From trying too hard to over-impress to not trying to impress at all, it is sad – almost shameful indeed – that many intending entrepreneurs have no idea what it takes to pitch business ideas to an intending investor properly.

I learned that an investor recently offered to invest 40 million naira in various small businesses via his social media handle. He asked his followers to send their business pitches to him. Trust me; you don’t want to see the quality of the business pitches he received.

It is the one-minute debate we used to have back in schools where you tried to convince the audience to agree with your point of view in a 1-minute presentation. It occurred then that these youths could do with some help what a business pitch should look like. I mean, you don’t need to attend a business school to be able to pitch.

I have recently done a live session on LinkedIn on how to pitch, so if you are an entrepreneur, you can also take a look. In the meantime, I would like to share a few tips to keep in mind when you next want to do a business pitch.

Could you tell your business story?

Every business idea or startup idea has a story behind it. For Ola Orekunrin Brown of Flying Doctors Nigeria, her business idea could be traced to the point that she lost her sister because there was no available aircraft to transport her to where quality medical service was available.

For Piggyvest, it was the story of how a woman saved N1,000 every day in her local piggybank and only had N365,000 at the end of the year. No rewards or interest in developing and maintaining a savings culture.

I can go on and on, but I will stop here. Every business idea was inspired by an experience, the need to solve a problem, or a personal burden to make life easier for others. Please make sure to tell your own story in your pitch.

Know your numbers

It is okay that you are out to solve a problem and have beautifully narrated the story behind it. But how does this translate into profit? Unless you want to start a non-profit organization, there has to be a way your product or services will bring in money to sustain the business.

Knowing your numbers means that you should be able to tell a potential investor that every N100,000 invested in production or service delivery will deliver about N30,000 in profits every month for the first five months and N50,000 in profits for seven months after.

Do you happen to remember our earlier article on feasibility study? It will come in handy here.

Know your USP

I have earlier published an article on competitive advantage (aka USP), so I need not dive much into this. You can read more in my previous article. Please tell the investor why you think you are in the best position to solve the problem and whether customers will be willing to pay for the solution you bring to the table. Please tell the investor what you’ll be offering that is different from what is available in the market already.

Timing is key

Keep it Short and Simple (KISS). It always feels like there is so much to say, but please try to figure out this information as quickly as possible and quickly. Try capturing all of this information for practice in 60 seconds or less.

If you start right, you will get the investor’s attention, but you will have to conclude before it gets too long and begins to bore your listeners. Remember what they say about taking a bow when the ovation is loudest?

Demonstrate some business acumen

While you want your listeners / potential investors to know that you are professional in the field where you want to solve a problem, you also need them to see that you possess business acumen. Why? You may need to be a professional to solve a problem in a field, but you need business acumen to do a successful business. Business acumen is a whole discussion, so watch out for it.

My advice: Watch any of the Dragons Den series you can lay hands on and see practical pitches so that you can learn from the successful angles and also see what the other guys did wrong. I’ll be waiting in the comment section to know what you think. Do you have other tips for intending entrepreneurs?

International Maritime Trade is as old as the development of human societies by virtue of being the economic lifeblood of any group of people through the conveyance of goods between buyers and sellers across great distances.

In modern commercial activities, the importance of the right regulatory framework cannot be over-emphasized, with different value offerings in the maritime Business sector dependent on some form of regulation, in the case of Nigeria , the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and to a lesser extent, the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS).

This article will be focused on the various available Business licenses and permits in the Nigerian Maritime Sector and their requirements which are as follows :-

Clearing & Forwarding Agent licenses

A clearing agent is a licensed service provider that ensures documents are arranged and transferred to the relevant regulatory authorities (usually the Nigerian Customs Service) calculates appropriate Customs duties, and ensures that unnecessary delays are eliminated in order to avoid demurrage charges.

A forwarding agent or freight forwarder on the other hand is a licensed service provider that ensures that freight/trade cargo is delivered on behalf of a client/customer to a prescribed destination in good condition.

The requirements for clearing and forwarding agency licensing are :-

• A letter of application to the General Manager, Eastern or Western Ports, Nigerian Ports Authority.
• A Certificate of Incorporation from the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and a MEMART (Memorandum & Articles of Association).
• A Bank Reference.
• A 3-Year Tax Clearance Certificate (TCC).
• Evidence of registration with the Council for the regulation of freight forwarding in Nigeria.
• A registration fee of 200 Thousand Naira to the NPA.

Shipping Company/Agency Licenses

Some opinions define a shipping company or agency is an entity that handles the transactions of a ship in every port that the ship visits or docks as well handling shipment, cargo & general interests of its customers on behalf of ship owners, managers and charterers.

The requirements for licensing as a shipping company/agency in Nigeria are :-

• A letter of Application to the General Manager, Eastern & Western Ports, Nigerian Ports Authority.
• A Certificate of Incorporation from the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) & MEMART (Memorandum/Articles of Association).
• A Bank Reference.
• A 3- year Tax Clearance Certificate (TCC).
• A Registration fee of 200 Thousand Naira.

Service Boat Operator Licenses

The requirements for this license category are :-

• A letter of application to the General Manager, Eastern or Western Ports, Nigerian Ports Authority.
• CAC Registration Documents (Certificate of Incorporation & MEMART).
• A copy of a shipping company registration certificate issued by the NPA.
• A 3-year Tax Clearance Certificate (TCC).
• Payment of a registration fee of 200 Thousand Naira.

Shipping Chandler Licenses

A chandler is a retail dealer who specializes in providing supplies or equipment for ships.

The requirements for a chandler license are :- 

• A letter of application to the General Manager, Eastern or Western Ports, Nigerian Ports Authority.
• A Certificate of Incorporation and MEMART (Memorandum/Articles of Association).
• A 3-year Tax Clearance Certificate (TCC).
• Approval from the Nigerian Customs Service as evidenced through an executed Form C1.

Bonded Terminal licensing

A bonded terminal is a warehouse or storage area approved by the relevant authorities for the temporary storage of imported goods.

The requirements for bonded terminal licensing are :-

• A letter of application to the General Manager, Eastern or Western Ports, Nigerian Ports Authority.
• A Certificate of Incorporation and MEMART (Memorandum Articles of Association).
• A 3-year Tax Clearance Certificate (TCC).
• A Tax Identification Number
• Proof of an Insurance cover.

Licensing from the Nigerian Ports Authority is usually processed within 6 weeks and is valid for a year until renewal.

How To Obtain a Permit To Construct, Own, Occupy & Operate a Private Jetty in Nigeria

Jetties are basically built structures projecting from land out into water and serving either as breakwaters, walkways, or as a means of constricting channels.

This article will be dealing with the regulatory framework governing the grant of permits to build, own , occupy and operate a jetty as well the requirements needed for the grant of a jetty permit.

Which regulatory agency is in charge of licensing jetties in Nigeria?

Jetty licensing in Nigeria falls under the jurisdiction of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).

What are the requirements needed for a jetty construction permit?

– An application to the NPA in the prescribed form pursuant to the relevant provisions of the piers regulations. This will be submitted alongside the following :-

6 copies of :-

– Architectural drawings

– Structural drawings/details

– Structural design calculation

– Bollards/Dolphins arrangement & load test

– Material schedule

– A geotechnical investigation report on :-

a). location of the pier in relation to the immediate surrounding land and building if any.

b). Evidence of title to land.

c). Evidence of payment of prescribed fees.

d). Certificate of business incorporation.

e). With foreign shareholders, shareholding ratio of the company should be 60% to 40% (Nigerian to foreign).

f). 2 copies of admiralty or NPA chart of the port or approaches where the pier is situated.

g). Survey drawings where necessary.

h). Particulars of intended use of the pier.

i). Submission of an approved Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report from the Federal Ministry of Environment.

j). Facilities – fencing and railings, mooring facilities, landing steps, life-saving appliances and lighting on the pier unless exempted at the discretion of the NPA.

– This will be followed by an  appraisal of documents by the NPA Standing Committee on private jetties.

– Forwarding of recommendation to the management of NPA for further action.

-The management may forward the recommendations to the presidential committee in private jetties for an approval to construct.

– On receipt or approval from the presidential committee, the NPA will convey this approval to the operator/applicant.

– The NPA will then appoint a project supervisor to oversee the construction.

– On completion, the NPA Standing Committee on private jetties shall inspect the jetty and make recommendations to management for an approval to operate upon the payment of prescribed fees.