Business Ideas For Ladies In Nigeria

Business Ideas for Ladies in Nigeria (and Starting Costs)

In this article, we have curated a list of business ideas for ladies in Nigeria the cost of starting each.


1. Vegetable Farming

Agriculture is one of the fastest moving businesses in Nigeria, however, most people tend to think that the amount of effort required in the business is not usually worth the gain. This is not true as there is a lot to gain from agriculture. Vegetable farming is one of the fastest ways to make money via agriculture. You won’t have to buy a plot of land but the more space you have, the more profit you’re likely to make. With just 20,000, you can start your own farm and start making a profit.


2. Makeup Studio

If you live in the student area or you stay in a commercial city, you will know the importance of professional makeup. While some ladies can pull off the look on their own, most would require the services of a professional to do it for them during special occasions like weddings and birthdays. Setting up a makeup studio won’t require much.


In fact, you would learn how to apply makeup via YouTube and use your friends to gain some experience. When you’re ready, you can get your friends to help you advertise the business. If you have more funds, it would be best to move to a shop where you can be free and your customers would be more likely to go to.


3. Hairstyling

Just like makeup, women love to make their hair and are ready to pay a professional to get it done. However, hairstyling is something women can’t do on their own. Unlike makeup, women don’t just make their hair for special occasions but also for regular days. You can learn hairstyling off YouTube but it would be best to learn under a professional. This way, you won’t just gain knowledge on how to make different styles but you will also learn the tactics of the business.


4. Childcare

If you live in commercial cities like Abuja and Lagos, you will notice that more parents are relying on childcare services or daycare centers to take care of their children while they are at work. You could make daily income from this business but that’s only if you know the right people.


Setting up a daycare business is not easy and you will have to learn how to cope with kids and keep them occupied. You could also work as a nanny for a household with kids. This is less stressful than having an establishment to take care of the kids. However, parents would only live their children in the care of people that they trust so you will need recommendations to get this business flying.


5. Tutoring

If you’re already a teacher, you could do tutoring as a side hustle to boost your income. You can meet up with parents whose kids are lagging behind in school and offer your services as a private tutor. You could also set up the business separately from your main job to ensure that both don’t clash.


Take note that you won’t always have to be a teacher to start this tutoring business. You could start by lecturing kids for their exams as well as WAEC and JAMB. There is really nothing required to start this business except the knowledge of difficult subjects like Mathematics, English, Physics, Chemistry, and Biology.


6. Online Freelancing

This is a business that can fetch you a lot of money and it does come with a lot of perks. As a freelancer, you can work from home and also, work for as many clients as you want. This means you can earn more than the average employee. Being a freelancer is easy as long as you’re great at the work you do. You could sign up as a writer, graphic designer, animator, or programmer.


There are many ways to start out as a freelancer but only a few will guarantee success. You could sign up on freelancer marketplaces. You will find Fiverr, Upwork, and Freelancer to be great websites where you can meet potential clients. You could also apply for jobs through Google and LinkedIn. There are many posts open for all kinds of freelancers but these might require some educational qualification. You could also check forums and apply whenever you see a vacancy.


7. Cooking Gas Business

The cooking gas business is making waves in Nigeria as more Nigerians adopt gas cylinders for meal preparation. You could set up a cooking gas business by purchasing a large gas cylinder. You should go to a commercial location as rural areas might still prefer to use kerosene due to its affordability. You will find much success in school areas where students are always in need of gas.


Setting up this business would require funds in hundreds of thousands depending on how you want your shop to look. The equipment required would take up most of the cost. Once set up, you can begin making money right away.


8. Blogging

If you’re a great writer, you could become a freelancer, as well as a blogger. Blogging is all about posting content on a blog or a website. There is much profit in blogging though it would require more time to set up than freelancing.


As a blogger, you will have to spend money on getting a domain as well as web hosting. You will also have to write content for your website. Your content should be SEO-optimized to get your traffic. You should also advertise on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. When you start getting readers, you can apply for Google Adsense and start making money.


Blogging is quite straightforward, however, there are so many blogs today which makes it quite difficult to make money from the business. Before becoming a blogger, you might have taken blogging courses to learn more about the business.


9. Catering

If you’re great at preparing delicacies, you could take up this business. As a caterer, you will be required to prepare dishes for an event which could be a birthday party, wedding, or anniversary. Setting up this business might require some serious funds depending on how professional you want it to look. Take note, the more professional you look, the more clients will be willing to pay for your service.


10. Vlogging

Vlogging is becoming popular as more people turn to social media to have fun. Vlogging is all about creating video content that can be posted on platforms like YouTube and Instagram. As a Vlogger, you can make money via Google Adsense and sponsored posts from other brands.


To become a vlogger, you will need either a mobile phone with a great camera or a great camera itself. There are many things you could do when it comes to vlogging. You could talk about movies, sports, or make comedy skits.


11. Recharge Card Selling

One of the perks of this business is that you would make a profit on a daily basis. Setting up a recharge business won’t require many funds and can be started with less than N50,000. Depending on your location, this business can turn out to be very lucrative.

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1. Open a Frozen Food Shop

Starting a frozen food shop is one of the top business ideas for ladies in Nigeria. A frozen food store is a retail outlet where different frozen foods are sold, and it is a business that can be started in any location in Nigeria.


The frozen food business is also a business that picks up quickly. Though, it comes with some level of risk. The problem of electricity experienced in the country also adds up to the cost of running the business.


So, in setting up the business, one should consider some factors very carefully. If you are able to get everything properly done, you are sure of good patronage and profit.


The average standard frozen food store makes #70,000 – #150,000 or more profit monthly.


2. Cosmetic Store

Next on my list of business ideas for ladies in Nigeria is operating a cosmetic store. There are varieties of beauty products that are seen in stores all around Nigeria.


The cosmetic beauty supply business is one of the businesses that can’t go out of fashion, because of the role it plays in society. Everyone uses some cosmetic products, for example, soap, shampoo, deodorants, pomade, perfume, hair dye, and so on.


Depending on the scale you want to start, the start up capital for this type of business can be between #50,000- #100,000. You can start your own cosmetic store now and then grow bigger.


3. Freelancing

Freelancing either full-time or part-time is one of the biggest online business ideas for ladies in Nigeria, most especially for graduates writing for blogs, newspapers and other online media outlets.


This can fetch a lot of money, especially if you write for big companies. You can start today by contacting your preferred company through email, introduce yourself and tell them of your services.


Freelancing could come not only in writing, it could be graphics design, web design, coding, etcl, only if you’ve got the skills.


4. Cooking Gas Business

Another thriving business idea for ladies in Nigeria is selling cooking gas. Presently, we are seeing changes in the consumption of cooking gas.


One of the problems of Nigerian society is the lack of electricity. Although, most people would prefer to rely on electricity in their kitchens. A lot of these people, therefore, substituted with kerosene


Most people are seeing the usefulness and convenience of cooking gas, which is arguably a better alternative to kerosene, because not only does it cook food faster, it is also ultimately cheaper.


You can supply cooking gas to retailers, or you become a retailer and refill gas for end users. This business is very lucrative and it does not cost much to start. You can start small and grow big.


5. Pastry and Baking

Any kind of food related business is always profitable, especially when the business model and strategy is well taught out.


Talented bakers can charge higher rates for custom made goods, such as birthday cakes or wedding cakes. If you enjoy cooking and want to make your first business around it, then you can start a baking business, where you sell specific items or custom creations for events outside your home kitchen.


Pastry consumption is huge hence it is a good business idea for ladies in Nigeria.


6. Okrika Business

Okrika is also known as Tokunbo can be used for clothes, footwear (slippers, shoes), bags mostly imported from other countries like the USA, UK, Italy, etc.


Okrika business means a lot to so many people especially the youth, the low-income earners and fashion freaks. 

Selling Okrika wears is one of the best business ideas for ladies in Nigeria. It is a business that anybody can do with a reasonable amount of certainty for-profit and low risk of business failure. The most interesting part about this business is that it doesn’t require huge capital to start. ,


 You can start it with a small capital as low as #5,000 and grow your business over time. Okrika product is mostly affordable compared to new ones, and that has been the major reason why people choose to buy the products.


7. Manufacturing and sales of detergent

Another popular business idea for ladies in Nigeria is the sales of detergent. In recent years, demand for detergents has increased as with the growth of the population.


Detergents are some of the most useful products in every home, rich or poor. But most of the known brands producing these items sell them at a price that many households in Nigeria cannot easily afford.


If you can make the required sacrifice to learn the skill, you could start making your own detergent. To start with, you can sell to your friends and families.


With the right business mind and experience, and knowledge, you could expand your business and grow to become a brand that will be reckoned with.


8. Ice block business

Nigeria is located within the tropical climate region with an abundance of heat and sunlight. Unfortunately, the electricity supply is very poor, making it difficult for homes to maintain adequate stock of cold water in their refrigerators. This is what makes ice block production a money making business in Nigeria.


People require ice blocks to keep their water and drink cold. Your strategy includes households around your neighborhood, retail shops, restaurants and bars that need to keep their drinks ice-cold at all times.


9. Jewellery Design and Making

This is one of the business ideas for ladies in Nigeria that you can quickly market through word of mouth referrals.


Bead-making is a very lucrative business, and it has a lot of money-making potentials. Beading does not require a lot of space or significant technical training, making it is a very accessible home business option.


Bead necklaces and hand-made jewellery are extremely popular in Nigeria, so if you are the type who know how to design and make jewellery, you can start making money from it.


With a little creativity, anyone can make beaded jewelry. To get started, you can take two weeks training course with any fashion house on bead making.


10. Skin Care Business

Creating and marketing skin care product line could be a great business idea for ladies in Nigeria.


There’s a lot of emphasis on natural, organic products these days, so a skincare line that is effective and of high quality could be a wise decision in terms of consumer acceptance.


When launching a skin care line, focus on the type of products you want to make. For example, you can make soaps, bath salts, aromatherapy blends, lotions or some combination of products. Even with a minimum budget, you can buy made organic skin products and attain glowing skin.


11. Boutique

Boutique store is a business idea that is quite lucrative, and the good thing about it is that you can start it as a small scale business if you like.


The clothing store (boutique) industry comprises small retail stores that sell a limited range of clothing and accessories. 


Clothing stores can be strictly designer based (i.e. only one designer’s collection is sold there), or they may sell a mix of designers’ labels (brands).


12. Set Up Eateries and Restaurants

Next on my list of business ideas for ladies in Nigeria is starting a restaurant business. People want to eat good meals, but their busy schedules don’t allow them to cook.


By making meals that are ready to eat, you can