The Open Pitch Grant competition is a venture capital initiative by Onitsha Business Hangout in partnership with Business Clinic. This year, the Grant competition is offering N20 million to entrepreneurs based in the southeast who make the final list across various sectors.
In an interview with Infoeast, Amaka Obi, founder of Food Processing and Packaging company BMGlobal Ltd, bared it all. She is one of the winners of last year’s edition, and she shared her business journey and the impact of the Open Pitch Grant on her business and the eastern business ecosystem.
iNFOEAST: What’s your name, name of business, and how much did you get from the Open Pitch Grant Competition last year?
Amaka: My Name is Amaka Obi. My Business is BMGlobal Ltd, and I won N1 million
INFOEAST: Did you receive any training?
Amaka: Not Yet
INFOEAST: What exactly did you do with the money? Was it helpful?
Amaka: I started my NAFDAC registration process, and it was very helpful. We now have NAFDAC for our product.
INFOEAST: What’s the nature of your business?
Amaka: Food processing and packaging.
INFOEAST: What kind of food, and what is your brand name?
Amaka: Dry food products like Dry instant Pap, Beans flour, Okpa flour, Plantain flour, Potato flour, Dates powder, Tigernut powder, Tombrown cereal, Palm oil, Palm fruit fibre and Spices.
INFOEAST: In a few words, say what you think about the Open Pitch Grant Challenge.
Amaka: I think it’s a viable platform for growing businesses to be seen and heard. It’s easy to get lost in the crowd of buying and selling because building a business is hardwork and requires focus, dedication, and a lot of funds to do things differently. The Open Pitch provides financial support to viable businesses so they can move closer to their vision, ensuring we can better structure ourselves to play in the global market.
The narrative has been that Easterners are consumers of imported goods and that we cannot meet international standards, but we are changing that narrative with viable products and businesses. With this support from the Open Pitch Grant, entrepreneurs in the South East are more confident to do more.
INFOEAST: Is it transparent, and what do you think of its impact in the Southeast?
Amaka: The open pitch grant is very transparent. When I won the grant, I wasn’t part of the community and only heard about the opportunity from a friend who knew about my products. I believe that the more we talk about it and engage more businesses, the more we can reach people with information about the event.
INFOEAST: What’s your final word to applicants of the Open Pitch Grant this year?
Amaka: Don’t overthink it. Take the bold step and apply to Open Pitch because when other people access your business, you can learn many ways to improve your product and processes. May the best man win!
Editor’s Note: Infoeast is an official partner of the Open Pitch Grant Challenge by Onitsha Business Hangout and Business Clinic.
