Before I start my story, let me tell you that I am not a rich person. I am a young girl living in Kaduna with my elder sister. After my secondary school, I stayed at home for two years because my parents did not have money to send me to university. I was just in the house pressing phone and sleeping.
One day, I was in our area and I saw a woman doing POS business. Many people were on queue to withdraw money. There was no bank near our area. The closest bank is very far and people don't like to go there because of transport money and long queue. I stood there and watched her for almost one hour. In that one hour, more than 30 people came to withdraw or transfer. I calculated in my mind. If she charges 100 naira per transaction, that means in one hour she made 3000 naira. I was shocked.
That night I could not sleep. I told my sister that I want to do POS business. She laughed at me and said where will you get money to start. I told her I have 20,000 naira that I saved from my small tailoring work that I was doing for neighbors.
The next day, I went to meet the POS woman. I greeted her and told her I want to learn. She was very kind. She told me everything. She said I need to open a merchant account with a bank like Moniepoint, Opay or Palmpay. She advised me to use Moniepoint because their network is good and their charges are low.
I used my 20,000 naira to register. I paid 10,000 naira for the POS machine from Moniepoint on promo, and the remaining 10,000 naira I used as my starting capital for people to withdraw. It was very small but I had to start like that.
I started my business under a big umbrella in front of our house. The first day was very slow. Only 5 people came. I made only 500 naira profit. I was discouraged. I called the POS woman and she told me not to worry. She said business needs patience. She said I should be greeting people, be smiling, and be honest.
I continued. The second week, people started knowing me. I wake up very early, 6am, and start. I close by 8pm. I make sure I always have cash. When my cash finishes, I quickly go to the bank or meet a fuel station attendant to collect cash. I also make sure my network is always good.
After one month, I counted my profit. I made 28,000 naira profit after removing all expenses. I was very happy. That was more than what some people earn in government work. I saved the money.
After three months, I was able to buy a small table and chair and also increase my capital to 100,000 naira. Now people trust me more because they know I always have cash. Some market women even keep their money with me.
But POS business also has challenges. Sometimes network will fail when someone wants to withdraw. Some customers will be shouting at you. Sometimes you will give someone extra money by mistake. One day I gave a man extra 5,000 naira and he did not come back. I cried that day but I learned to always double check.
Also, security is a problem. You must be careful because bad boys know POS people have cash. I make sure I close early and I don't keep too much cash at night.
Now, after 8 months, I have saved 250,000 naira from my profit. I am planning to use it to pay for my JAMB and go to school next year, and still keep my business.
My advice to any young person reading this, especially girls staying at home doing nothing, you don't need millions to start. You can start with 20k, 30k, or 50k. POS, recharge card, selling pure water, anything. Just start small. Don't be ashamed to start under umbrella like me. Everybody starts from somewhere.
The most important things in POS business are honesty, good customer service, always having cash, and being patient. If you have those, you will grow.
Thank you for reading my long story. I hope it inspires someone.
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