Businessman turns banana crisps into sizeable snack food company

In 2010, Dennis Ngabirano, a instructor by occupation, was required to submit and execute a marketing strategy as a part of his coursework for a counselling diploma in his house nation, Uganda. A fried banana crisp snack, which he had sampled on his honeymoon, impressed the thought for a snacks enterprise. He pitched this to the lecturer with a finances of simply US$12. Today, 12 years later, Psalms Food Industries produces numerous merchandise, together with potato and banana crisps, processed nuts and seeds, cookies, and nut butters. 

Starting as a aspect hustle

Dennis Ngabirano turned a instructor as a result of his father, himself an educator, advised it will be a superb occupation. From day one, nevertheless, he was searching for methods to enhance his wage or discover one other technique of incomes a residing. The first makes an attempt weren’t long-term successes: a unisex hair salon survived solely two years and the small grocery retailer he opened loved the same tenure.

A road snack from a vendor in Mombasa in Kenya, the place he took his spouse for his or her honeymoon, modified the whole lot. When he ate the fried banana crisps, he realised the thought could possibly be transplanted to his house nation on a bigger scale. Ngabirano noticed a possibility that required little or no start-up capital.

They arrange store on the veranda of their modest house. Their first product, the banana (or gonja plantain) chips, was successful with neighbours, college students on the college the place he was finishing his diploma, in addition to the learners within the college the place he taught. Ngabirano and his spouse, Maureen, packaged them and bought them below the model identify Mr Tasty.

As the enterprise grew, a buddy urged him to register the identify, however when he lastly received round to it, it had already been taken and he settled on Psalms Food Industries, with the model identify Sumz (a homophone for Psalms).

Maureen, additionally a instructor, ultimately resigned from her place to handle the enterprise. Growth was regular, however gradual. It was solely when Ngabirano devoted himself to Psalms Food Industries for a full six months whereas on examine depart from his educating place that the company noticed actual development momentum. It gave him the braveness to stop and depend on Psalms as his solely earnings stream.

Finding clients and retaining them

Psalms was promoting its snacks, nonetheless manufactured on the veranda, to school canteens and learners on the college.

“That school had close to 3,000 pupils. The market was available, and everyone was excited about the banana crisps,” he says. “I also started getting referrals from the school parents who had their own retail shops and supermarkets.”

Every new buyer was one Ngabirano supposed to maintain; he believes customer support is essential. “Psalms strongly believes there must be retention of all customers if you want to grow; our customers are the reason we exist.”

From day one he instructed each new workers member to take heed of the slogan: “If you don’t take care of our customers, someone else will.” Customer issues needed to be addressed within the shortest time attainable, it doesn’t matter what the prices concerned had been.

“I teach staff how to speak to customers. I show them how you can cross-sell different products to a good customer who might purchase just one type of snack. This is how you grow without spending too much time and money on advertising. As a company, we also believe loyal customers, who have been treated well, will stand by you through bad times,” he says.

Employees on the Psalms Food Industries manufacturing facility.

Ramping up manufacturing

In 2014, when Psalms was outgrowing its home-based manufacturing house, Ngabirano was approached by an Indian businessman who had established a potato crisps enterprise however had reached a degree the place he wished to divest and promote all his tools.

“He was operating within Kampala, renting a warehouse where his high-quality, imported equipment was housed. He was unable to break even and wondered whether I’d be interested in buying the equipment,” reveals Ngabirano.

Psalms didn’t have the capital to purchase the whole lot up entrance, however Ngabirano made a deal to pay 50% instantly and the remainder inside six months, utilizing the tools as collateral to get a mortgage from the financial institution.

The company additionally moved into new premises. “Immediately, using the new equipment, the quality of the crisps improved. We were producing more efficiently as well and could compete with the imported brands.”

Diverse vary of merchandise

Sumz merchandise are various, with 20 completely different SKUs out there at the moment. It processes 20 tonnes of bananas every month and 50 tonnes of potatoes.

On its on-line gross sales portal, one will discover gonja crisps, flavoured potato crisps, corn crax (a maize snack), roasted and salted simsim (sesame seeds), crunchy bagia (created from maize flour, sugar, and salt), cookies, fried peas and fried chana dal, amongst different merchandise.

“I look at each product the way you would look at children in your family; they may have different abilities but they are all equal.” Potato crisps, for instance, have a big potential market, however the competitors from home and imported manufacturers is fierce. Banana crisps might achieve market share within the area as there are few massive scale producers however it’s the one product that can not be mechanised.

“You need to analyse each product independently.”

Exports

In 2018, Psalms Food Industries sealed its first export take care of a distributor from Rwanda. Then in 2021, Sweet Brands Africa, from Kenya, reached out to purchase the candy plantain crisps and has since taken Sumz merchandise to the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan.

Psalms Food Industries produces a spread of snack food merchandise.

New competitors each day

“Export opportunities are definitely growing and we want to capitalise on this. It is, however, important to consider the logistics challenges of exporting from Uganda. It can become capital intensive; we need trucks, motorcycles and storage facilities. You must be careful not to get trapped in inefficiencies,” he says. The company at the moment handles logistics in-house with a fleet of 19 vans and bikes.

One of the destructive traits Psalms has to beat is copycat producers. “Someone has attempted to replicate the brand with low-quality products in the market,” he says.

There can also be competitors from massive importers and grocery store chain Carrefour, for instance, has began supplying imported crisps below its personal model.

Competition for uncooked supplies has additionally elevated. “High-quality potatoes are scarce now. We also face an issue with competition for the supply of plantains,” notes Ngabirano.

Looking forward

Psalms is able to enhance gross sales into the East African Community and has utilized for a mortgage from the Uganda Development Bank to arrange a brand new plant.

“We have five acres of land for this new factory, with an approved building plan. We are going to set up the largest crisps factory in East Africa. It is going to be 12,000m² and we aim to have it ready within 18 months. We are in an advanced stage of approval for the funds to help us to accomplish our dream. We applied for $3 million and they’ve assured us they will release the money at an annual interest rate of 12%.”

The new manufacturing facility will assist to drive product costs down, making the snacks extra inexpensive within the area. “This will push demand up. The world-class facility will be able to produce quality crisps, comparable to Lay’s. We will be very competitive and can tap into all the available markets in the region and beyond,” says Ngabirano.

Psalms Food Industries CEO Dennis Ngabirano’s contact data

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