Discover how he took his love for Agege bread from Lagos to Canada and in just a few years turned it into a multi-million dollar business with a loyal following.
In 2016, Adewale Rabiu and his family moved from Lagos to Ontario, Canada. With experience working in Nigeria’s telecom industry, for MTN, he got a position at Canadian telecom giant, Rogers Communication.
This should have settled him but he had moved to Canada with dreams of owning his own business. “When we were planning the move,” he recalls, “we already discussed that if we found a business opportunity, we would grab it.”
How A Need Became A Business Idea
As Rabiu and family settled into their new home in Ontario, they began to miss the legendary Agege bread. This looked like the business opportunity they had an eye out for and the Rabius eagerly seized it.
With experience in sales and marketing, Adewale Rabiu studied the market and the distribution chains. He spoke to local stores that sold products targeted at the African and Caribbean markets. Moreover, he also researched how to register a business in Ontario. External funding in the form of grants and loans was out of sight and Rabui and wife pooled their savings.
Starting Up And Braving Challenges
The company was registered, a premise was leased and the equipment was purchased. In addition, there was the problem of finding skilled bakers that could make authentic Agege bread. To meet this challenge, at the end of 2017, Rabiu took annual leave and returned to Nigeria. He learned everything he could about making Agege bread.
Afterwards, when he returned and started the hiring process, he couldn’t find a single baker. “I couldn’t believe it. We had set up the business and were ready but couldn’t find the employees!” He recalls. He shared all he had learnt about Agege bread with his wife and they started baking themselves. They would only find their first baker only about five months later.
Their dedication paid off, and in March 2018, Grey Matlock Bakery produced its inaugural batch of 14 loaves. This was enough to supply just one African store but it was enough to get the ball rolling.
By October 2021, Grey Matlock was selling up to 2,500 loaves of bread every other day. Their offering has grown to include sausages, chicken pies, cakes, pastries and whole wheat bread.
Adapting: Slicing Agege Bread Into Butter Filled
Agege bread as we know it, is sold as whole-loaf and eaten by being pulled apart. To adapt to Canadian preference for sliced loaves, Grey Matlock would offer pre-sliced Agege bread, under the name ‘Butterfilled’. This allowed them to cater to the demand for convenience.
Ever since, their product range have expanded to include other types of bread and other baked goods. However, their original Agege bread, remains their bestselling product.
Franchising
Grey Matlock offers its Agege bread as franchises. Its franchises are located in five locations in Ontario. According to Rabiu, the goal of franchising the brand is to meet the boom in demand across locations outside Brampton. He also hopes to give others the opportunity to enter the market not as competitors but as partners. “We are letting people, who would have been competition, build our brand,” says Rabiu.
Read: How To Start A Passive Income Franchise
Going Global
Today, Grey Matlock Bakery’s products can be found on the shelves of over 300 African and Caribbean stores and major supermarket chains all over Canada. With two bakeries in Ontario and Calgary, and a growing network of franchises, their reach continues to expand.
However, Rabiu’s vision, extends far beyond Canada. In Canada, he hopes to one day, compete with Canada’s largest bread brands, Dempster’s and Wonder Bread. With interest from as far as Australia and the United Kingdom, Rabiu sees Grey Matlock Bakery next frontier outside Canada.
“Thanks to the growth we’ve seen, that is how our vision has shifted already,” says Rabiu. “In the next couple of years, maybe we will see if we can sell into every part of the world.”
Financials (Rough estimates)
Grey Matlock Bakery’s financial performance is not publicly available. However, we can make some rough estimates based on the information provided by Patrick Brown, the Mayor of Brampton City, Ontario.
He mentions that Grey Matlock Bakery bakes at least 2,000 loaves of bread per day. With each loaf priced at $4.60 on Uber Eats, this translates to a daily revenue of at least $9,200. Extrapolating this to a yearly figure, we get an estimated revenue of over $3.3 million per year. However, this estimate does not take into account other revenue streams, expenses, or potential discounts offered.
Also, it is from 2021 when Grey Matlock sold in 150 stores. Updated figures show that it now sells in twice the number of stores across Canada, 300.
Insights: What We Can Learn
Rabiu’s story offers several valuable insights for anyone looking to set up businesses especially as expats.
- Identify Opportunities in Unmet Needs: Rabiu recognized the lack of Agege bread in Canada in spite of its large African diaspora community and seized this opportunity. Identifying and catering to the cultural needs and preferences of your community is always a powerful business opportunity.
- Leverage Existing Skills and Experience: Rabiu drew from his prior experience in sales, marketing to navigate the business landscape. Entrepreneurs are known to leverage their existing skills and professional experiences to give their ventures a competitive edge.
- Take Matters Into Your Own Hands: When faced with challenges, such as not finding skilled bakers, Rabiu took matters into his own hands. This hands-on approach is an essential quality for successful entrepreneurship.
- Adapt to Local Preferences: Rabiu recognized the need to adapt his product to local preferences by offering pre-sliced Agege bread under the name ‘Butterfilled’. Be willing to adapt your offerings to cater to the tastes and preferences of your markets.
- Always Think Global, Act Local: While Rabiu started with a local focus, catering to the African and Caribbean communities in Canada, he had a global vision from the outset. Be open to expanding your reach beyond your immediate communities.
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