Useful tips to start a successfull chin chin business

If you have made up your mind to produce and sell chin-chin in Nigeria, you may be standing on the verge of an extremely successful business. You simply need to know how to organize everything properly and receive the incomes that you surely deserve.

Should I really start chin chin business?

Chin-chin is one of the most popular and loved Nigerian snacks. Children and adults adore it, so you will always have customers. What’s more, if you are located in a place where tourists are frequent guests, you can expect incomes from the ones who desire to try the snack.

Many Nigerians are used to eating chin-chin since their childhood. Numerous parents give this snack to their children as a lunch while they are at school. If you give your business more effort, you can freely expect to sell your chin-chin abroad if it’s properly packed. There are special international standards the package should meet to be allowed in other countries but it’s not hard to follow them if you want to receive profit.

Even though chin-chin production and retail may be quite a busy niche, you can find a place for yourself and produce something that people would love to buy with the help of an attractive brand, proper marketing, and even a lovely packing.

Well, if you are interested whether or not you should start selling chin-chin, the answer is yes. You definitely should try because it’s not the most difficult business but the profit it brings can be quite significant. Now, let’s try to find out what you need to start a really successful business.

What do I need to produce and sell chin chin in Nigeria?

A starting capital

Every business begins with some money. The starting capital determines the size of your business at its very beginning. Of course, later you will be able to grow but at the very beginning, you need to know what you must purchase to start and which expenses are ahead.

The smallest chin-chin business can be started with as much as N50,000. However, this means that you will most likely have to do everything manually. There are special machines that help cut chin-chin and quicken the process but having such a machine requires some bigger investments.

If you are able to raise enough money to purchase such machine from the very start, you may be sure that the purchase will be 100% cost-effective.

Premises

It makes sense to locate the room where you are going to make chin-chin somewhere near a marketplace or a big store. Namely, if you create something like a workshop where you will cook and sell your chin-chin at the same time, it’s great if it’s close to a marketplace.

First of all, you will have a full access to all the necessary products to make your chin-chin and, in addition, plenty of people coming to the marketplace and leaving it or the ones who are selling their goods, too, will be a perfect clientele for the first time. Later, you may be able to open several workshops and cover a bigger area in your vicinity.

Clients

Your clients are your target. Depending on the location where you decide to sell your chin-chin, you may plan your branding and packing. If you are located close to a school and expect children to be your main clients, you need to produce something that’s attractive to them, and so on.

Besides that, you can try to sell your products at different exhibitions, other cultural events, next to cinemas, and so on. In such a case, you need to establish business contacts with owners or organizers of such events and places. Such contacts can be mutually profitable for both sides.

Equipment

Chin-chin production requires no special equipment, except, perhaps, the special machine that has already been mentioned above. This machine can cut the dough as you like and quicken the process but even if you don’t have it, you can handle the business easily.

The other tools that you may need involve a regular stove that heats up the oil for deep frying and a spoon that helps dip the dough into the boiling oil. These items are far from being expensive and you can easily afford to have them from the very start of your business.

Nigerian chin chin best recipe

Now, when you know well what it takes to start a business from the technical point of view, you need some additional knowledge how to make chin chin. Though it’s quite simple, you will require a number of ingredients:

Flour
Salt
Sugar
Margarine
Vegetable plant oil
Eggs
Nutmeg
Baking powder

The process of frying is as follows:

Sift the flour into a clean bowl and add the baking powder, salt, and sugar
Add some clean water, margarine, and nutmeg
Blend the mass thoroughly so there are no lumps
Add eggs and more water to give the dough the desirable thickness
Stretch over a smooth surface with the help of a roller
Cut into pieces of any shape that you like
Let the oil boil in a cooking pot
Pour the pieces into the oil and cook until they are golden or slightly brown
Take the cooked pieces out, place them into a sift and let them cool down

It’s ready and can be sold!

How to sell chin chin successfully?

Wrapping is one of the key points in the successful retail of handmade goods. Pack your product in clean wrapping paper, plastic bags or glass jars. However, it’s important to choose one or two packing methods and stick to them. For instance, big portions are sold in glass jars while smaller ones are wrapped in paper, etc.

Remember about labels with your trademark. The name of your enterprise can influence its success a lot. Try to choose an attractive and smart one that will draw the attention of customers. Later, when you have loyal clients, they will recommend you to others but at the very start, you need to attract attention.

Finally, you need to advertise your business and your products as much as you can. Let your friends be your promotional agents and don’t forget about establishing business contacts. You can try to reach out to some shops or cafes in your vicinity and offer your chin-chin.

Sometimes, such snacks are bought in big quantities for parties like birthdays or so. Maybe, it makes sense to advertise yourself on the Internet, on Facebook pages related to the organization and catering of festivities. This is how you can embrace a big number of people at once.

If you manage to establish such contacts, make sure you are never out of the product because it’s very important to provide your partners with their orders on time. You need to be ready for working overtime, especially when your business is still young and you have no other workers or helpers.

It’s also important not to let the quality drop. No matter how much you need to make or how quickly. Your product must be of the same quality. Reputation is something you build up through a lot of time and ruin in one day. Preserve your business, always keep the quality high.

Have the best of luck in your endeavor!