Meet Orajiaka, 37, A Nigerian Who Built A $10 Million Toy Company

Paul Orajiaka, a 37 year-old Nigerian entrepreneur, is the
founder of Auldon Limited, a manufacturer of African-themed toys. Orajiaka
founded his company 17 years ago with less than $100 and today, it now has
annual revenues of more than $10 million.

Orajiaka’s story will make you marvel. From failing to
secure a US visa several times soon after he left secondary school in the quest
of seeking for greener pastures, from the shame he faced which made him leave
Benin for Lagos to start trading at Idumota with his in-law… His story is
touching… but then it has a happy ending.

Orajiaka recently spoke with Forbes, find the interview
after the cut. Don’t say it is too long oo, read, and be inspired. To have
millions in dollars is not beans ooo.

Auldon manufactures dolls and other toys which depict,
promote and teach Africa’s cultural heritage to , children. Orajiaka founded
the company 17 years ago with less than $100; it now has annual revenues of
more than $10 million.

Apart from Nigeria, Auldon’s toys are now sought after in
countries like South Africa, Ghana, Kenya, and some parts of Europe. Last year,
Auldon launched the Unity Girl Dolls, a set of multi-cultural dolls clad in the
traditional attires of Nigeria’s major ethnic groups. It has been a runaway
success and a tremendous hit among Nigerian parents and their daughters.

Orajiaka is currently studying for a Doctorate in Business
Administration [DBA] at Henley Business School of the University of Readin,
majoring in Entrepreneurship. Forbes recently had a chat with him where he recounted
his journey and spoke about his future plans.   

Why did you decide to venture into manufacturing
African-themed toys?

I grew up in Warri in Southern Nigeria, and I did my
secondary school education in Benin City. I recall that immediately after my
secondary school education at Igbinedion Secondary School, Benin City, my sole
ambition was to travel to the United States to seek the proverbial greener
pastures. I never exactly planned to venture into the toy business. I was 18 at
the time and determined to leave Nigeria at all costs. So, along with my
friends, I made countless unfruitful trips to the American embassy in pursuit
of an American visa. Eventually, all my friends were given visas, except me.

Naturally, I became dejected and ashamed. I had no clue as
to what my next line of action was going to be. So I decided to stay back in
Lagos and not return to my hometown where I would be mocked by my friends. You
see, a lot of shame was attached to my disappointment at that time, being the
only one out of all my friends who was denied an opportunity to go the U.S. So
I decided that the only way out for me was to stay back in Lagos and work with
my in-law in Idumota market and that is how that reluctant step taken out of
frustration ended up becoming my glorious journey to success and fulfillment.

Idumota is a very saturated business hub and it’s not
exactly the classiest place. Very few young men I know would like to start out
in a place like that? How demanding was it building a business from Idumota?

I look back now and smile because it was indeed a difficult
decision to make at that time. Idumota is largely congested and is a
hustle-driven environment. It wasn’t fun at all. I felt like a fish thrown into
a sea, filled with sharks and there I was trying hard not to be eaten up. All
these factors emboldened me to strive in making a mark.  With this in mind, I had no choice but to get
used to it.

Not long after settling in, the lid on my eyes were taken
off after I came across young men who were doing extremely well in their
different spheres of business.

Just before, I got too carried away I realized it was equally
imperative, that I go back to school and get educated. So while I was working
for my in-law, I enrolled as an accounting student at the University of Lagos
(UNILAG), after which I proceeded to getting a Masters in Business
Administration (MBA) from Lagos Business School, Pan-African University (PAN).
Expectedly, after graduating from school, I became better equipped for the
journey ahead, which saw me take the management and administration of my
business to a greater scale.

Today, I can confidently beat my chest and say, a humble
beginning which started about 17 years ago as a small venture, is now a leading
company, importing and supplying top quality range of educational toys to
wholesalers and retailers in Nigeria. 
Going back, 1997, when we started, our capital base was just $30, but as
at 2014, the company’s turnover has surged to over a $7 million. We have also
metamorphosed into a Limited Liability company, status, which we attained in
2002 employing well over 400 people, inclusive of direct and indirect.

Nigeria is not known to be a conducive environment that
enables small businesses to thrive. What gave you the drive to forge on amid
challenges you must have encountered, especially funding?

You are not far from the truth; I almost gave up because
initially, it was an uphill task building this business from scratch,
especially without funding from banks. It was near impossible to continue, but
my frustration and anger at

at the banking system coupled with lack of support, only
made me further persevere, be more passionate and determined to ensure that the
business grew. I tell you, it would be unfair to blame or criticize some
Nigerian entrepreneurs who fail to surmount the numerous challenges which
stifle their growth. That said, I have come to realize- despite the myriad of
challenges bedeviling them, which range from power, lack of funds, wickedly
high bank interest, lack of infrastructure e.t.c. An entrepreneur can still
attain success, if he/she can recapture the passion and emotions of its beginning
likewise inculcate same in its staff.

What led to the Unity Doll Project?

Over the years, my attention got drawn to the painful fact
that our cultural values is fast eroding, 
because most parents this days, shy away from teaching their children
about their culture but instead allow them imbibe foreign cultures which robs
them off their identity and very existence as  
Nigerians.

I was saddened to see that most toys in Nigeria have no
social and cultural relevance to children.

For me that was a vacuum, I needed to feel urgently, so I
swung into action in order to make that important change, and that change gave
birth to the Unity Girl Doll Project, a collection of 14-inch child
developmental dolls that represent Nigeria’s three major tribes – Hausa, Ibo
and Yoruba – delivering a social message to infants across the country and by
extension the world at large, enlightening them about the Nigerian culture,
allowing them have a sense of ownership early in life which puts them in good
stead to making a positive impact when they are grown.

For me my passion is educating them before time with
positive Nigerian values and that’s why all the dolls have contents which teach
them all the positive stories and values they need to inculcate as they grow.

With all the challenges threatening to tear us apart coupled
with the tribal sentiments causing division among us, we have asked ourselves
what will unify us as a country. Although we have diverse cultures, our
strength comes from our diversity that is why we did our research and decided
to inculcate in our infants the need to embrace their indigenous culture and
that of others early on. By so doing, it becomes easy to love others, because
the message that we are one is passed to them from the beginning, also we are
mindful of the fact that the girl child is a future mother, and would be home a
keeper someday that would keep the home and by extension the nation together.
So you would agree with me that it is only wise to give them the needed
positive start that would make them great mothers, with their very first doll.

We have created a doll that is bound to inculcate in them
the following, moral values, social values, social relevance and natural
uniqueness which distinguishes us from foreign cultures alien from ours.

The dolls come in 14-inch sizes and are dressed in local
attires likewise posses the following characters; Amaka (Ibo), Ronke (Yoruba)
and Aisha (Hausa). The three dolls contain booklets that tell you about the
rich culture, robust background, language and all other important detail of the
three main tribe; Hausa, Ibo and Yoruba. One other thing worthy of mentioning
is to present the Nigerian girl in looks peculiar to her, not the kind of looks
that do not really represent Africa. What we have done is to create dolls that
have relevance to us, look like us and portray our image in the right manner.

As it concerns the age bracket, we try to create a doll that
a child as young as one year can use. The dolls have other features that older
kids can use also. The Unity Doll also possesses beads, which children can
customise and wear on the dolls, or on themselves.  We tried to make the dolls fit for any young
girl to use so that at every stage of her life, she finds something relevant to
her age in the dolls. But our target, are children between the ages of 1- 10
years.

How well have Nigerians taken to the Unity Doll and how
strong are your distribution channels?

I am very pleased at the level of acceptance of these dolls
and our other toys all over the country which has been massive and this are
connected to the following reasons, namely; affordability, premium quality,
availability, uniqueness and most importantly the educative value the dolls offer.
So it is safe to say we are a market leader with strong prospect for increased
growth. Currently, we distribute to all leading retail outlets and supermarkets
across the country, namely Game, Shoprite, Spar, Next, Park n Shop Emab, and so
on, the list goes on. Our visibility level is very high and that’s because
there is a growing level of attachment between the dolls and our target market
which are the girl child ranging from age1 – 10 and their parents. Unity Dolls
has also started a fan club for the girl child where they can be groomed with
positive key values needed to grow, and it is open to all children who fall
within the stipulated age, 1-10. All they need do is register or have their
parents register for them to become members on Unitygirlfanclub.com website. We
also hope to increase distribution and presence over a period.

Teachers also appreciate it, for obvious reasons the
educational value it gives and the fact that children learn faster when they
are taught with fun things that easily captures their attention. That is why,
If you observe these days, most things in nature are replicated in toys.

For instance, when teaching a child about fruits say an
Apple, you show him a replica of that fruit, so he/ she can grasp easily, same
goes for animals, e.g.  Zebra, you must
show the child a zebra toy because children no longer go to Zoos to see
animals.  In the same vein, you find
children learning how to become engineers by dismantling and assembling toys.

That’s why I always appeal that parents buy educative toys
that possess good quality for their children. You need to be sure of the
quality. Toys should be safe   for
children to play with. We want to be sure that children play with toys that
have social relevance and not ones that teach violence. That is why if you go
around our shops, you will never find a gun toy in whatever form. We do not
even sell toys that have violent features. We ensure that our toys are 90 per
cent educative.  We deal more in educational
toys because we believe that aside being in business, we want to impact
positive values on our children.

Any plans for the future?

At the moment we are working very hard on a number of ideas
targeted at ensuring that Unity Dolls are present in every home in the country
two years from now; also Auldon is hoping to strategically set up offices and
retail outlets in the 36 states of the country most importantly satisfying our
ever increasing demand for the dolls. New educative features that would engage
and thrill children are also been conceptualized by our research team.

Also in the next five years we are planning to replicate a
family fun resort, in the mould of Disney, after which our eyes are set on
expanding to other frontiers, both Europe and Africa. Already there has been
significant level of demand for Unity dolls, in Europe and Africa, Particularly
Africa. What we hope to do in those places is to first of all gain significant
presence in select countries in both climes, particularly Africa, especially
where demand is highest after which we would then start customizing/ adapting
the Unity Dolls into their own culture. We would love to one day be like
ToysRus, the world’s leading kids store for all kind of toys.

Another thing; Auldon is considering assembling toys in the
country so that it can create more jobs for people. Nigeria does not have the
expertise to manufacture world-class toys, so what we plan on doing is get
Completely Knocked Down Toys (CKG’S) that will be assembled here in the
country. To this effect we have set the ball in motion to partner Lagos State
Technical and Vocation Education board, where we can teach the students the
process of assembling CKG’s after which they are employed after graduation.

Are there CSR initiatives you intend to embark on?

Yes, Auldon is very passionate about CSR, there is quite a
lot we have done and especially in the area of education. No good man forgets
where he is coming from. As part of our policy, my company ensures that part of
the proceeds from the sale of our toys is donated to some reputable
non-governmental organisations (NGOs) for the promotion of the girl-child
education. There is also a percentage  
that has been set aside for   the
promotion of the girl -child   education
from each doll sold. If you look at UNICEF statistics concerning the girl
child, you will find out that the Nigerian girl-child is one of the most
disadvantaged   in the world. Statistics
has shown that the girl-child, especially from the Northern part of Nigeria,
suffers from neglect in all ramifications. We are aware that little
contributions like this, as well as working with reputable girl-child foundations,
would make a great difference.

Also, Auldon has just concluded the renovation of some
schools in dire need of refurbishing. A school in Ikorodu which was in a sorry
site has just been completed and would soon be commissioned by the Lagos State
Governor, Babatunde Fashola. I also take it upon myself to lecture students, in
all Technical colleges across Lagos State, business skills that would see them
become independent after graduation.