Many of the ingredients that Nigerians use for cooking are not produced or packaged in Nigeria. Kasope Ladipo-Ajai was inspired by what she recognized as a gap in the market to create a Nigerian business packaging and merchandising food that can compete with international brands.

She hopes her company, OmoAlata, will change the way Nigerians shop for food. OmoAlata is a food manufacturing brand that produces and sells locally processed produce and indigenous soups and spices. Its products include parboiled pepper and stew mixes. Its flagship OmoAlata pepper mix is a mix of fresh organic peppers, tomatoes, and onions. The ingredients for the products come from local farmers.

Ladipo-Ajai, 31, co-founded the company in October 2011 and opened in 2012.

Since OmoAlata does not use food coloring or artificial preservatives, the products must be refrigerated. OmoAlata products are packaged in plastic bags. The company, which employs seven workers, has a factory in Egbeda, Lagos.

OmoAlata founder and Vice President of Operations Kasope Ladipo-Ajai talked to AFKInsider about why she started her business.

AFKInsider: Who or what inspired you to do this work?

Kasope Ladipo-Ajai: Seeing Nigerian food ingredients in ethnic stores in the U.K. and U.S. with “made in Ghana” labels ignited a longing to change the narrative (that) “nothing good comes out of Naija.”

AFKInsider: Can you explain the OmoAlata name?

Kasope Ladipo-Ajai: We wanted to have a name and identity that is indigenous, relatable and conscious. OmoAlata literally means “child of a pepper seller.” It is also used to describe a local street hawker.

AFKInsider: Your company is known for it’s natural products. Why did you go this route?

Kasope Ladipo-Ajai: OmoAlata uses only farm-fresh peppers in preparation of all its pepper mix. Our pepper mix does not contain any food coloring or artificial preservatives and it is packed under hygienic conditions with a strict quality assurance policy.

Clean and natural eating has been recognized as the best way to stay healthy. We not only want to create a convenience brand, we are also very concerned with the quality of meals made from our products, especially with the erratic electricity supply in Nigeria.

AFKInsider: What makes your company unique?

Kasope Ladipo-Ajai: The task of cooking a Nigerian meal (which is usually soup- and stew-based with pepper, tomatoes, and onions) from scratch can be quite cumbersome. As owners of the OmoAlata brand, our global experiences from other more advanced societies have exposed us to the possibilities of easy and convenient home meal cooking.

We also realized that in the stores in these societies, many of the ingredients for cooking Nigerian meals are not produced or packaged from Nigeria. This awakened an urge to project Nigeria as a nation that can produce food merchandise which can compete in the international market space.

AFKInsider: Why is it needed?

Kasope Ladipo-Ajai: There is a huge gap in food packaging and storage in Nigeria. We have identified this as the key hole our range of products will fill, further driving a sustainable and healthy local food packaging culture in the country.

In the last year, there has been a huge spotlight on food processing in Nigeria. Tomatoes are of major interest due to their large consumption rate by Nigerians.

AFKInsider: What sets OmoAlata apart from competition?

Kasope Ladipo-Ajai: We stand apart because OmoAlata’s pepper mix is a ready-to-use mix of the three key ingredients required for Nigerian soups or stews (pepper, tomatoes and onions) and gives the same taste of home-cooked stews made from freshly blended ingredients. OmoAlata is made without preservatives or additives and it is 100 percent organic. OmoAlata has also been parboiled hence gives a shorter cooking time while preserving its freshness. Since inception, we have witnessed that the OmoAlata brand identity is unforgettable and relatable to the consumers and we intend to use this mindshare to create a formidable brand. OmoAlata is not about just one product. We are an innovative brand looking to make Nigerian cooking easier, enjoyable and popular, and we will keep introducing different ranges of products and services, staying one step ahead of competition.

AFKInsider: What are some of your upcoming plans?

Kasope Ladipo-Ajai: We plan to retail in all the big chains in Nigeria such as Shoprite, Spar, Justrite, Goodies and CityDia. We also envision being in foreign chain stores in the U.S., U.K. and Europe such as Walmart, Aldi, Asda, Kroger and Dia.

AFKInsider: What are some negatives of doing business in Nigeria?

Kasope Ladipo-Ajai: Apart from the typical new business teething problems such as building a smooth supply chain and limited funds, there are some peculiar issues centered around infrastructure and policies such as difficult NAFDAC (National Agency for Food Drug Administration and Control, a regulatory body in Nigeria) certification, erratic electricity supply, and bad roads affecting transportation of raw materials from the farms.

AFKInsider: What are positives of being a business owner in Nigeria?

Kasope Ladipo-Ajai: It’s common knowledge that the Nigerian economy is just developing the processed and packaged foods sector. This means that OmoAlata is playing in the “blue ocean” market thus giving us the first mover’s advantage. (The blue ocean market is the simultaneous pursuit of differentiation and low cost to open up a new market space and create new demand.)

AFKInsider: What has been your most important business lesson?

Kasope Ladipo-Ajai: Your product or service is not tailored for you. Learn to listen to your consumers or users to create a product to suit their needs.

AFKInsider: What do you enjoy the most about being an entrepreneur?

Kasope Ladipo-Ajai: The opportunity to be creative and think outside the box. I am not restricted by any formal institutions or workplace bureaucracies or politics.