‘Family Businesses Must Succeed, Outlive Founder’

Stakeholders have emphasised the need for family businesses to succeed and outlived the founder, in view of the huge contribution it makes on the nation’s economy.

The about 23.8million family businesses spread across the Federation contribute about $200billion to the nation’s economy annually, LEADERSHIP learnt.

To this end, the special adviser to president Bola Tinubu on Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, and other stakeholders have emphasised the need for family businesses to succeed and outlived the founder.

The stakeholders make this assertion in Lagos at a First Bank sponsored event organised by Business Day tagged: ‘My Family My Business,’ with the aim to promote family business succession, sustainable planning and preservation of businesses for future generations.

PEBEC boss, Oduwole said: “many businesses have transcend generations, and providing significant amounts of jobs and contributing to continuity in development and underpinning economic growth across all advanced economies of the world examples of such include BMW, Nike, general Electric among others. 

“In Nigeria, we are not short of entrepreneurial people, leading with international conglomerates with the likes of the Dantata organisation, the Ibru family, the Yinka Folawiyo and even the Doyin group right down to the Nano businesses have contributed about 50 per cent to the country’s GDP.

“In effect, 23. 8 million family businesses in Nigeria account for millions of jobs and contribute on nearly $200 billion to the Nigerian economy each year. This figures reflect the glaring importance, significance and the impact that family businesses have on Nigeria’s economy and the need for us all to ensure the sustainability of our multi generational businesses. 

“With sustainability, we want to have the Nikes, the BMWs scaling right across the African region and globally and that is the aim and that is what we all have to work towards,” said Oduwole.

On his part, the group executive, Private Banking and Wealth Management, First Bank Nigeria, Idowu Thompson, said it is important for family business to ensure continuity by ensuring the next generation gets involved early enough which is also related to the scope of apprenticeship.

Thompson said, they do not necessarily need to get involved at the top and if possible, let them even get experiences outside of the core business of the family. let them get either short or long term learning and be prudent with money because they are custodians for the future.

The Senior Partner, PwC Nigeria, Sam Abu, asserted that private enterprises dominate as the top 1per cent own 43 per cent of global wealth. In Nigeria, top 100 billionaires own $68billion and prominent family businesses have market capitalisation exceeding $20billion.

Only 38 per cent of future generations are involved in family businesses with a mere 28 per cent on management boards.

The publisher, BusinessDay Newspaper, Frank Aigbogun, noted that, “family businesses are the heart and soul of many economies, and they hold a unique place in our world. They are testament to the power of values, trust, and a shared vision. They not only contribute significantly to local and global economies but also exemplify the strength of family legacies that build the foundation of the society.”

“My Family Business Summit is an opportunity to share experiences, knowledge, and insights that have motivated these enterprises scale and thrive. As we demystify the challenges and opportunities in today’s volatile and dynamic business world, the goal of this event is to celebrate the traditions that have made family businesses stable overtime,” he concluded.