As a business, we embarked on a strategic initiative to expand our market reach and bolster our catfish production at the beginning of last year (specifically February/March).
While our initial aspiration entering the year was to invest in backward integration by procuring essential equipment for fish feed production, inflation and other limitations necessitated a more focused approach. This prompted us to pivot our efforts towards exploring new market opportunities, particularly in the export market. This strategic shift has yielded significant positive impacts:
Export Market Expansion: We successfully initiated exploratory ventures into international markets, establishing a solid foundation for sustainable export activities and global presence.
Impressive Revenue Growth: Our expanded market reach has led to a substantial increase in revenue, enabling us to reinvest in our business operations and create valuable new job opportunities within our communities.
Enhanced Brand Recognition: Our increased presence in both domestic and international markets has significantly elevated our brand awareness and reputation, positioning Duketrah Fisheries as a trusted provider of quality catfish products.
Like any business evolution, our journey has presented challenges that we’ve strategically addressed:
Market Development in Target Countries: Due to geographical distances and international variations, identifying interested customers, stores, and restaurants presented initial hurdles. We’ve successfully leveraged existing relationships with contacts who have relocated abroad, creating valuable entry points into new markets.
Logistics and Distribution Excellence: We recognize that logistics can be one of the greatest challenges for expanding businesses. From handling and packaging to delivery timeframes and costs, we’ve implemented comprehensive solutions to ensure our products reach customers in pristine condition. There also was the question of export certification. In this regard, the UK market has been more forthcoming than the US/Canada ones but we are confident that we shall be able to crack them in due course.
Value-Based Pricing Strategy: Finding the optimal price point that reflects our product quality and accounts for logistics investments required careful market analysis. We’ve embraced a strategic market entry approach to build product acceptance while establishing our premium value proposition.
Building Trust Across Borders: International commerce requires mutual confidence between parties. We’ve established transparent business practices and consistent quality assurance to overcome initial trust barriers, creating reliable partnerships with our international clients.
Although we redirected from our initial vision of backward integration, pursuing a growth strategy focused on opportunities created by Nigerians in the Diaspora has proven exceptionally effective. The increasing demand for fish and other African foodstuffs continues to rise, driven by recent relocation trends and the universal appeal of fish as a non-seasonal, nutritious staple consumed across all demographics.
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