How three university graduates opened a waakye business
- Three university graduates ditched their day jobs to start a waakye business
- They started off by selling to their office colleagues
- Their business now boasts of 11 employees
Three Ghanaian university graduates with the ambition to do their own thing came together and started a waakye selling business after they graduated from university, and finished their national service requirements.
Anyone who has ever ventured out to begin their own business will attest to the feelings of anxiety that sometimes come with the decision to become an entrepreneur, especially those who rely on the relative security of corporate work gained with the help of a good university degree.
This being said, the likes of Priscilla Apeadu, Jeffrey Osei-KariKari, and Jeffrey Sarpong Kwakwa, all three of whom are graduates of Ghana's tertiary schools, were able to overcome their anxiety, quit their jobs and start their own business.
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According to an article published by thebftonlinecom, Jeffrey Kwakwa, born in Koforudua and a natural resource management degree holder, had always wanted to start his own business, but didn't quite know what that business would be.
He discussed his ideas with Priscilla Apeadu, a graduate of the University of Ghana with a bachelors degree in political science and a contract staff member at Bank of Africa. Both agreed to give the idea some thought.
One day, Priscilla was confronted with the situation in the office that ended up inspiring their now fledgling business... the frustrating lunchtime wait in queues at the waakye seller.
“I like waakye very much, but the problem I had was that I always had to join a long queue where I bought it. My colleagues in the office also asked me to buy some for them, and so I was always late back to the office. Then I thought about it: why not be a regular supplier instead?” She said.
She said she discussed the idea with her superiors at work, and her boss encouraged her to give the idea a try. After she discussed the idea with Jeffrey Kwakwa, the two decided to give it a shot.
Although both graduate's family initially expressed concerns about the two's decision to become waakye sellers, they eventually agreed to the idea after some persuasion.
Jeffrey and Priscilla first tried out their big idea by contracting a waakye seller to supply them with the food, and supplied their office and others nearby with the help of rented motorbikes.
After selling this way for a few months, the two decided to quit their jobs to pursue their entrepreneurial ambitions full on.
At this point,Jeffrey Osei-Karikari, a linguistics and economics degree holder from the University of Ghana and Priscilla's colleague at the time, also quit and joined the business.
The three pooled their resources and started Atomic Waakye, and bought a motorbike for delivery purposes to start off. Now their business boasts of 11 employees including cooks, sales agents, bikers, and customer service personnel.
Though they have had to deal with some challenges like finance, and family support, the business is still growing steadily.
Education has also benefited the three, that their previous experiences taught them to concentrate on the customer.
In a word of advice for the youth, the three urged young people never to give no matter how difficult the situation becomes.
“You can do anything once you set your mind to it; never give up, because once you give up you’ve killed your dream," Priscilla said.
Also checkout a video of Ebony's mother giving a heartfelt tribute at the late dancehall artiste's funeral, which was held at the forecourt of State House, and was attended by a plethora of Ghanaian celebrities:
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Source: YEN.com.gh
