Video games are a source of entertainment for lots of children and young adults, and a video game centre can be a great business to set up. Video games are neverending and evergreen as there will always be children and young adults who play them. If you are a video game lover, then read this piece to the end as I’m going to show you how to start a video game centre in Nigeria.
The demand for video games and consoles is high among young people in Nigeria, and it is not a bad business to try out as it can make you some cool passive income. Below are guides that are going to help you start a video game centre in Nigeria.
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Start a Video Game Centre in Nigeria
Below are some steps that are going to guide you to start a video game centre in Nigeria.
1. Do Market Research and Get a Plan
One step you have to take to start a video game centre in Nigeria is to research the market and see what your potential competitors are doing well and what they’re doing badly. Check out how other game centres around you run, get ideas from it but always look to improve on every single thing they are doing. Know what consoles and games attract the most customers around. Know their prices and look to undercut them as more people will go to the store that is cheaper. Also, look for things that you think the young people will love to have in a game centre and then, make plans to implement them.
After doing your research, you have to make a business plan that you have to follow so you don’t get lost when you dive in. This business plan can also be used to get loans from banks if you don’t have enough funding to start it out. During your research, you should also know how profitable the venture will be as that’s a key factor in getting loans.
2. Get your business registered and insured
Now, after doing research and having a business plan, you should start going to the government authorities to get your business licensed. This will help you to run smoothly and avoid any hiccups. You will need to be registered to CAC, and other agencies. Depending on the state you want to open the business, there are state agencies you may need to talk to.
Also, get insurance for your business as soon as you start running as that will help mitigate the effect theft and other damages will have on you.
3. Get a location to open your game centre
This is the beginning of all your groundwork. You need to get a good location where you can open the game centre and also a place to rent or lease.
Picking a good location should be based on the number of customers you can get in that area. You should look to pick an area where there are plenty of young people around. Getting a place near a university, polytechnic, or multiple secondary schools is a good idea as those are your customers.
Next, find a place to lease in that area, and make sure it is spacious enough for your ventures. Make sure the space will take about 5 televisions and multiple spectators. Also, make sure the place gets a stable power supply so you won’t spend much running generators.
4. Purchase all equipments
This is where you need to be quite cautious as that’s where you’d spend the money when you want to start a video game centre in Nigeria.
First, you need to buy the consoles you want to offer in your game centre. I would suggest you get a PlayStation 5, 4 and 3, Xbox Series S and X. According to your research, if one of these gets more customers than the other, get one more of it. Also, make sure to get multiple controllers.
If PC games are in high demand, make sure to get good gaming desktops and monitors.
Second, get televisions for each of the consoles, make sure to get ones that are quite large and immersive. Get the connectors also.
Get a UPS as this will help your games to keep on running after the power supply goes and you have to turn on a generator.
Also, get unlimited Wi-Fi, probably a fibre network or Starlink if you can afford it. This will help you as there are some games people may request for that need internet connectivity. Unlimited Wi-Fi is also a perk that can set you aside from your competitors and attract more people.
Get comfortable chairs, decorations, fans, AC, and other things that will make the centre more comfortable so people can stay longer. Also, get a generator as you will need it many times.
When getting the electronics above, it is more cost-effective to get ones that are pre-used. However, make sure to buy from reputable stores so you can get original equipments.
Also, get people who are going to work for you in there if you may need it. Get someone trustworthy and honest.
5. Buy games
After that, you need to get games that young adults nowadays play. Some games you should have are FIFA, ePES, Mortal Kombat, Injustice, GTA, Modern Combat, Fortnite, Call of Duty, Resident Evil, etc. Search for trending games at the moment and get them installed on all your consoles.
6. Run adverts
Now, that you are already set to start a video game centre in Nigeria. You need to run adverts so your target audience around your game centre can know that you exist. Get flyers and banners, distribute the flyers to young adults around and hang your banners where many people will see them.
Also, run Facebook and Instagram ads targeting young adults in your game centre area so they can also hear about it. Never stop marketing as more and more people need to know about your game centre so they can patronize you. If you set it up to be comfortable like I said, getting returning customers will be easy.
Getting to start a game centre in Nigeria is just the beginning. Make sure to listen to the complaints and reviews of customers and work on them. Don’t sleep on your competitors and keep on innovating so you’re always ahead of them.
Now, we’ve come to the end of this article showing you how to start a video game centre in Nigeria.