The Hack: 9mobile mentors aspiring entrepreneurs in the Philippines

9mobile has brought the third edition of its entrepreneurship initiative, The Hack, to Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

The gesture demonstrates a clear commitment to the growth of Nigeria’s Small and Medium Enterprises, or SMEs.

The Hack is a free enterprise initiative and networking event hosted by 9mobile in which seasoned SME mentors and business leaders share business fundamentals and insights to assist SMEs and growing businesses in scaling up.

The event was held at the L.A King Dome in Rumuomasi. Hundreds of aspiring entrepreneurs eager to learn innovative business ideas attended.

Mr. Olalekan Fatusa, Director of Enterprise Business at 9Mobile, expressed delight at the large number of women who attended the training.

“I am pleased to see so many female business owners in attendance,” he said. We found a gender mix in the other cities where this program was held, but Port Harcourt stands out with a higher number of young female business owners. It’s inspiring to see our female entrepreneurs eager to expand their businesses.”

“What we’re doing today is showing you how to grow your niche and improve your businesses, as well as providing you with all the tools to scale,” he assured participants. We are confident that through entrepreneurship, we will be able to eliminate unemployment in Nigeria.”

Tricia Olufemi-Olumide (TriciaBiz), the forum’s key facilitator, also spoke on business growth strategies for SMEs such as product development, sales channel optimization, complementary products and services, collaboration and partnerships, continuous online presence, and deployment of strategic public relations tools.

She emphasized the importance of SMEs leveraging online platforms’ diverse opportunities beyond selling.

“I encourage you to join these platforms not to sell but to gain massive visibility because people now look for advertisements online to make business decisions,” she advised.

“The Hack is a smart shortcut to get something done because there are different ways of creating solutions, and one of these ways is what 9mobile offers,” said Oluwasegun Dawodu, Manager, Corporate and SMEs Markets, 9mobile. ‘The Hack’ is when you understand how to scale your business by utilizing technological solutions and tools. “At 9mobile, we have the focus and mindset of a small business,” he added.