What Is The Best Business To Start With 50k In Nigeria? – Piggyvest Blog (2024)

With ₦50,000, you can dine solo in a fancy restaurant, buy unholy amounts of suya, jazz up your wardrobe or save towards a goal using the PiggyVest Target Savings feature. If none of those are satisfactory, perhaps you can start a profitable venture with that sum? But what is the best business to start with 50k? Well, we have a few ideas!

The best businesses to start with 50k in Nigeria include a noodle shop, a soap production outfit, a perfume oil store, a thrift shop, a cook-on-demand business, a cleaning business, an online tutoring establishment, a crochet business and a POS business. You can also try selling smoked fish, snacks, underwear or drinks like zobo.

In this article, we’ll show why these businesses are such excellent ideas and share some tips on getting started. Let’s jump right in!

Best business to start with 50k in Nigeria: 12 ideas

₦50,000 might not seem like a lot of money if you’re starting a business, but it can be the beginning of a very lucrative empire if you pick the right venture and run it well.

We’re here to help you choose the right business. After all, at PiggyVest, we’re as interested in giving you the right tips to thrive as we are about helping you securely save and invest your funds.

Here are 12 of the best businesses to start with ₦50,000 in Nigeria:

1. Noodle stand business
2. Soap production business
3. Perfume oil sales
4. Online thrift shop
5. Cook-on-demand business
6. Cleaning business
7. Crochet business
8. Point of sale (POS) business
9. Drinks (like zobo) business
10. Smoked fish business
11. Snacks business
12. Underwear business

Let’s explore them!

1. Noodle stand business

A noodle stand business might not seem like a lot, but it’s one of the best ways to make the most of ₦50,000. As a noodle-cooking entrepreneur, you’ll make delicious and incredible noodle-based meals for different customers — including students and workers — while making a tidy profit.

There’s no exact guide to starting this business, but we recommend finding a busy street corner in your neighbourhood and beginning with a few cartons of noodles. You can even erect your noodle stand in front of your apartment or hostel if you can get paying clients.

2. Soap production business

From dishwashing liquids to detergents and bar soaps, your soap production business can satisfy many customers. With ₦50,000, you can go from idea to profitable business in little to no time.

Of course, the hardest part of the business might be the manufacturing process, especially if you’ve never made soap before. Fortunately, you’ll find many handy resources online — like this soap-making guide for beginners.

3. Perfume oil sales

Need a lucrative business to invest 50k in? Try perfume oils! Depending on where you get your products, you can buy the oils for as low as ₦500 per bottle and sell at a profit margin that would depend on your target market.

Use social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook to market your products to a larger audience or use the storefront feature on Pocket by PiggyVest to simplify the shopping experience for your customers.

4. Online thrift shop

Okrika businesses have always been popular and profitable in Nigeria. That popularity is why you (or an older relative) have heard of “bend-down-select”. Today, thanks to the internet and social media, such businesses can reach more people without their owners worrying about finding the perfect spot for a physical store.

It is now possible to use almost every kobo you have on your goods. You can then use social media platforms like WhatsApp, Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) to find buyers.

We recommend you invest in quality photos and a great model. Otherwise, a mannequin will do just fine. You can also be your own model.

5. Cook-on-demand business

This business is similar to the noodle stand venture. However, in this scenario, you offer your services to select individuals at a time. You can cook for individuals, small groups or big events.

50k is enough to get this venture off the ground, and you should get your profits almost immediately. Perhaps the most important thing that would impact on the success of this business is your cooking skills. You can take time, watch many YouTube videos, and practise your jollof rice and pounded yam. After that, you can be on your way to becoming a successful food entrepreneur like Tobi Smith.

6. Cleaning business

In our article on the cost of avoiding chores, we found that many Nigerians would pay good money to avoid doing tasks like cooking, laundry and general cleaning. With ₦50,000 or less, you can fill that gap and offer your services to these individuals.

Fortunately, a cleaning business is pretty cheap to start and run. Just focus on getting customers (via the internet or word-of-mouth marketing). You might also need to buy cleaning supplies like detergent and bleach.

7. Crochet business

Ore Akinde is one of Nigeria’s most popular and successful crochet business owners. Still, even she started small — taking out ₦3,000 out of her ₦5,000 weekly student allowance to buy crochet materials for her growing business.

With ₦50k, you can invest in yarns, pins and other materials needed to create your crochet products. Afterwards, you can invest in great photos (just like Ore did!) and use the power of social media to grow your business.

8. Point of sale (POS) business

Remember how the cash scarcity debacle of early 2023 turned POS agents into overnight celebrities? Well, you can still get in on the action! With ₦50k, you can get a point-of-sale device (like the Patronize Pay Point device that allows you to confirm transactions and get a printed receipt in less than 3 seconds) and become a POS operator.

If you pick a great location (like a car park), you can make excellent daily income and see great profit in little time.

9. Zobo sales

You can also learn to make zobo and sell your products to customers in your area and on the internet. With ₦50k, you can get the ingredients, work on your business’s online presence and connect with suppliers for branded bottles and stickers — just like Onyinye Udeh did in 2019.

If your product is good, your customer base should grow quickly, and your zobo business could become a zobo empire.

10. Smoked fish business

Food has always been a good business in Nigeria — whether you’re cooking meals or growing crops. There’s also another profitable third thing: food processing. With ₦50,000, you can buy fresh fish, smoke them and sell them to interested customers.

11. Snacks business

We have said that food businesses are profitable? Well, here’s another way to get into the industry. Like Uche Ukonu who started SmallChops.ng with his friends in 2015, you too can create an empire!

Of course, with ₦50k, you’ll need to start small. We recommend starting with one or two snacks and expanding your offering as the profits pour in.

12. Underwear business

You can also start an underwear business with ₦50,000 and sell to customers online or in person. We recommend using the internet for your business since you’ll be able to reach a wider audience and save money on rent and other expenses that accompany physical ventures.

Conclusion

Like Paul Iruene, who went from being a student entrepreneur to launching Food Court, you too can build a successful business in Nigeria today. The ideas we shared in this article are fantastic. They are also pretty easy to start — even if you’ve never owned a business before.