21 Businesses You Can Start With 10k Or Less In Nigeria

Do you really want to know some businesses you can start with as little as 10k or less? Worry no more, I’ll give you a list of 21 ideas.

These business concepts are remunerative and can make anyone live a comfortable life. Unfortunately,  a lot of them are not well explored.

With the high unemployment rate in African countries, many live without any means of income. It is so bad that a lot of individuals are left roaming the streets without even a shelter.

The good news – no matter how bad a situation is, there is always a way out

Yes! you can live a quality life without having to wait for a state or federal government job. You do not have to be extremely wealthy to set up a business and if you know what you’re doing; you’ll be generating enough funds and may even help others.

This article aims to give you insights into how you can start making your own money even with your little capital. The business ideas listed here would give you an idea of how to start something with as little as 10k.

1. Freelance writing business

Freelance writing is the kind of creative writing you do to get paid. Writers do the required writing for clients and publishing companies through blog content, sales letter, copywriting, product reviews and descriptions, articles, etc.

You don’t even need capital to start. All you need is a laptop or smartphone and your innate writing skills. Just download the WPS app on your android phone, look for writing gigs online and start writing to earn.

You can start the freelancing business right from your home and begin to make your cool cash. If you already have some writing skills, you can join this writing team and begin to earn ASAP.

2. Digital Marketing

To be very honest, the digital marketing business is only for the serious-minded. You can start this business and make a million in a week if you are the type that means business.

I have seen a 23-year-old build his own house from digital marketing. Another friend made 2 million in 1 week and another made 4 million in 6 months. And yes, they all earned their income legitimately without stress. All you have to do is learn these skills that are in high demand and get paid handsomely for using them.

The good news is, the largest growing affiliate company in Africa called Learnoflix is teaching people like you how to start earning with 14 globally-proven digital skills in 30 days through a 30 days Challenge. 😀

I was part of the challenge and I have been earning by using the skills I am talking about. If you want to be part of the challenge, you can contact me before the opportunity closes or go ahead to sign up yourself.

To know what skills I am talking about, kindly watch the video below. Please don’t bother to watch it at all if you know you won’t watch it to the end 😎 . That is why I already said the digital marketing space is for serious online entrepreneurs who are ready to gain financial freedom, not peanuts.

3. Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate Marketing is one of the easiest online businesses out there. There are a couple of affiliate marketing businesses in Nigeria right now such as Expertnaire, Learnoflix, and 7DC.

They all pay huge commissions to their affiliates for every sale made. However, the most affordable one to join right now is 7DC. Besides being affordable, you can earn in 7 different ways on the platform. 

As soon as you join, you will be given every training you need to be a successful 7DC affiliate. Ask me for more details or know more about 7DC here.

4. Fastfood business

This is an evergreen business for every season. It’s always in demand.

People need food to survive! No matter how laborious or robust an economy is, one thing people will never do without is food. This is a business that, if you run well, will make you wealthy.

It’s very easy to win loyal customers. As long as your food is delicious and nutritious, customers will always return. If you can get a decent location, acquire the proper skills and personnel, you’ll be able to run a successful food business.

I know of a girl in the United Nations agency who runs this business. She provides food at conferences, seminars, and banks’ Annual General Meetings. Today, she can boast of a car and a house.

There’s an online community specially created for you to get all the motivation and vibes you need to succeed as a student.

You want to join this great community of students from all around the world?

Click here 

5. Social media marketing

A couple of years back, social media modified the concept of selling. Social media promotion is a medium for corporations or brands to socialize with customers.

This could be done on a large website like Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, or Twitter. It can also be done on smaller sites that are designed for communities. Social media is just like a really terrific hall where individuals mingle with their families, friends or create new ones.

Likewise, customers need to interact with things that are attention-grabbing and relevant to them. Therefore, brands wouldn’t mind employing you to help increase their customer base by relating with potential customers who might have questions, suggestions, complaints, or those who prefer to contact the brand via online conversations.

You could start by sending emails to specific companies saying you want to be their social media marketer. Ensure you support your request with some records to prove that you will be valuable to the company. If you can pass this stage, all you need to start is marketing knowledge, internet subscription, and consistency.

Companies wouldn’t mind paying you a continuous amount as a social media marketer to ensure you keep building their brand and further convert social media visitors to product buyers. 

57 Profitable Businesses You Can Start With 50K or Less

6. Dropshipping

How Drop Shopping Works (Source: www.enuotek.com)

Dropshipping offers a chain management methodology whereby the distributor doesn’t keep merchandise in stock but transfers to the customer directly. He does this by sending the cargo details to the manufacturer, another distributor, or a middleman, who then ships the products to the client.

As it is practiced in the retail business, profit is gotten from the difference between the wholesale and retail value. However, some drop shippers earn an agreed share of the sales made by the middleman.

To start this business, all you need is to save for a while (you may choose to automate savings using PiggyVest) and then decide what you want to sell.

Choose a platform on which you want to sell it such as Shopify or other online stores. That’s all.

With dropshipping, you don’t even have to buy or touch the product upfront. The customers order and get the product directly from your online store.

7. Mini importation

This business refers to a business during which you purchase merchandise from abroad (Europe, Asia, America, etc) at wholesale costs and sell it within your area for profit. Ensure it is a product that is in high demand in your area.

The difference between mini importation and dropshipping is that mini-importation requires you to buy products from Chinese sites like Alibaba,  1688, or rz-sourcing send them to Nigeria (or anywhere you’re located)

Before or when the products get to you, start promoting them using adverts and make sales. Believe me, many Nigerians are making money from this business every day.

Read 11 secrets of mini importation in Nigeria

8. Small Scale Agriculture Business

This business includes the breeding, production, and distribution of crops, farm machinery processing, seed supply, marketing, and promoting retail sales.

Around 2016, I met a girl named Veronica from Imo state who was into this small-scale agricultural business. She lost her parent around 2014 and since then, started a small farm in her backyard. In a nutshell, she is a successful farmer with one of the biggest farms in the whole of Imo state, a car, and a duplex.

Hey, you don’t need a huge area and a large quantity of cash to get into the agriculture business. If you have a home, you can still plant some crops in small or vertical containers to get the most out of your area or find a little planting area around you. Whether or not you reside within the town or country, you can take the harvest or produce for sale in the markets.


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9. Fish Farming

Fish farming is gradually changing into one of the profitable businesses in Africa. As a result, a decent variety of individuals are venturing into the business like never before. Fish farming not only allows you to rear fishes for others, but you will also be the chief supplier of the fishes in your soup for the whole year!

It involves building ponds, tap or concrete lakes, fertilizing the lake, putting the fingerlings in habitable water, and feeding them until they’re mature enough for selling. Catfish farming is the most common fish farming in Nigeria.

You can start this business on a small scale with just 10k by setting up your own fish pond using a 1000 liters open plastic container.

Read: Types of business events you should attend

piggyvest

10. Small chops sales

Small chops business, no doubt, is among one of the fast-rising businesses in Nigeria turning out in every corner. This is often because it’s become an irresistible menu choice at events and it’s not stressful to make compared to cookery. 

Most people confuse making pastries with making small chops. No, they’re not the same. You may be smart at creating pastries and different edibles and sulk at creating little chops. Small chops, also referred to as finger foods, are served as facet dishes at parties.

However, in recent times, people and corporations currently get them organized in reception or workplace, either for celebration or personal consumption. The demand for this convenient and stress-free service has become one of the most lucrative and cheapest businesses you can venture into.

This reminds me of a lady in her mid-20s who came to me for business advice years back, small chops business was what I advised her to venture into, and also gave her #7000 after I discovered the skill in her.

A few months ago, I met her, and no one needed to tell me that she could now fend for herself without having to beg her neighbours for food and cloth.

11. Blogging

Blogging is one of the oldest varieties of Social Media. Basically, it’s a web journal or diary that represents your whole business.

With about 10,000 naira, you can start a blog that will be read by thousands of people in and outside Nigeria. All you need is to pay for your hosting and domain to a Nigerian hosting company and design your blog yourself or get someone to do that without making a design mistake.

Blogging improves your brand awareness, search ranking and web traffic amongst other things.

You only get to renew your fees once a year and every other thing you’ll be needing will be provided by free plugins. You can start as soon as possible by reaching out to your hosting company by clicking the image below.

Also, knowing the right tricks to attract traffic can be hugely beneficial, and launch you to the top of Google search results in a way that will really help your profitability.

However, you’ve got to commit a great deal of your time to promote your business, merchandise, and services. You also need to publish content consistently on your blog to ensure you rank well and become visible to paid opportunities. If you need professional writers to supply content to your blog at an affordable rate, you can contact Explicit Success Writers.

12. Laundry services

These days, the laundry business is getting close to being a lucrative business in Nigeria. What is great about this business is the fact that anybody can start such an enterprise with no cash or skill.

Laundry service is as simple as drying and ironing items of clothing. Laundry services are provided to people or enterprises and given the fact that Nigeria is a highly populated country, it provides immense opportunities.

There are loads of individuals who are too inundated by work that they’ll not have the time to clean their clothes. Therefore, a lot of individuals have done rather well to provide this service to help such. You can start by telling your neighbours and friends to tell their neighbours about your laundry business.

If you’re seriously determined, the market is sufficiently big enough to be successful in it.  It will even be an excellent likelihood to start out a business with no cash as long as you have your iron, washing machine, and a bit of starch. As you get bigger, you can begin to brand and package yourself more.

13. Social media management

This business differs from the social media marketing business. Social media management is the process of creating, scheduling, and analyzing content posted on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

To be a unique social media manager, you should utilize your potentials by reaching out to individuals and firms to help them reach new customers online & enhance their reputations.

You could use free versions of scheduling platforms like Hootsuite and tailwind to get started. Once you start managing a few social media accounts, this will open you up to other opportunities of building your billion-dollar dream and making it come true.

Getting employed by firms and doing the job extremely well will make you surpass expectations. I’m a living testimony of this business, I started this business by managing social media accounts for my friends, family and also by learning how social media works from interacting with strangers to creating post content.

14. Sales of past questions (on-campus)

You might be wondering why the sales of past questions on campus should be part of this list. The truth is many students find it hard to get past questions within the school environment and the sale of these past questions will be a great idea for an entrepreneur like you. I want to assume you already have a small printer so all you’ll be needing are some A4 papers and toners.

As you grow and get popular, you can start saving to buy a photocopy machine, scanner, laminator, and other necessary assets. You could make photocopies of handouts, exams past questions, and other materials as time goes on.

I could remember back then when I just got admission into the university, it was quite hard to get practice questions and I was ready to spend any amount on one. After my first year, I kept my past questions and also got questions from my seniors and made photocopies not for sale though.

However, when I saw the turn-up of freshers/newbies and some ‘staylites’ for the past questions I turned it into a business and discovered it was a very lucrative business. Wherever you are, when you provide a solution to any problem, you begin to earn. 

15. Public Speaking

Public speaking is an all-time career. If you are going to be an executive in any setting, you would have to be comfortable with public speaking.

This can also be a very lucrative business, as long as you are very good at it.

It requires low or no capital to start. With just your name and a bit of self-promotion, you could eventually represent important people in an event.

Starting a public-speaking business offers you the chance to meet potential clients and societal elites. Gradually, you will establish standards and set your own fees.

16. Mobile car wash

Car washing can be incredibly lucrative but tends to require a lot of startup capital and permits to start. However, a mobile car wash business is far easier to start up and can be very profitable.

All you need is some savings for detergents and brushes. This can easily be acquired when you automate your savings with Piggyvest.

A mobile car wash business eliminates the necessity for a physical business location, thus limiting start-up prices significantly. However, the process of starting can be intimidating.

You’ll perform jobs in client garages, driveways, etc. with cheap supplies and tools and grow as needs arise. 

Though it requires little or no capital to start a mobile car wash business, it takes a while to create trust and credibility.

17. Tutoring business

Tutoring makes you teach your area of expertise for money. This business can be very lucrative especially in the city centre as long as you know what you are doing.

Venturing into this business requires little or no capital, maybe transport fares to move around to teach and tell other people what you do on the internet or physically. The beautiful thing is tutoring can be done in your house or client’s house. You can also market yourself online on a number of platforms such as Tuteria.

I know a guy named Kunle who started this business by tutoring street kids after their normal classes for free. When their parents noticed the changes in their children they employed him as a permanent tutor. He was able to sponsor his education and also started his private school from the business.

18. Home cleaning

This is actually the business of cleaning houses which includes dusting, vacuuming, sweeping, and mopping the floors of rooms.

Depending on the agreement you have with your clients, it may involve cleaning the bathrooms, mirrors, toilets, showers, kitchen. Wiping appliances, counters, sinks, and cabinet doors could be cleaned too.

You can set this up with less than 10k. All you need is transport fares to move around and relatively affordable cleaning materials. You could build a team and get bigger contracts from companies, event centres and religious gatherings.

Read Commonly outsourced jobs you might need

19. Event planning

Event Planning entails coordinating meetings and conventions, fixing appointments with speakers. Additionally, it also involves deciding a location and arranging printed materials as well as audio-visual equipment.

You can begin by setting the objectives the sponsoring organization wants to achieve, choosing speakers and entertainment, strategizing on how to get prospective attendees to attend.

You should also invite business owners that may want to advertise their products and services in the most effective way.

Event planning could be an extremely profitable business that needs dedication, exceptional client service skills, and effective marketing. It requires almost no capital to start.

20. Catering service

According to Wikipedia, Catering is the business of providing food service. This could happen remotely or at sites such as a hotel, hospital, aircraft, cruise ship, park, studio, or entertainment site.

This implies that you need to have enough experience in the aspect of cooking.

A very lucrative business requiring a small amount or less than 10k to rent cooking tools for the event. There are many well-established cooks on Instagram and you can get inspiration from them. 

21. Poultry business

Poultry farming is on the list because of its variety of raising numerous domestic birds like chicken, turkey, ducks, geese, etc. for eggs or meat.

As a popular business in Africa, it is fast becoming an essential part of farming. In fact, it is one of the profitable agricultural business ideas.

It also doesn’t need immense capital to start out and can be done in the comfort of your home if you’ve got enough space to accommodate the number of birds you simply want. All you need to give them is adequate care. Start small with less than 10000 naira and gradually grow.

Do you have any interest yet? If yes, Pick the business that best suits your personality and environment, then start counting your cash. 😉 

These articles might be useful to you too

Everything you should know to start a blog in Nigeria: Step by step

9 steps to create a website for your business for free

29 ways to grow your small business with marketing

15 team members your business needs to be successful

15 useful tips for setting up the business premises of your startup

20 benefits of social media for your business

19 support services your business might need

19 key elements of a successful business

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Post Author: Abimbola Joseph

Abimbola Joseph is a creative content developer who derives pleasure in encouraging individuals to be the best they can be in all relevant facets of life. She believes that we all have a better version of ourselves which can be leveraged to impact others and make the world a better place. Connect with me on Instagram @abimbolajoe.

68 Replies to “21 Businesses You Can Start With 10k Or Less In Nigeria”

    1. I want to start mini importation but when I tried ordering from 1688 there was no place for me to put my address to ship to Nigeria is there a way you can put me through

      1. Hi Tohbey, If you do not have a verified Alipay account, the only option for you is finding agents that can help you place orders on your behalf.

        What you need is to provide them with the links of the products you wish to buy. They may charge per link or generally what is up to them.

          1. It really help
            Especially tutoring reason being I love teaching kids..
            Kudos Dear

      1. This is really really so awesome and inspiring

        I don’t just know which to Start with or even pick

      1. You talk about poultry. Can 10k start poultry.

        As a man can I start puff puff business or what do you think

        1. Yes, you can start it on a small scale first (the small ones) and expand as time goes on. Mature female poultry birds would also reproduce more chicks with time.
          Yes, you can start puff puff business if you have a good location where you think the demand for it will be high.

          1. Wow this is so inspiring.. I needed this 👏thanks for the knowledge!

  1. hi… pls i need more help tips on blogging, public speaking and freelance writing…thanks

        1. Hi Mixwealth, I would have to come up with a detailed writeup that explains that since almost everyone is interested in that. In the meantime, you can reach me on Instagram @abimbolajoe to get some answers.

      1. Hi
        Pls I really want to do the cryptocurency Pls how legit is it and are u into cryptocurency?

        1. Yes, cryptocurrency is a legit business but you have to learn the dynamics from those who know how it works. I am not into cryptocurrency at the moment.

  2. Really inspiring
    i do have the zeal to blog but i don’t really know how to start, please i need more enlightenment thanks

    1. How do I get to Register for the Social Media Marketing I’m interested.
      And do you have any Firm you can introduce me to work with?

  3. Wow,
    Thank so much for this.

    I want to start an event planning service, but still stuck in some aspect of it, i think i need more enlightment, though i have done a lot of research, but maybe you will help with some sites that will help get much more experience.
    Thank you.

  4. I love this blog! I’m starting my own business and I’m using some of the tips in this post. Thanks for the inspiration!

    1. Hello Ayomide, I am sorry I cannot recommend an affiliate marketer who can teach you, but if you’re interested in the business of content writing, I can teach you that.

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