She was not a pap lover until she had the one her aunt made many years ago which was a combination of grains. She enjoyed it and thought to herself “what if this turns into a business and packaged properly for the sake of people like her who wouldn’t be caught taking the regular pap”… the rest as they say is history or shall I say led to the birth of Ogicentric. I bet you can’t wait to meet Adejumoke Solomon, the founder of Ogicentric in this exclusive interview.
With no further ado, let’s meet the Founder of Ogicentric for an exclusive interview.
Please Introduce yourself and your background.
Hi! I’m Adejumoke Solomon, a beautiful mum of three, graduate of Lagos State University, a freelance real estate consultant and an entrepreneur.
Tell us about your work. How did your company start?
I produce, package and sell our locally made pudding called pap/ogi/koko/akamu. I was not a pap lover until I had the one my aunt made many years ago which was a combination of grains. I enjoyed it and thought to myself ” what if I turn this into business for the sake of people like me who wouldn’t be caught taking the regular pap”..since then we have been able to create more variants to suit everyone.
How did you come about the name and what does it mean?
Well, it’s our desire to meet everyone halfway, a central point where both the young,old and even the aged on special diet can benefit from our range of products hence the name Ogicentric. “Ogi” is pap.
What is your niche and how did you know it was a market to get into?
The desire to see people eat healthy meals that are natural and affordable, also, we do our best to disabuse minds of the nation that pap is for the poor and sickly.
Where do you get inspiration for your products?
I get my inspiration from the needs of people God opens my eyes to, especially adults and the aging on special diet.
Can you remember one of the first products you made?
Ogicentric Big4. The fact that it was warmly accepted.
What are some of the challenges you face in your business?
Access to funds. We produce in batches and/as ordered due to poor power supply, because we are not 100% tech savvy, we appear inconsistent on our social media platforms as we are also unable to outsource social media personnel due to lack of funds.
Do you have any regrets about venturing into this business?
None whatsoever
What is your most popular product?
To what extent do you draw upon your Nigerian heritage for your work?
100% as all raw materials are locally sourced for
What are some of your short term and long term goals, both in your business and life in general?
Short term goal is to distribute consistently to major stores in Nigeria so our products can reach as many homes as possible and i would like to speak someday at the White House as ogicentric compliments the moimoi that made this milestone.
What would people be surprised to learn about you?
That I’m shy
What profession would you be in if you weren’t in this industry?
Media, most likely
If you could give one piece of advice to anyone who wants to start their own business in your industry, what would it be?
A lot of people make pap now, different variants and quite interesting ones but something singles you out and that is your target audience. Why are you venturing into this industry? Know your WHY, it keeps you going.
To connect with Ogicentric, you can follow and contact her via:
Instagram: ogicentric
WhatsApp: +234 803 444 4616
