have been able to build their trust.

Delivery- Getting a trusted delivery company to deliver food on time. There are many cases of food getting sour by the time clients gets it. We have been able get our personal bikes.
Staffing

Nuggets On How To Be A Sought- After Food Vendor

We have been consistent with our principles which is to give customers value for their money

We treat our customers fairly and we don’t hesitate to apologize when things go wrong

We try to exceed their expectations ,this makes them happy to refer us to their friends and families

Why I Helped Families In Need During The Pandemic With Food

I always love to put smiles on people’s faces whether I know them or not. I have been through the very hard times too so I understand their situation, this is my inspiration.

Do you think the food industry is favourable enough to entrepreneurs

Yes the food industry is favorable to entrepreneurs because many Nigerians are now looking for different ways to ease their stress. Nobody wants to get home from work by 8pm after a bad traffic and start cooking. They prefer to buy food.

Other services I offer In My company

Apart from cooking bespoke food for people, we do trainings how to cook different dishes and we also teach them the business aspect. We also rent out our cooking studio to content creators, food bloggers, food brands etc Our outdoor cooking area is also available for rent to caterers who need a convenient cooking space for their large cooking

Relocating To A New Space

I have always dreamt of moving to a bigger space but I was scared of the unknown. We were given a quit notice at the former space because they did not want us to use the space for cooking again. We had no choice but to get a new space and we got exactly what we wanted. It was not easy getting space for cooking, or took us a year to get this new place. We did some renovations and it came out perfect. All Glory to God!

How My Work Inspire Other Women

I get a lot of messages from women that I inspired them. I have been able to prove to women that being consistent and dedicated to one’s business will pay off and they can make it in any business they decide to venture into.

3 women who inspire me and why

Racheal Ray did not have a formal culinary education just like me but she is now one of the most famous female chefs in the world.
Siba Mtongana has been able to combine her life as a family-oriented woman and work as a celebrity chef and presenter with the support of her husband.
Ngozi Okonjo Iweala has given us a representation of global and national power. She reminds me that I can achieve anything I want to.

Being a Woman of Rubies

I have been able to teach other women how to start their businesses (not necessarily food) and also sell on social media platforms.

In Food August 5, 2021 By Women of Rubies

Aasiyah Ravate, A Mozambican Food Entrepreneur And Founder Of Home Cooking With Love

For a lot of people, cooking is a chore while for others, it is their love language and a thoughtful expression of their love. For Mozambican entrepreneur, Aasiyah Ravate, cooking is a passion turned business venture. Founder of Home Cooking With Love, every meal she makes are a delicious hit made with lots of love for her customers.

Aasiyah Ravate is a 22-year-old CEO and founder of Home Cooking With Love. She is also a year 4 student of dentistry. She has a great passion for cooking, and during the pandemic she reinvented herself and created her business, Home Cooking With Love. During the past six months, she has been serving her snacks to agencies, banks, and thousands of people in her city.

Aasiyah’s business celebrates the concept of homemade food, which makes people travel for flavors without leaving home and without needing a visa. Her business specializes in traditional Indian food, Italian food, fast food and desserts.

Aasiyah was inspired to start her business by her mother who was both a fighter and a warrior and taught her to fight for her dreams. “I have a passion for cooking. I am still struggling to achieve my dream of opening a restaurant. I was also inspired to start my business to help my mother because she was always a mother and father to me and my brother, she deserves the best.”

On her entrepreneurial journey, Aasiyah confirms that at first it was very difficult, because she had no idea how to own and run a business. Her mother helped her invest, and with time she gained experience. These experiences have in the long run, taught her to be a better entrepreneur.

Her biggest satisfaction as a food entrepreneur is her client’s happiness when they taste her food, and the thoughtful feedback she gets from her customers.

She advises young women to trust in themselves, be faithful, believe in their dreams, and fight for them no matter your age. In her words, “be strong and fight for your business, do not let anyone put you down. Believe in your potential and in the potential of your company. Hear the voice of your heart and make your way from it. I am sure that in the future, you will have the professional satisfaction you deserve!”

In Food July 15, 2021 By Women of Rubies

Meet Vhongani Shumba, South African Entrepreneur Building A Flavoured Butter Brand

For all those cooks who want to bring extra flavour into their meals, mi butter, founded by entrepreneur Vhongani Shumba in South Africa has the answer in a jar.

Vhongani is the founder and CEO of mi butter SA, founded in 2016, a proudly local woman-led company introducing the market to the world of flavoured butters.

She is a marketing and brand manager by day and small business developer by night. Vhongani has brought her company to life by her own hard work and tenacity, and today is involved in the daily operations of the business, providing strategic insights and ensuring that the quality of mi butter meets customers’ expectations.

MI Butter blends butter with herbs, spices, extra virgin oil, roasted garlic and other flavourings.

One of the great things about the butters is that they make your meal preparation easier. The seasoning has already been done for you; it’s all in the butter so you can keep your dishes simple.

Vhongani uses glass bottles that are recyclable to package the products as her own way of assisting in the reduction of SA’s carbon footprint. For every empty mi butter bottle returned, their customers get R2.00 off their next purchase of mi butter.

For Vhongani who describes herself as “an entrepreneur at heart”, her greatest satisfaction as an entrepreneur doesn’t come from the profits generated from the sales of her products but rather, the joy that comes from doing that which makes her happy and doesn’t feel like work. That’s how she explains her feelings when she is blending her butters.

This is why she advises all intending women entrepreneurs to find that which makes them happy because they will sleep less, earn less money, and work very hard. She implores them to have deep love for whatever business they decide to do.

In Interviews&profile January 30, 2017 By Editor

#POFILE | MEET ADA OSAKWE , THE CREATIVE FOOD ENTREPRENEUR

Ada Osakwe is a creative food entrepreneur and passionate agribusiness advocate. As the Founder and Chief Executive of Agrolay Ventures, an investment firm targeting early-stage agribusinesses, Ada seeks to redefine the food production and retail opportunity across Africa’s large consumer markets. Agrolay invests in food start-ups as well as incubates its own new agri-ventures. The company currently has four investments including The Nuli Juice Company, Nuli Foods, Nature’s Bounty and African Courier Express. For three years, on a secondment from the Tony Elumelu Foundation, Ada served as the Senior Investment Adviser to Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, the former Nigerian Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development. There, she advised the Minister on agriculture investment-related activities involving private sector investors and led investment policy and financing initiatives including the development and launch of the Fund for Agricultural Financing in Nigeria (FAFIN).

Prior to her role at the Ministry, Osakwe was a Vice-President at Kuramo Capital Management in New York, where she led the firm’s Private Equity investments. For four years, she was a Senior Investment Officer at the African Development Bank Group (AfDB), based in Tunisia. She began her career as an Analyst in the Debt Capital Markets team of BNP Paribas investment bank, London.

Ada received her MBA from the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, holds an MSc in Economics and Finance from the University of Warwick, U.K. and a BSc in Economics (First Class Honours) from the University of Hull, U.K.

Osakwe is a Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum and on the 2016 Choiseul 100 Africa list, a unique ranking of young African economic leaders. She received the ‘Achiever in Agriculture’ Award in 2015 and in 2014, was named one of Forbes 20 Youngest Power Women in Africa.

A lover of nature and food production, she likes to describe herself as a creative food entrepreneur.