Business in Nigeria: office furniture in Lagos | Lagos, the capitol of Nigeria is growing fast. A great number of office buildings is being constructed in new business areas like Ikoyi and Victoria Island. Many thousands of square metres of office space have to be filled with cubicles, desks and chairs. But as office furniture is on Nigeria’s list of banned import items, demand for office furniture is far exceeding supply. Entrepreneur Joop van de Vinne spots an opportunity for business in Nigeria. In Lagos, over 150 new office buildings are under construction. About 90 of them are to be built on what will look like a new Manhattan on a stretch of coastline adjacent to Lagos. In Eko Atlantic aka The Great Wall of Lagos on Victoria Island, hundreds of thousands of people are going to work and live. The largest part of the 90 towers of this town will be office space. The brochure that was developed to attract enterprise to rent an office here, describes the future of the country’s economy – projected growth in 2014 according to IMF: 7.5 % – as follows: “Lagos is to become the financial hub of Africa.
With its wealth of facilities and infrastructure, Eko Atlantic will help make this possible, and its investors will stand to gain enormously.” There is only one problem. There is not enough office furniture for the future white-collar employees of Eko Atlantic to work on. “For local and international companies that wish to set up office in new business areas like this, it is hard to find the right chairs and desks. Importing international furniture brands is out of the question, these goods are blacklisted for import to promote local production. Local produce is scarce and either not suitable or very much overpriced. With the steep increase of demand, there is a clear business case for international office furniture brands to step into the local market.” Van der Vinne has a number of strong and reliable investors waiting to put their money into assembly and production of office furniture. The investors are hoping to connect to international office furniture enterprises that seek to establish local presence in West Africa.
“We have the production and assembly locations, we can find and help train the workers that are readily available in the Lagos area. All we need is the party that has the brand and the products, to form a partnership with. Local assembly lines can be set up in a matter of weeks or months.” Van der Vinne is convinced that Nigeria’s need for office space is actually based on firm economic growth. “It is not the oil and gas industry that is developing in a positive way, with large investments being done in refining capacity. Other economic sectors like agriculture and the food industry are also growing. Despite some ethnically and religiously inspired disputes in some parts of the country, in my experience Nigeria is a healthy economy where sound investments can reap high rewards. A office furniture investment can be one of the them, but that is basically true for any investment in products and services that can help build and maintain Nigeria’s offices.” The Africa CEO Forum unites the African drivers of economic activity and gives them the chance to exchange information about doing business
Obafemi Banigbe built an impressive career in the African telecommunication business.The requested URL was not found on this server. If you entered the URL manually please check your spelling and try again. If you think this is a server error, please contactOn All Dining Tables & Chairs >Why test chairs and seating? Chairs and seating should be stable and not easily topple over or have gaps that can trap fingers and cause injury, especially in chairs with moving parts such as office chairs, stadium seating and garden chairs. FIRA’s furniture and product tests simulate real-life use and misuse, providing a valuable insight into how a chair or seating system will perform and allow you to identify any issues before your customers do. Domestic furniture - The General Product Safety Regulations 2005 (GPS Regulations) legally require beds and mattresses for the home (domestic market) to present no, or minimal risk to the user. Contract furniture - If you are supplying chairs and seating to the contract sector, which is anywhere that is not classed as a domestic/home environment, the specification will usually state that a product is required to meet the relevant Standard(s) for its intended use.
It is also now the case that many office and contract specifiers will not accept a product unless it has been tested by an independent, third party. Furniture flammability - It is a legal and mandatory requirement that all upholstered furniture intended for domestic use MUST comply with the Furniture & Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations. The UK’s flammability regulations are different from Europe, so it is essential for your ‘due diligence’ that you have a valid test certificate to show a product is legal to sell – read more about flammability testing. Contract furniture is covered by voluntary fire safety standards, often specified in contracts or tenders. Complying with Standards and regulations for chairs and seating Testing is an easy way to ensure compliance and FIRA’s experts are knowledgeable and experienced in the practical requirements for meeting Standards and legislation. There are British and European Standards applicable to the structural testing of tables and desks for both the domestic and contract markets.
Each Standard contains a series of tests which address strength, durability, stability and safety. The test methods and performance requirements vary depending upon the end use of the item concerned, whether for domestic, outdoor, office, contract or educational use. Key areas for assessing chairs and seating: Speak to a FIRA expert to find out the different tests required for your product. Contact us or request a quote. With the exception of flammability performance, for products made in the EU, it is the manufacturer who is responsible for ensuring a product presents no or minimal risk to the user. However if you are importing chairs and seating from overseas into the EU, you are responsible. For flammability performance it is the first importer into the UK who is responsible for ensuring compliance of the product. Performance levels for testing chairs and seating The test methods and performance requirements vary depending upon the end use of the item concerned: A General List Of Products That Can Be Imported From China
If you are keen to profit from importing products from China, but you have no idea what product area to look at, here is a list traditionally popular products that are often imported from China. See the general list of category areas, for you to read through and get some brainwaves! The list includes consumer goods and commercial-type products including many famous import items from china. UPDATE: Currently the hottest wholesale items from China are mainly related to Electronics and gadgets. Visit our latest China product updates page for more inspiration on this category of products. For expert guides on UPDATE: This blog post was updated on 13th of March 2015. List of China Product Categories for Import So here’s the list of items made in China: China Garment Product List Fashion Wear and Casual Wear China Office Items & Furniture List Pens and Writing Instruments Hotel and Restaurant Furniture Educational Games and Toys
Plush and Cloth Toys Chinese Building & Hardware Category Foundry Goods and Forged Pieces Gift Accessories & Decorations Paper Products and Packing Products Paintings, Pictures and Frames Advertising Gifts and Presents Jewellery, Bone Carvings & Jade Carvings Festival and Party Decorations Wholesale Kitchen & Kitchen Ware Horticultural and Gardening Ceramics China Food & Beverage List Fashion Bags and Accessories Import from China Guides Once you’ve decided what product you want to import, click the image below to discover how to import from China. This includes easy step by step guides, useful checklists, as well as common mistakes to avoid. Learn How We Can Help With Importing Products From China Other Goods That Can Be Imported From China Air Conditioners and Ventilation Equipment Beauty and Body-care Products Cashmere and Cashmere Products Chess and Card Games Phone Cases & Custom Phone Cases