The beautiful city of Lagos in the country, Nigeria is a really mesmerizing sight, its saturated with great and wonderful people who are simple but yet intricate. Lagosian's are unique citizens with a rather ‘’advanced’’ way of life that could be studied. The fact is Lagos is really special as well as it’s residents known as Lagosian's. A typical Lagosian is someone who has stayed in the city for at least 5 years and understands the extreme roller coaster of daily living. Just visiting you can already sense the Lagos Spirit and the vibrancy. The parlance ‘’if you don't become sharp after staying in Lagos, you can never be sharp anywhere else’’ leaves everyone proactive and spontaneous

Trading activities are prime as it used to be the former state capital of Nigeria before independence. The ever vibrant trading activities that was present then during the colonial era was the stepping stone and reason for the escalation of business activities even till date as well as the fact that most of the major sea ports are situated there. From the airport to the parking lot, you can already feel the business vibe with different people at different locations offering either a service or product.
Carrying out trading activities is present by default in their DNA’s and inherent in their being.

There are stores, supermarkets, malls for buying and selling with sales in the traffic inclusive. I remember when my little cousin came visiting from the UK, was stuck in the traffic on our way home, she sighted a trader who had his stuffs well displayed in his mobile shop (his arm). Being a little girl who hadn’t seen such, I guess she imagined the only reason why edible products were held in the middle of the road was for free distribution. In a blink she reached out and had already collected a well packaged sausage know as gala thinking it was free (loool)...Then we have to enlighten her :)

Corporate organisations such as top companies and firms are not left out in this trade system. There is always an employee in every organisation who is responsible for carrying out purchases needed by the organisation as well as marketers who are responsible for creating awareness of their products because of the aggressive competition that exists.
This Lagos attribute is not just over the city but serves as an influences for other states. Even students go to major markets such as Balogun and Oshodi to purchase goods for resale in their school after which a considerable amount of profit is made
The most common type of trade however is street hawking, a small scale business which involves the trader displaying his/her wares on top of their heads in a tray. From the government of to Jakande down to Ambode the present Govenor. They all have frowned at the act of hawking by putting measure to eradicate street trading, however they have failed due to non compliance.

There have been cases of hawkers killed on expressways, Some ill minded individuals have taken advantage of hawking as a means to rob individuals on the highway.

The streets of Lagos are always busy, the hustle and bustle leaves most fatigued, so after a stressful long day at work on peoples way back, the thought of having to park just to get a bottle of soda and snacks could be devastating, this results in a large portion of the populace to encourage the act thereby making road hawkers part of the Lagos ecosystem.
Trade has however become more electronic in nature with the increased use of the internet in buying and selling as well as other transactions.

The introduction of of e-commerce has experienced commendable growth, with almost two decades down the line, it’s further being embraced and encouraged daily.
Social media is the new big thing in business, with the emergence of Facebook, Instagram and Twitter as well as messaging apps such as BBM and Whatsapp most companies and individuals have gotten the perfect platform to advertise and take their products and services to the next level, with posts like “Exclusive Deals! Now Offering Highly Quality Men Shoes, Call us on 08081xxxxx or add us on your bbm channel at C1001567 ’’ and the likes have helped individuals and companies grow their businesses as well as boost the exposure of their brand

Websites like Konga and Jumia as well are not left out as they have paved the way for traders to have their own online store.
The attribute of the typical business scene however has it’s pitfalls, the intense competition usually experienced. A new trader may decide to open a new store where he sells a particular type of merchandise, as soon as he begins to make good sales, new traders ‘’copycats’’ would open stores that sell similar stuffs as well thereby leading to fall in sales of the initiator. The funny thing is the new competitors could be hardcore who don’t necessarily put into consideration important factors but rather go ahead with setting up their store very close to the initial store of that line of business. This hasn’t deprived anyone the change of succeeding because as they say ‘’ the sky is big enough for everyone to fly’’ only thing is the level of competition which triggers consistency and introduction of strategies to outsmart each other. The relationships that exists among individuals however still keeps the system going, for example

Mr. John. has a friend who is Mr. Williams, Mr. John is in need of a service then goes ahead to ask Mr. Williams, Mr Williams then calls Miss Stephanie who has the capacity to render such service,
This is known as the relationship structure of business and it goes on and on. However, the structure/cycle has its problems as well
If Miss Stephanie. disappoints Mr. John with the service she renders. It would lead to both of them being at loggerheads. This would have no consequences on Mr Williams, just two angry individuals (except on rare occasions) where the whole situation could escalate. However, if the service was executed with no hiccups it would lead to more opportunities for Miss Stephanie as she could be introduced by Mr John to another client.

The state government has reviewed the different trading/business structures in place and is working on putting measures in place to create a better and ever friendly business atmosphere. However if you wish to take a trip to Africa, I suggest you visit Lagos state, the atmosphere is very energetic, so many places you could visit and exotic African dishes to try. If you are the king/Queen of turn up’s, Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights are the best of days as the whole cruise would leave you engulfed in the perfect fantasy and state of bliss

Till then, don’t be surprised to see the weirdest of things being hawked on the streets of Lagos. It’s just being driven by the zealous and overly dedicated residents who have embraced the art of trade as a way of life and medium to success.

''If you can make it Lagos, you can make it anywhere''.

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Images:

http://www.100resilientcities.org/cities/entry/lagos-resilience-challenge
http://www.100resilientcities.org/cities/entry/lagos-resilience-challenge
https://www.naij.com/493826-5-top-shopping-malls-in-lagos.html
https://www.naij.com/531841-photos-top-20-interesting-facts-victoria-island-didnt-know.html
http://guardian.ng/property/professionals-urge-compliance-to-lekki-master/