Chibuzo Ihegboro
Ugo Obilo and Chidi Nwachukwu are two Nigerian-American business owners who have shown how grit, perseverance, and consistency can propel one to the next level. Their story is an inspiration, especially at a time when many African youths in the diaspora are becoming disillusioned with the negative stereotypes of poverty, misery, and squalor that surround Africa as a continent.
At a time when many youths in the diaspora shun their ancestry, to bask in the euphoria of life in developed climes, Ugo and Chidi refused to get carried away, braved the odds, and moved to explore opportunities that abound in Africa. They both partnered and launched – DiscoverGidi, a travel company focused on exploring and unveiling the African continent’s heritage and beauties to the rest of the world.
Running a travel agency business is a high-risk venture, yet Ugo and Chidi were unafraid to foray into this perilous territory of entrepreneurship. And five years later, not only have they grown into successful businessmen, but their travel company, Discover Gidi, has also become one of the trusted brands connecting diaspora youths to Africa.
While celebrating the fifth anniversary of the Discover Gidi brand, the duo reflected on the story behind their venture, as well as the business lessons they learned from the early startup mistakes they made.
What is the story that led to you two coming together to start your company – DiscoverGidi?
Chidi: DiscoverGidi was planted in our heads six years ago after we had a bad experience with a travel company that organised our trip from America. I and Ugo have been friends since 2015, and we share a similar passion for travelling to different cities. So in 2017, we went to Costa Rica, and our experience throughout that trip was terrible. The travel company that organised the trip did a shoddy job. We saw the loopholes and told ourselves that we could do much better, and package much more memorable travel experiences for clients if we have our company.
So we challenged ourselves and decided to start, and our niche was to take people to Nigeria and other African cities. Even with all the wahala in our country, we are still proud Nigerians, and we wanted to showcase the beauty of our nation. So we arranged to take people to Lagos, to show them the beauty and fun in the city.
The travel agency business is a high-risk venture, what were some of the challenges you faced while starting up?
Chidi: We faced several challenges that almost made us want to give up on our dream. We launched Discover Gidi in January 2017 and began organising our first trip to Lagos in April 2017. We targeted Nigerians in the diaspora because we wanted to bring them home. This was because many of them when they come to Nigeria are not allowed to move around by their parents. So we thought it would be great to market the idea to Nigerians in the USA.
Although the feedback we got was encouraging, none wanted to spend money on the trip. Some of them doubted us because the idea was new to them, and they didn’t know if they could trust us. But we were determined, and we got only nine people to agree to join the trip to Nigeria. And we charged only $500 for five days, and four nights with two meals included. Our fee was quite cheap, and we incurred a huge loss on our first trip. We almost felt like giving up, because we incurred over $3000 loss. We were carrying pizza on an okada (commercial bike) from the Lagos Mainland to deliver to our clients staying on Lagos Island. The stress was so much that we wanted to drop the idea.
But we noticed that as we were ending our trip, our clients were enjoying our services. Most of the nine people that came were Americans, and they loved the experience we gave them in Lagos. That gave us some hope. So we sat down, analysed our mistakes, and turned them into business lessons.
Another major setback we had was during the Covid-19 lockdown in 2020. That pandemic took a huge toll on the travel industry and it affected us so much yet we survived. Sometimes I’m shocked at how fast we recovered from that setback.
What was that business lesson you learned from those setbacks?
Chidi: One lesson we learned from our challenges is that consistency is key to every business.
Ugo: Consistency not only stabilised our company but also helped in building trust among clients.
In 2017, we brought only nine people to visit Lagos Nigeria, but we were not discouraged by the number and the losses we incurred. So the following year, we had 35 people coming to Nigeria. I shed happy tears after I saw the increased number of tourists who wanted to visit Africa instead of Instagram’s popular destinations.
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In 2020, we were hit by the COVID-19 lockdown, but right after the lockdown was eased we bounced back with our trips and we’ve remained consistent. And every time we keep getting new clients on all our trips.
We’ve had over 5000 guests coming to our events in the United States of America. And since we started. We’ve taken clients to Senegal, Abidjan, Accra, and Lagos, and we are extremely excited to continue with that mission and to visit as many African cities as possible. We will remain focused on getting our clients to not only visit but have an authentic experience where they can have a good time, and get in touch with the culture.
What are your plans for your brand, Discover Gidi?
Chidi: We want to be that bridge for both of those in diaspora communities to come into Africa. So we will keep evolving with the right strategy and seeking the right support to ensure the company’s success and longevity. We’ll keep travelling to new destinations and more African countries. We plan to explore other countries outside Africa like Panama, Portugal, and many more lovely destinations we would want to keep under wraps.
Ugo: We have a lot in store, and our brand Discover Gidi will keep growing. We want more people to come to our trips and our events so they can leverage the resources that we bring.