The large population and size of Nigeria is something that attracts investors and business executives to the country because it guarantees that even if a fraction of the population is interested in whatever they are selling or offering, that fraction could translate into several millions of people.
One of the most consumed products in Nigeria is alcohol. The availability of numerous brewing companies, each with tens of plants and thousands of depots confirm that there is a booming market for booze in Nigeria. The popular form of distribution however is via retailers and pubs otherwise known in Nigeria as beer parlors.
While hundreds of thousands of Nigerians throng the beer parlors nightly, many individuals who like to drink are not comfortable with making public appearances — hence the need for a more discrete booze delivery services.
This is where Drinks.ng comes in.
Established by Lanre Akinlagun, a graduate of marketing and multimedia at the London Guildhall University, the platform allows its visitors to discretely order all kinds of drinks – both alcoholic and non-alcoholic, popular energy drinks and choice spirits.
With his 9-year experience working in digital marketing at various international establishments, the marketing and multimedia expert said he was exposed to lots of technology. But that wasn’t enough.
It took the plight of his friend who had issues with ordering drinks at his wedding for Lanre to realize that there is a great challenge in Nigeria’s drinks supply chain – something that is also an opportunity for a smart businessman who has no experience in selling drinks; the only link he had then with drinks was as a consumer buying his own drinks, and maybe tipping the barman.
AFKInsider: How did a marketing and multimedia expert develop interest in selling drinks online in Nigeria?
Akinlagun: During the marriage ceremony of a friend, he had explained to me the difficulties faced when buying drinks in Nigeria for his wedding. His story planted the seed and I decided to explore further.
I found out that there is a growing trend and need for high-end alcoholic drinks. Likewise there is a growing number of expatriates and middle classes; furthermore, wine consumption was also rapidly rising.
Along with this is the question of convenience. Unfortunately, buying drinks on a large to medium scale is a very cumbersome experience and many have reiterated this message to me. To get the best deal you will have to either deal with a third party who would most likely sell you fake drinks. You may also try your luck with the jostling world of Oke-Arin main market.
AFKInsider: Basically, what is the business proposition for your company?
Akinlagun: Drinks.ng is simply an easy and reliable service where you get the drink supplies you want. The drinks we stock are of top quality and are sold at a good price, without any fuss, hassle or hustle.
AFKInsider: What is your target market and Drinks.ng-friendly demography?
Akinlagun: We are looking at people within the age of 21 and 40. At the moment we are looking at semi-professionals as well as everyday workers. Everybody drinks, that’s the beauty of our business.
AFKInsider: What forms of licensing did you obtain before commencing operations?
Akinlagun: We are retailers. Normally you are required to register with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and we did our tax registration. That’s all at the moment.
AFKInsider: Is there some form of restriction on your platform to prevent the underage from buying tequilas?
Akinlagun: We don’t do that on the site.
AFKInsider: Why?
Akinlagun: Because there is no way you can do that on the site. Lots of people don’t register with their correct information. Even if you use Facebook as a benchmark, you will need about 5 minutes on Facebook. But essentially for services on delivery, we don’t deal with people who are underage.
AFKInsider: What other forms of restrictions are affecting your business?
Akinlagun: We can’t and we won’t sell anything that is not approved by the National Agency for Food, Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC). We are restricted by logistics at the minute so we only operate in Lagos.
AFKInsider: What are the challenges you encounter in your activities?
Akinlagun: Starting a new business in any market is challenging, even more so within Nigeria. We face various obstacles from logistics, operations and staffing. The good thing however is in knowing there is a market out there for us to reach, people screaming for our service, it’s just legit for us to continue expanding our reach.
AFKInsider: How are you expanding your consumer base?
Akinlagun: At the moment, a lot of our business had been word of mouth; on top of that we do a little bit of Facebook advertising when we have promotions with some other companies. We rely on SEO and other strategies. For the direct sales we rely on word of mouth at the moment and some Facebook ads. Natural Search, SEO is a key focus for us, advertising is great but SEO is free; just a little time and effort will get us where we want to be from the SEM aspect.
AFKInsider: Many believe you only sell alcoholic drinks, how true is that?
Akinlagun: That is a very huge misconception which people have. We are not solely focused on alcoholic drinks. As a matter of fact, we sell everything including the famous Fan milk and water. We deal in all forms of drinks and soon we shall include ice into our service to complete the circle.
AFKInsider: On your home page, alcoholic drinks are enjoying more publicity. Why is this so?
Akinlagun: It is the most natural pairing for drinks, and is high in demand. Well the clubs are full so maybe you are right, but there is an increase in orders for tequila.
AFKInsider: Let’s say I’ve had a long day and just want to get some drinks from you, how do I go about it?
Akinlagun: Just visit our website, pick what you want and pay. Or you can pay on delivery. Or if you want, we also have a phone number. If you call us, you will tell us what you want, we will process the order and we will deliver to you within 24 hours.
AFKInsider: In spite of the phenomenal success of e-commerce in Nigeria, a large proportion of Nigerians remain skeptic about online transactions. How do you convince this category of individuals that your platform is entirely legit?
Akinlagun: You can pay via bank transfer or you can pay via card on Interswitch — or you can pay on delivery with our POS.
AFKInsider: Your business concept, though simple, is quite unique in Nigeria and there hasn’t been any major antecedent you could have learned your business model from. What was on your mind at the outset of the now successful venture?
Akinlagun: Well, I was confident. I said to myself that I’d be trying my best and with the level of drink consumption in Nigeria, I already knew the market was there.
Lagos has more than 18 million people; Nigeria has about 170 million – all with a huge appetite for all forms of drinks. I know Drinks.ng will have a hard task just getting to them within the current climate because we also battle with issues such as bad roads, horrendous traffic jams, increasing number of accidents and the occasional petroleum scarcity.
AFKInsider: How would you assess your success so far, and view on the journey ahead?
Akinlagun: As far as success goes, we still have a long way to go and we’ll be making every effort to bring drinks.ng to every corner of Nigeria. We want to bring the best prices to the whole of Nigeria and not just Lagos state. Once we’ve successfully done that, who knows, maybe we will then expand across West Africa.
AFKInsider: It would be appropriate to end this interview by asking what your favorite drink is…
Akinlagun: That is a hard one. I love Fanta and water; but on a night out, I would like brandy.