It is often said a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step and this is apt in the life of Akeem Olukunle Balogun, the founder and CEO of Climate Technical Services Ltd.
Speaking with YOUTHVILLE, Akeem delved into the murky waters of doing business in Nigeria when he decided to launch his mechanical services company in 2002 with the core focus on Heating Ventilation and Air Condition (HVAC).
- FG inaugurates committee on export grant
- Okowa performs groundbreaking for $40m power transmission tower industry
He was a staff trainee with Nairda Electromechanical Limited for years, when he decided it was time for him to be his own boss and become an employer of labour as well as follow his passion for mechanical engineering.
He expected that there will be challenges along the way but was ready to face these challenges, and has opened his corporate office and international standard fabrication workshop in Lagos.
Balogun said: “A lot of challenges, and let me say the challenges started in 2010 when I got incorporated because a lot of potential clients see me as a young person that you can hardly trust with their funds.
“I decide to accept most job and allow client to purchase material and I do the labour only, and mostly work as a subcontractor, then decide to let my company profile look bigger than me as an individual because doing a lot of projects and getting lower pay helped me to build my profile,” he said.
He acknowledged that he experienced sleepless nights in the course of doing his job. According to him, he would work without mobilization funds just to get the job and improve his profile and yet still not get paid where he had to question himself for taking such risks
“I would work without mobilization fees and some clients will refuse to pay afterwards.
“Working with some indigenous contractor as a subcontractor makes you question your decisions a lot of times.
“Despite the challenges faced, Akeem is optimistic of having his company developing its own brand of air-conditioning and being a household name when it comes to mechanical services.
“I want to have our own brand air condition and to build a holistic mechanical firm, which ranges from a fabrication workshop to the servicing of our branded air condition in Africa, and with where we are now I think dreams are coming through gradually,” Balogun explained.
The Computer Science graduate however urged youths to put in a lot of work and sacrifice if they want to be successful.
“There is a lot of work and sacrifice to put in before you can even get to a slice of what you are aspiring for.
“Even after 10 years of incorporation we are still not there as we are thriving to be the best,” he concluded.
