One thing I have come to understand in this current era of the economy is that the church business is booming just like the betting business. If you look closely, churches are springing up as frequently as betting shops, and both are thriving. However, I do not want to focus on the church business here but rather on the betting business, which I have observed to be highly lucrative.
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About two years ago, I was close to a man who newly opened a betting office, Bet9ja to be precise. He set it up on a street where other offices of the same betting company had already been established. I initially thought that, given the close proximity of these offices, his business would struggle. However, I was shocked at how well he was getting patronage.
Betting is a rapidly growing industry because football is expanding on a massive scale, and young people today just want to hit it big. Although betting has its drawbacks, its success stories have been quite surprising. I recall that last year, news broke out about a man who won millions of naira with just three hundred naira. With such stories, many people believe that they, too, will strike it big one day, and this keeps them betting continuously.
This is a business that, if well-planned and structured, is unlikely to face bankruptcy or closure because the demand is ever-present. If you take a look around, you will rarely find a betting office without electricity running all day. Whether powered by diesel, fuel, or a solar system, maintaining electricity requires money. They would not be keeping their electricity on throughout the day if no profit was coming in. This indicates just how profitable the business is, it keeps running because there is a steady stream of customers, even if they place low-stake bets.
If the business is structured to a high standard, where multiple computer systems (preferably desktops) are positioned for customers to use when placing their bets, it becomes even more inviting and convenient. With such an arrangement, many customers will make the betting shop their regular spot, even going as far as adopting specific computer systems as their own while continuously pouring money into the business.
I am saying this based on what I know and what I have observed. The betting business is highly profitable.
Some may argue that the business is not morally sound because it contributes to societal decay. To some extent, this is true. However, betting comes with clear warnings urging people to bet responsibly. Moreover, the sporting industry, particularly football, strongly supports betting and is making good revenue from it. So, when viewed from a business perspective, betting is not a bad venture. There is money in it, and at the end of the day, is that not the primary goal of any business?
The challenge with this business is that the start-up needs a lot of money especially to purchase the equipments like computer systems, TVs, power plants and many others.
Thanks for reading.
I wrote this in response to Hive naija prompt