Day I Made My First Million, I Had Accident Thrice —Akubueze

16 February, 2014

His poor background did not offer any hope for a bright future. Having lost his father at a very tender age and coupled with the 30 months civil war in the country, Chief Oliver Akubueze, chairman and chief executive officer, Oliak Petroleum Limited, was left with his widowed mother and three other siblings to eke out a living by themselves, without any helper in sight.
At the end of the civil war, Akubueze’s poor widowed mother had to do all sorts of petty trading to ensure that her children got at least basic education. Even with all her efforts, young Oliver, with all his brilliance, could not go beyond secondary school, as he had to stop to learn a trade so he could join his mother in the training of his siblings.
Akubueze did not lose hope and with sheer determination, focus and hard work, he is today a doctoral student in the University of Lagos, having got his first and second degrees from the prestigious Phoenix University in the United States of America. Apart from this, he is the owner, chairman and chief executive officer of Oliak Petroleum Limited, a strong player in the downstream sector of the oil industry. He also owns many petrol stations in the country.
In this interview, he spoke on his motivation in life, what money meant to him, his management style and on other issues. Excerpts
In the beginning
My name is Chief Sir Oliver Akubueze. I am the chairman and chief executive officer, Oliak Petroleum Limited. We are in the downstream sector of the economy. By this I mean that we buy and retail petroleum products. The story of my life is that of turbulence and seeing hope where others would feel that there is none. I was born in 1960, which was Nigeria’s year of independence. I came from a very humble background. When it was time for me to start school because those days before you were admitted in the school, you would be asked to put your hand across your head. If your palm touches your ear, you would be accepted but if not, the teachers would tell you to go home and come back the following year.
That means you have to be between six and seven years before you would be admitted. When it was time for me to start school, the civil war began. Two years into the war, my father died leaving behind my mother and four of us. At the end of the war in 1970, I started primary school and by then I was already 10 years old. My mother had to do all sorts of petty trading so that we could get basic education. When I finished my secondary education, I had to stop to learn a trade. My mother had wished I would continue because I was exceptionally brilliant but her income could not sustain me in the university. However, I told her not to worry that I would one day achieve her desire for me with regard to education and from the best tertiary institution in the world.
Going into business
The first trade that I learnt was how to sell second hand clothes. I learnt it in Aba. After that I became free to start my own business. I started very small because there was no money to start in a big way. I was collecting small quantities of second hand clothes from the big dealers and selling and sharing the profits with them. From there I matured into carrying bales from the importers, selling and sharing the profit with them, As time went on, I became an importer of second hand clothes as well as other items that could be sold in the market be it stockfish, shoes just name it, It was from there that somebody gave me the connection to go into petroleum business. I stopped every other thing that I was doing so that I could channel all my resources into the business because it is both capital intensive and time consuming.
My first million
The day I made my first one million naira, I could not believe it. Then, I was riding a CD I85 Honda Motorcycle. When I was coming back from the bank, I hit three different vehicles out of excitement. When I was driving home, my mind was in the one million in the bank and I would be telling myself things like, ‘me an owner of one million naira.” With that in my mind, I did not know when I hit the bumper of the vehicle in my front. I apologized to the owner and continued. It happened three times. I thank God that none of the accidents was fatal. You know judging from my poverty- stricken background, I never in my widest imagination thought that I could be a millionaire and that was why I was drunk with excitement that almost cost me my life.
What does money mean to you
As far as I am concerned, money is good only if it is used for the benefit of mankind. So, I see money as an instrument or tool to help people. Without this, money is of no value to me. Making money without using it to better the lot of others is of no use because we will all leave here and go and nobody has succeeded in taking one kobo to the world beyond. Since this is the case, money should be used for the benefit of others and not for acquiring and storing in the bank hoping to make Forbes or Fortune Magazine’s list of the world’s richest men.
Challenges
Well, the cost of doing business in Nigeria is enormous, especially for those of us who found ourselves in the downstream sector. Cost of money is very high, interest rate is very unattractive and there is no way you can operate in the sector without bank loans. That is why the margin we make is most of the time unbelievable to people who are outside the industry. I feel that things would be a lot better if the crude oil that is produced in the country is being refined here. To the best of my knowledge, Nigeria is the only country in the world that is producing crude oil without its own refineries. So, I feel the earlier government begins to think about rehabilitating the existing refineries in the country, the better for us all. Again, Central Bank of Nigeria needs to reduce the interest rate to single digit for those who are operating in the critical sectors of the nation’s economy.
Management Style
Well, petroleum products marketing is a highly competitive business that one needs to be innovative before one could excel. To start with, if you are in the downstream, your petrol stations must be located in a very good site. The number of vehicles that pass through your site would determine whether it is good or not. Another point is that you must always have cash at hand to buy the products. In this type of business, it is availability of your products that enables you to build customer confidence. If you sell today and tomorrow, somebody comes and sees ‘no fuel sign,’ he would lose interest and go elsewhere where supply is always available. Your attendants should always be very customer -friendly because that is the only way to keep customers coming back. Again, you must not be among those that sell adulterated products or use every opportunity of scarcity to increase your pump price. In all, to succeed in the business, you must be guided by honour, integrity and good customer relationship. All this has helped to make Oliak Petroleum a success.
Advice to Nigerians
The advice that I have for people out there especially the youths is that they must know the world is not a bed of roses. They must imbibe hard work in their stride. They should also never allow their background to be an obstacle to their attaining the desires of their hearts. There is nothing like blue blood. If you cut any body’s skin, what would flow would be a red substance called blood. It does not matter whether the person was born in Ikoyi or in Ajegunle. That you are alive and healthy is all you need to strive for your goals in life. But they must have it at the back of their minds that nothing good comes easy