LIONESS WEEKENDER COVER STORY
ReelFruit, Nigeria’s largest dried fruit processing business generating employment across the value chain
Affiong Williams is the CEO/Founder of ReelFruit, the largest fruit processing, packaging and distribution company focused on being the 'leading fruit agribusiness in Nigeria'. The company, founded in 2012, retails a range of dried fruit and nut snacks through a variety of channels including over 400 supermarkets, airlines, schools, and hotels locally, while also retailing internationally in the US (Amazon.com), Switzerland, Belgium, Saudi Arabia. ReelFruit is an award-winning brand, winning an international Women in Business Competition in the Netherlands. Affiong has also been recognized by Forbes Magazine as one of the most promising '30 under 30' entrepreneurs in 2015. In 2017, she won “Entrepreneur of the Year”, awarded by the prestigious Women in Management, Business and Public Service (WimBiz).
Affiong is passionate about agribusiness and looking at innovative, market-driven solutions to add value to local produce given Nigeria's unique agricultural landscape. Through ReelFruit, she has demonstrated a model for creating higher value markets which increase the use of otherwise wasted fruit, and which will ultimately increase the production of high-quality fruit available for processing, which increases farmer incomes. In 2015, ReelFruit was awarded a grant by IDH Sustainable Trade to complete an innovative pilot to train and hire 50 women in Mango farming in Nigeria, a first-of-its-kind intervention.
Affiong Williams obtained a post graduate diploma in Business Administration from Wits Business School, Johannesburg, South Africa. She worked for 4 years for Endeavor Global, a global non-profit which catalysis economic development by supporting small to medium enterprises in developing markets. She also completed the Stanford Seed in Emerging Economies program in 2018. Affiong is passionate in unearthing the job and wealth creation potential of agribusiness and global trade. She believes enterprise is the only way to lead the continent out of poverty. Affiong is passionate about Entrepreneurship, Agriculture, and is an avid runner, completing over 10 marathons, and raising funds for charity in the process.
Lioness Weekender spoke to Affiong Williams to learn more about this impact driven and her own entrepreneurial goals and aspirations.
When did your start your business?
ReelFruit was founded in 2012. After living in South Africa for 12 years, 4 of which I spent working for an entrepreneur support organization, I decided I was going to come back to Nigeria to start a business. ReelFruit was established in 2012, after I moved back from South Africa. I had initially planned to produce fruit juices, but I did not have the capital for the machinery. Dried Fruit turned out to be the next best option and I began gauging prospective clients to see if there was a market for it in Nigeria and there was a lot of positive reception. The company become functional in 2013 and launched its mango and pineapple snacks, having used the prior year to get all of its certifications.
Number of employees
We currently have 65 full-time and 20 part time employees.
What does your company do?
ReelFruit is the largest dried fruit processing, marketing, and distribution company in Nigeria. Its business model is based on building and growing markets for higher value processed fruit products, generating multiplier effects in the fruit sector - transforming otherwise wasted raw materials into well-branded snacks, thereby guaranteeing a market for farmers and increasing their incomes. The company was founded to add value locally to fruit produce by focusing on processing, marketing and distribution of raw materials in order to be a job creation engine, generating employment across the value chain, from farm to factory.
ReelFruit’s product range comprises of branded and healthy dried fruit and nuts snacks (pineapple, mango, fruit / nut mix, and cashews), sold at over 400 outlets around Nigeria, through online channels and to B2B market (hotels, airlines), answering to the growing demand for healthy snacks. The products are also
exported to Europe (Switzerland and Belgium) and sold on Amazon.com. In 2020, ReelFruit sold the equivalent products of 1,200,000 pineapples that would have otherwise gone to waste, achieving $480,000 in revenues (despite COVID lockdowns and lost business that cost the company ~40% of annual revenues). ReelFruit is majority woman owned, has a 100% female management team, and 55% female employee base (full time and part time).
What inspired you to start your company?
I was inspired to start my business because I was burdened by youth unemployment in my home country, Nigeria. I believed that by starting a business, one with huge potential to create jobs, I would be solving this problem. I decided on the agribusiness sector based on its job creation potential and its ability to uplift farmers.
What makes your business, service or product special?
ReelFruit is innovative in the sense that we created a new sector of snack product in Nigeria, that didn’t exist prior. It took years of persistence to convince customers and retailers to adopt our products, but we have achieved major successes. We have produced millions of packs of snacks, and we retail our products in over 400 stores nationwide.
Tell us a little about your team.
The company has over 85 employees across Nigeria. The company was founded and run me. We have 100% female management team in key functional areas of the business.
Share a little about your entrepreneurial journey. And, do you come from an entrepreneurial background?
No, I do not have an entrepreneur background. As mentioned before, I moved back to Nigeria and decided to start my own company. It’s been quite the journey with a lot of ups and downs, wins and losses along the way but it’s also been extremely fulfilling, and I won’t have it any other way.
What are your future plans and aspirations for your company?
As an entrepreneur who has spent the last 9 years building the largest dried fruit company by revenues and distribution in Nigeria and having just raised a $3M series-A investment to scale its operations, I am confronted with the fact that the work has just begun. My vision is to build an end-to-end agribusiness adding value across the fruit value chain, positively impacting smallholder farmers to consumers.
My goal is to build a lasting business that provides young Nigerians with the dignity, benefits and freedom formal employment offers. This is my key driver as an entrepreneur. I believe enterprise is the only way to develop my country and its people. Youth account for 45% of the workforce, yet 55% of them are unemployed. My business’ goal is to create 1000 direct jobs in the next 7 years.
What gives you the most satisfaction being an entrepreneur?
Providing meaningful work for young, talented, and ambitious Nigerians. Daring to do things that have not been done before. Persisting and bringing dreams to reality.
What's the biggest piece of advice you can give to other women looking to start-up?
If you’re consumed by passion to start a business, I’d advise you do a lot of research, build a network in the industry, and stay curious and be prepared for a long journey ahead.
To find out more about the work of ReelFruit and its impact, send an email to: info@reelfruit.com or visit the ReelFruit website and social media platforms:
