How I turned bread selling to mega business — 80-year-old ex-civil servant

A Lagos-based ex-civil servant and retired businesswoman, Mrs Esther Awolana, speaks with BIODUN BUSARI during her 80th birthday celebration about her childhood, marital experiences, and life lessons

Could you introduce yourself?

I am a native of Odogogo in Ogun State. I attended Christ Church School, Odosenbora, Ilugun Alaro, Ogun State, from 1955 to 1960. After my primary education, I proceeded to Macjob Secondary School in Ibara, Abeokuta. I am blessed with sons and daughters.

How do you feel about turning 80?

I am very excited and grateful to God for sparing my life so I can celebrate this milestone birthday. I look back at my life and can only thank God for many blessings. There are ups and downs in life for everyone, but God’s faithfulness endures in my life, and it is enough for me. Moreover, I am blessed with successful children who are taking care of me. It is a great privilege.

What is your greatest wish at this time?

My greatest wish is to remain hale and hearty. I do not wish to fall sick. I understand the significance of good health. It is also my earnest prayer that I should enjoy sound health together with my children.

What events followed your education?

I started working. I engaged in trading before I got married. I was buying and selling bread to people. I grew my business to the point of having a depot where my customers came to buy in bulk from me. I was very popular in the business in Abeokuta at the time. After that, I moved to Lagos in 1971.

What inspired you to venture into the bread business?

It was about meeting the basic needs of people. There was a period when people started demanding bread as a staple food. I was buying from bakeries and selling to people. However, it got to a time when the business boomed. There were varieties and demand grew. I had to expand my shop until it became a depot for bakeries in Abeokuta.

What are the fondest memories of your childhood?

One spectacular experience was that my father did not want to fund my education. His excuse was always that the children he had invested in were not brilliant. He saw his investment as a waste of time and resources. But, the story changed in 1955 when Chief Obafemi Awolowo came to our town. He was the Premier of the old Western Region at the time.

He introduced free primary education, and people jubilated. It was a rare and commendable project that was embraced and celebrated by all. That was when I cried out to my father that I wanted to go to school. The next morning, he took me to Christ Church School to enrol me.

Awolowo did not collect money from our parents. He even distributed books and other educational materials to schoolchildren for them to benefit from his free education programme. I was one of the beneficiaries.

In what ways did that experience impact your life?

The first thing was that I was privileged to be chosen among the schoolchildren who marched during Nigeria’s Independence Day celebration in 1960. It was the year I finished my primary education in our town.

Secondly, I learnt that one should always communicate one’s desires to people who can help. When you have challenges or requests that are beyond your control, look for people who can help you solve them. There is a saying that ‘a closed mouth is a closed destiny.’

To avoid becoming a victim of a closed destiny, we should speak out whenever we have problems. In my case, I looked at the opportunity at the time and wept profusely before my father to ask for primary education, and he granted it. There were people in my time who did not benefit from it.

Did you also ask for secondary education?

I did not ask for secondary education before I got it. After primary school, I was taken to register at Macjob Secondary School in Ibara, Abeokuta. I was in the commercial section of the school. It was also called St Anthony’s Secondary School.

Unfortunately, I was staying with an older relative who later relocated to further his studies. I had to stop and return to our hometown in Ijebu. Then, I continued my education at L.A. Modern Secondary School, Moroko, Ogun State. I spent one year there. I passed my final secondary school certificate examination, but there was no money to fund my tertiary education.

What can you say about your marriage?

I met my husband in 1971. I was living at No. 30 on our street. My husband was a painter and he had a workshop very close to our house. He had been watching me as I engaged in my trading. One day, he trailed me.

He told me about his intention to marry me. I told him that I would think about it. He accompanied me to the place I was headed that day after work. When he persisted, and I saw his genuineness, I agreed to marry him.

What were the qualities you admired in your husband before you agreed to marry him?

He used to buy gifts for me. He bought clothing materials for me. He was amusing. He was a complete gentleman. When we got married, he continued to help me with my bread business. Sometimes, he would drive to bring loaves of bread to my shop for customers to purchase.

What other things did you venture into?

I worked as a civil servant. I worked in the Operations Unit of Customs and Excise on Airport Road, Ikeja, Lagos. My official duties were in correspondence. Wages were paid twice a month back then. I worked there for only four years before my husband asked me to stop and focus on nurturing our children. After my resignation, I returned to bread business.

Can you talk about the secret of your longevity?

There is no secret I have except God. I pray to God through Jesus Christ. I do not go to native doctors for anything. Since my childhood, I have known that God answers prayers in Jesus’ name. I do not allow things to worry me too much.

I know it is difficult not to get worried as humans, but such worries should not be taken too far. Also, I read the Bible when I still had good eyesight. In all, I trust God, and He has never let me down. These are my secrets.

What was the key lesson you learnt as a wife and mother for others to emulate?

It was essential to cook for children at home. It served as a way to manage your husband’s resources. It built confidence at home and promoted love between couples. It was not common to buy food outside then. It also gives your children the opportunity to be healthy. Children will be healthy and also learn to emulate their parents.

It prevents waste as well. If many parents do this, there will be understanding in the home. I believe many marriages can be saved if today’s women manage their husbands’ resources. It is a lesson I learnt early in my marriage. Men appreciate women who manage their resources. This can prevent broken homes.

How do you think couples should keep their marriages in this contemporary age?

Marriages and homes were preserved with patience during our time. Many couples have thrown away patience and long-suffering. The reason we have many broken homes these days is that husbands and wives cannot live with patience. They cannot tolerate or endure.

These virtues preserve homes. The reason we have political thugs is not far-fetched from these broken homes. In homes where parents do not lead by example, children will be wayward and become societal liabilities.

What are the religious values that you cherish?

I am a chorister in the Anglican Church. My parents were Anglicans, and I was born an Anglican. There are many Christian values that have shaped my life. As I mentioned earlier, patience is one of them. Also, love is very important. It is an essential ingredient for being an asset to others in any community or church.

When we love one another, there will be no wickedness among us. One of the reasons people hate one another is the absence of love. As Christians, we should love our neighbours as Jesus commands us. If there is love in all spheres of life, we will not be battling corruption, assassination, bribery, broken homes, and many other vices.

Do you have any advice for women in public offices?

Both men and women serving in public offices should be kind and accountable with the country’s resources. They should not be self-centred in governance. Nigerians are suffering. The masses are struggling to feed and send their children to school, so our government officials should help.

This country is blessed, and there is no reason people should be impoverished in a country flowing with milk and honey. My appeal to the government is to govern well and help the needy. Look out for the less privileged and assist them. Also, infrastructure should be provided to help people live well.