26/03/2021
MANDASI SECRETS
There’s a secret that if most realized, would improve their businesses tenfold. It exists in the business model mostly practiced by Mandasi (Doughnut) makers. It is the Mandasi Secret.
Most business women (men are free to engage too) who prepare Mandasi do not have shops. By default, that is the business model. They simply focus on preparing the Mandasi right at their home. Each morning after preparing the Mandasi they count them into a bucket ready for delivery to shops around their neighborhood. Others go the extra mile to employee 2 or 3 boys (praise them for their employment efforts) to carry the buckets around town or schools to sell on their behalf.
MODEL 1
Let me start with the shops. If one Ndasi sells for K10, the shop usually gets a commission of about K2 (20%) of the sales. If 50 units are sold, making a revenue of K500, the shop owner gets K100 and the baker K400. This may seem little but remember one very important thing. The baker can bake about 200 units or even more and distribute in 3 to 4 shops. That K400 per shop becomes K2000 per day from 4 shops, and K50,000 per month, K600,000 per year. And this is without owning a shop, no rentals, no employee, and capable of scaling up by simply identifying more shops to deliver your Mandasi.
Now I am not saying start the Mandasi business, but the business model that is being used. Key points being you do not need to own a shop, nor pay rentals, or employees. Just like the Mandasi model, you can apply the principles to your Shoe selling business, or a book that you can write, or those clothes you fail to sell by posting “Taking Orders”.
We will subsequently give practical examples using this model on applying to assorted businesses.
MODEL 2
Now let me quickly go to the second model where the Mandasi baker prepares the Mandasi, counts them into 2 or 3 buckets, then gives them to sales-boys who go around with the buckets in markets or schools on and about until they make a days’ worth. This model is also common to those who sell boiled Eggs (commonly seen if you ever ride a bus through the bus depot) as they are simply given a crate of boiled eggs to go around with and sell. And surely indeed, they sell.
In this model, the baker calculates the minimum units to be sold to cover his/her costs. For example, he/she can bake 300 units. Out of 3000 she can calculate that she only needs to sell 180 units to cover costs. The sales boy/girl is therefore given a target to sell 250 units and told that the remaining 50 units will be his profit to take. In strict terms this is what we call Economies of Scale. You produce enough to cover your costs, and enough to the point where you minimize cost and maximize volume or units produced.
A very classical example can be a Minibus driver and his conductor. They go to the depot, fill the bus up. Once full they know that they have made enough for fuel (the cost) and also a profit. However, as they go along the way not all passengers drop at one point. Some drop early and thereby creating space for more passengers. These extra passengers are not going to need extra fuel. That cost was already covered. The remainder therefore becomes pure profit without extra costs.
The same with the Mandasi baker. She can bake 300 units which are enough to cover cost and profit. But there will remain flour that was prepared, cooking oil and charcoal still available. Those extra Mandasi baked in that period are not consuming any costs, they are leftover and are simply profit if they will be sold.
APPLICABILITY
Now I am not saying you should all start Mandasi business, rather, I want you to understand the two business models that I have presented and apply it to your business. How? Let us look at some examples.
Salon:
You may own a Salon, and may calculate that rentals and assorted costs at say K80,000. And you may realize that to cover this cost you just need to do steaming for 4 clients, sells 3 pieces of weaves, and braid 5 clients. Instead of pressuring the salon attendants each month, you can simoly give them those targets slightly adjusted upwards and allow them to partake in the profits thereafter. This model will ensure your attendants are loyal, hardworking, and won’t bother to steal as long as they reach their targets.
A similar example would be Kabaza (Bicycle Taxis). You simply give the attendant a daily target say K700. Anything above that is theirs. Of course there exist problems such as attendants not being faithful, but those who do Kabaza business know that once they find a loyal attendant, they make easy money indeed simply because the business model is super. It is underestimated.
If you sell clothes you can use the same model. No need to have a shop, just delivery shops.
If you sell makeup accessories, same thing. Some salons can allow you to place your products there especially if your costs are reasonable. These can include hair extensions, closures, Avon Products etc. The key is to be humble with your costs because the owners of the shop would rather do it on their own if they can beat your price.
As I conclude, perhaps you have a business and are not sure how to apply this Mandasi business model. Let us help you with your business needs.
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