By Yinka Ajayi

Adetunji Adegboyega is the CEO of Hesges Synergy Nigerian Limited, a business development and investment network. In this interview, Adegboyega explains how the company aims to bring people of like minds together to create a network that helps entrepreneurs achieve their  objectives. 

How do you describe network development small scale business amid the challenges faced by small and medium scale business owners in Nigeria ?

Networking is the way forward to source for funds for small scale business owners.  We are a business development and investment company, a network of like-minded people coming together to help each other fund small and medium scale businesses. The general idea behind the company is using the medium of crowd funding to help each other achieve whatever goal or aim they have in life. To put in another way, each subscriber to the network comes into the network with a token amount and contribution monthly. This will help every member of the network to be able to achieve his goals.

But there are micro finance banks in the country. What actually inspired the idea?

Adetunji Adegboyega

Yes, it is a known fact that Nigeria is a developing country, a country of people with diverse business ideas. It is also a known fact that a country like ours thrives more on small and medium scale enterprises. Government cannot provide business funding and support for everybody, thus the need for individuals to develop businesses of their own that can be managed, sustained and make them ultimately become self reliant. However, the key to any business development is funding and in Nigeria for example, there are two ways of securing funding; through the banks and from rich relatives and acquaintances. Banks for obvious reasons will not fund start-ups and how many people have rich relatives to support them? Therefore you find out that a lot of people with business ideas needing as little as N50,000, N100,000, N500,000 will never be able to execute their ideas because no means of them getting these start up funds.This is why we have come up with the idea of HESGES SYNERGY or simply HS. All you need to do become a member of this network is by paying a monthly subscription fee, bring your business idea and the network will fund and develop it for you. With this alternative of business funding network, a lot of people whose dreams, ideas and passions have hitherto   been unachievable, they will be able to achieve their dreams.

Amid the austerity measures, do you think Nigerians will buy into it?

Absolutely, because this is what everybody has been waiting for. Our plan is to revolutionise the business environment in Nigeria. Our slogan is a” network that changes your net-worth”. On her own is an employer of labour and we are looking into creating about 100,000 jobs, from our investment network. We are investing in and focusing on Agriculture, Real estate and retailing. So you see that the  network is a viable option for that unemployed person to get job. There is need to also point something out here that when we fund businesses, we don’t just give loans or funds to people for them to go and do whatever they want, but the funding   will be on the basis or model of venture capital. This implies that we will be part of the business from inception to fruition

But it is relatively new in Nigeria, what steps are you taking to educate Nigerians about its benefits?

Absolutely. But on like every other business the success is determined by, enlightenment and publicity is very important. That is the reason we are taking steps to educate Nigerians about its benefits. In this regard we are utilizing all publicity platform both online and the print media.

How can entrepreneurs be part of it?

Any Nigerian can be a part of the network.   Our website,www.hesgessynergy.com, is open for registration and anybody can register online. In addition, subscription payment will also be made on our website using Remittas payment and Zenith Bank Webpay, wherein any subscriber can pay with their ATM card and anybody who doesn’t want to pay online can also go and make payment through any bank in Nigeria using the code generated during registration.

Once registration is done such a person become an active subscriber to the network and is issued a Membership Card. The card can be used at Hesges Synergy stores and partners’ stores to purchase things at a discount. Upon becoming a subscriber, such a person can submit his or her business proposal for approval and funding. Our target is every Nigerian that needs funding for their small and medium scale business. Every Nigerian entrepreneur needs wide coverage customer base for their business.