How To Start An Exotic Fruits Retail Business With Ksh 5000 Business Plan
Growing awareness of the need of healthy eating is good news for anyone interested in opening a small fruit business, whether or not they cultivate the fruits themselves. You only need to open a store in a decent location and stock it with exotic fruits such as apples, peaches, grapes, kiwi fruit, strawberries, oranges, and bananas, among others. This post explains how to start an exotic fruits retail business with a ksh 5000 business plan.
The exotic fruits differ from the fruits found in local markets in that the exotic ones are of high import quality. They are packaged in cartons and are often pleasing to the eye due to the lack of imperfections. One big advantage of dealing with exotic fruits over other types of fruits is that they have higher profit margins and sell quickly.
How to start an exotic fruits retail business with ksh 5000 business plan – where to source the fruits
You Have 3 Options
There are three ways of sourcing these fruits, but only one is the most straightforward for a beginner.
Option 1: Establish a farm, grow fruits, and sell them. This is a costly and time-consuming operation, but it generally yields the finest long-term profits.
Option 2: Import the fruits from neighbouring nations such as South Africa (there is a company called Dutoit that supply to Kenya and other African countries). This approach is also fairly costly because it necessitates the ability to order huge quantities. Its advantage is that it provides superior profits, especially in the near run.
Option 3: Buy from wholesalers and resell to your target market. For a modest investor, this is the most cost-effective and realistic alternative. You can begin with as little as Ksh.5,000. On the other hand, there is fierce competition, and in order to function profitably, one must think beyond the box.
How to start an exotic fruits retail business with ksh 5000 business plan
Getting Started
The way you select to begin with is determined by the quantity of money you have available.
If you’re starting out on a shoestring, all you have to do is hawk your fruits on the streets or market them on Facebook or WhatsApp and deliver them door-to-door to your consumers. If you have a tiny automobile, you can start by organizing a car boot sale in which you sell items from your car’s boot on the streets. If you have some extra cash and desire to operate from a permanent site, you can open a full-fledged shop, especially on a busy street.
Where to Buy the Fruits
Nairobi City Market is a fantastic place to get your fruits at wholesale prices. There was also a wholesale outlet in the Nakumatt Highridge in Parklands. To get there by public transportation, take Matatu 11A from the Koja Mosque Round-about.
The wholesale shop is generally open from 4.00am to 7.30am (Mon-Sat), therefore you must be an early riser to take full advantage of this opportunity. The majority of what is sold at this early hour is in bulk, i.e. in cartons.
The table below compares wholesale pricing to retail prices (i.e., prices at which you can sell your fruits and still make a profit).
| Fruit | Wholesale | Retail |
| Grapes | Ksh180 (Punet) | Ksh500 (Punet) |
| Kiwi Fruit | Ksh50 | Ksh100 |
| Apples | Ksh17 | Ksh30 |
| Oranges | Ksh18 | Ksh30 |
| Bananas | Ksh6 | Ksh10 |
Please keep in mind that the prices indicated above may have changed from the time we conducted our research and compiled this information, as market circumstances change from time to time. We’re also not sure if the wholesale shop is still open, so double-check first. A box of apples costs roughly Ksh 3400, therefore if you have a capital of Ksh 5000, you should start with one carton of apples and a few oranges and bananas. If you intend to work as a freelancer, no licence is required. However, if you intend to operate a permanent shop, you must pay for a single business permit (charges for this licence vary from one county to the next).
Challenges
- Business is vulnerable to fierce competition, particularly in densely populated commercial regions.
- To acquire the finest prices, one must get up in the middle of the night.
- Those living in rural areas far from the capital may need to plan their travel ahead of time.
Last Word
Buying exotic fruits in bulk and reselling them separately is one of the easiest retail business models available. Best of all, the business is highly scalable, which means you may start as a hawker and eventually become an exporter, especially if you are ready to think big. You can also buy the fruits to make juice or salad (this is known as value addition).
In other words, depending on how you apply this business idea it, this can be a stepping stone or a stumbling block.