Stories by Bimbola Oyesola

Starting a profitable business has never been a bad idea, not even at this period of economic recession. There are some school of thoughts that believe recession is even the best period to go into some ventures. Hence if you are looking to start a profitable business of your own, you must  consider venturing into the match stick production business.

Matchsticks are used to start fire under controlled conditions. They are used in many homes for starting fire for cooking. They are also used industrially for starting fire when heat energy is needed and for burning waste materials.

Matches are sold in quantity. There’s the wooden type, which are packaged in boxes. And there are paper matches, which are clustered in rows stapled into matchbooks.

Because matches are used in almost every home and in almost every industrial establishment, the demand for matches is always high. This means there is huge profit potential in the matchstick production business.

Even though there are some other means that fire can be ignited, all these have not been able to take over the important  position of matchstick, especially in this part of the world. 

Modern “safety match” was introduced to the public in 19th century by Swedish scientists Gustaf Erik Pasch, but his initial discovery went through several important advancements that enabled matches to become as successful as they are today. So if you are looking for a business to go into or invest in that will give you good returns in a short period of time, then you should consider going into this business.

People use matchstick for one purpose or another, so you can be sure there will always be a market for your product.

However, just like any other business or venture, there are procedures or guidelines to follow to be successful:

Match production requires wood as the main raw material. The wood is cut out into fine little sticks, and special chemicals are added to the sticks to ensure the safety and burning. For inflammation, the sides of the matchbox are covered with phosphorus and paraffin premix.

Going into this production may not be difficult for entrepreneurs in Nigeria as we have wood, which is the major raw material in abundant in the country, and its readily available.

There are two main types of matches:

Safety matches: which can only produce fire when struck against the specially prepared surface on the matchbox

Strike-anywhere matches: which can produce fire when struck against any frictional surface. Being the commoner type and the cheaper to produce.

For setting up production company of safety matches, the following steps are however important:

Business plan

Preparing a business plan is the first step towards starting a profitable business. A business guide is to the entrepreneur what the compass is to the sailor; it helps you steer your business to success by helping you focus on the business goals and objectives.

A business plan highlights the profitability of the market, the competition, the total cost required to start and run the business, and the projected earnings from the business. Business plan is like a light way path for any entrepreneur because it enables one to focus and strive on the business goals.

Funds

Raising funds for the business is the next stage after preparing the business plan. Since the business plan will have given you insight into how much you need to start your business, you already know how much to raise.

Meanwhile, if you do not have the required funds at hand, you can solicit for a business grant or loan from micro finance banks or from bank of industry sponsored by the government of Nigeria to assist entrepreneurs in their businesses with little or no interest to pay back.

If you are not able to raise the startup capital all by yourself, you may need to approach your family and friends, seeking their support. Better yet, you can approach angel investors or apply for small business grants or loans.

Location

You will need to find a suitable property to rent once you are able to secure the funds for your business. When deciding on a property, you need to choose a location that is very close to where potential customers and distributors can easily reach your matchstick production business and also make sure it has enough space to use as office and for your equipments.

Though acquiring the property that will house your business has its advantages, it may not be advisable from the outset, especially if you don’t have much funds on ground. So, it’s usually recommended that you lease the property initially and then consider buying later.

4. Register with CAC

There are a couple of brands already out there and in other to differentiate yours from the lots, you need to pick a name for your business, get the required license and register your business with the Corporate Affairs Commission. This will save you a whole lot of harassment and show that you are on top of the game.

5. Get the necessary equipment and staff

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Most of your operations will be machine-mediated, so you will need to acquire the machinery you will need. These include:

Splint production machinery

Match production machinery

Head composition and friction composition machinery

Boiler

Air compressor

Log conveyor, and so on.

In addition, you will need to hire additional individuals to assist you with the business. Each of your machines will be manned by one or two individuals, which means you will need to hire between 10 to 20 staff. However, you must ensure that your employees are competent and able to play their roles excellently.

5. Raw materials

Wood is one of the major material used in producing matchstick. The word”matchstick” already tells you that wood is the main component, so now all you need is to know the type of wood that is used to produce the woodensplint and find a supplier of that particular wood. Also, you need to find where you can get the other raw materials like, the chemicals use for processing and flaming the matchstick (phosphorus and paraffin wax) and some colourants to make your matchstick different from others.

Aside wood, which is the main material used in matchstick production, you will also need chemicals for processing and flaming, and paper boards for inner and outer packing boxes. Aspen, Poplar, and Pine are the types of wood usually used for making match splints. You will need to decide on which type you will be using in your company.

You will also need to find suppliers for these raw materials and ensure that they are able to maintain a steady supply of the materials they supply.

6. Equipment

The major equipment needed for production is;

*Head composition machine

* Splint machine

* Air compressor

* Polishing machine

* Log conveyor

7. Production and marketing

Now that you have everything already in place, you can start production. Matches can be made in several forms and types, but the basic way they are created are the same. Here you can find out how they are produced in the modern industrial facilities, with numerous steps and procedures that ensure their safe and reliable use.

Production process:

A. Preparing of wood. 

Wood is cut, into small matches, soaked in fire retardant ammonium phosphate and left to dry. Striking end of the stick is then soaked in hot paraffin wax, which will provide small amount of fuel to the wood, enabling it to burn more easily.

B. After matches are transferred to the conveyor belt that is fileld with holes in which sticks are inserted, then they are carried to the tanks that contain two mix of chemicals. One to serve as a base, and one as a finalized layer of match head. Conveyors then move matches away from the tanks, allowing them to get dry.

C. Packaging and storing.

‎8. Marketing

When you are done with production, you need to come up with good marketing techniques that will get people to recognise and patronise your product. One of such technique is to offer discount or incentive to customers, this will motivate them to buy from you because people always patronize subsidized product.

Also, you can market your product to households, restaurants, bars, eateries, industrial companies, retailers and wholesalers.‎ You can also brand for companies who will use it for marketing purposes or individuals, for gifts at their several ceremonies.