01/02/2023
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It was raining one cold evening and I felt like eating Awara and pepper. I was like a pregnant woman who wouldn't rest until I eat it.
For those who don't know what Awara means, Awara is the Hausa name for Soya bean cake. I know this Muslim woman who makes very sweet Awara in the next street. She sells under a mango tree.
Despite the rain, I took an umbrella and ran out to buy it. When I got there she was holding an umbrella and shielding herself from the rain. At the same time, she was trying to keep her fire burning.
"Mama." I called out.
She looked up.
"Ah! Customer."
"Mama you dey rain? When I dey come I think say you no go open o."
"Customer I must open o. Rain go do him own and stop. So make me seff do my own. If I no open, wetin my children go chop? If rain stop, who lose?"
"Mama na true. You talk true."
"How much own?"
"Give me for 200naira. Add plenty pepper."
"Pepper wey go drive cold shebi?"
"Yes mama."
She laughed.
While we talked about the unpredictable Jos weather I looked around. Mama was under a tree.
So I asked.
"Mama you no go do shade? So that this rain go stop to the beat you."
"My customer. Na money. If to say I get the money I for don do shade since. I just the plan am small small. I dey save. Very soon."
I told mama that God will step in for her and she will get a shade to stop the rain, so she could stop sitting under a mango tree and using an umbrella.
She answered Amen.
That night when I got home, I couldn't rest. It rained all night and I kept thinking of mama.
The next day I withdrew some money and went to her. I handed her the cash and while she wondered what the money was for, I told her it was for her shade.
"Carry carpenter. Make him knack you correct shade. So that rain go stop the beat you."
The woman was shocked. Before she could say thank you to me, I walked off into the dark.
Now, why did I share this story?
It's been over three months since the last rain fell. And I haven't gone to see Mama and her shade. Although I passed there and from a distance, I saw she had made the shade.
I avoided buying from her directly, because I didn't want any special treatment from her. So I preferred to send a boy to buy on my behalf.
This afternoon, Mama daughters found my house after three months and told Mama.
She followed them and located my place. She told me she has been looking for me to say thank you for months, but I never came back since then.
"Na my daughters show me your house, I say make I come. Make I come say thank you for wetin you do for me. Now na me be the only Awara seller wey get shop for that street."
This evening, I visited her place to buy Awara myself, and Mama was excited.
She told me how she has branched into other businesses because of the competition she is facing from people around.
"Na me be the first to start this Awara. But three other people enter the business. I branch enter Akara and Kunu. Now two other people don the sell for up. But you know wetin make me pass them. I get shop wey people fit sit down for shade drink my kunu. Kuma, my kunu thick and e come sweet. Go test am Customer. No pay for this one, but pay for next one."
One of the lessons I learned from Mama this evening is this. Your relevance in business, is determined by how well you handle competitions and what makes you stand out from the crowd.
