✍Few years ago, I did school runs business which involves me picking children from their home to school and vice versa from my first child’s school. The business was a very lucrative one and it’s still a lucrative one but as usual for every business, the starting point was a bit rough in convincing the parent to sign up with me because I wasn’t endorsed by the school in this capacity.
✍Some parents requested for my home address and came visiting to confirm where I stay while some went behind my back to my child’s class to confirm if I had a child in the school. Eventually I started with two children (for a whole session) and with time more children joined.
✍One thing I ensured I put in place was creating a registration form which includes terms and conditions of service with my company letter head. I also have a company receipt and stamp which parents get upon confirmation of payment. This made the business professional and official. Whenever there is any issue arising within the terms and conditions stated in the registration form, I refer parent back to it and this solves the issue immediately because they have signed the agreement.
✍When more children joined, I was making more than N800,000 in a session. But the carmel’s back broke when I was pregnant with my second child and due to doctor’s advice to observe bed rest, I could not run the business myself. I employed someone to oversee the day to day running on my behalf, but due to frequent complaints from parents, I had to let the person go.
✍The next option available for me was to give the business to someone to run but it will be on a 70%/30% sharing formular where I take 30% and the person takes 70%, which we both agreed to. This person is not a family member but someone close because I respect the person so much. I requested for us to document the agreement and both parties will pen their signatures which was agreed to. Even though I had a lawyer friend who could help me out with the agreement, this person offered to do it because the person is aware am on bed rest and cannot go out due to pregnancy. I oblige because I trust this person as someone very close to me. Each time I ask for the agreement on phone, this person will tell me I will get it soon and this went on and on. This person brought family members to my house to appreciate the opportunity given and promised to send the agreement document. Eventually I allowed this person take over the business without getting the agreement documented and gave all the support needed like giving my bus for some weeks because the person’s bus was faulty, making parents to pay to her account directly even when they are skeptical about it etc.
✍After the person received all the payment within a week with my help, I requested for my own share(30%) and the person began to give stories upon stories. With much pressure from my side, the person gave me part of the money and told me to forget about the business afterall there was no documentation to back my claim up and that’s was the end of the business.
💁🏼♀️Today, I know better that documentation in business is very important please don’t make the mistake I made, always do the right thing when it comes to your business.
💁🏼♀️Moral lesson
👉Always ensure you register your business.
👉Be professional always when doing business.
👉Don’t ever enter any agreement with someone or an entity without proper documentation.
👉Do the right thing always when it comes to business no matter who is involved.
👉If you are the person in partnership in business, never allow the other person to do the agreement document involved.
💁🏼♀️Documentation is key in business.
Hope you got value.
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Thanks.
Oluwakemi Asefeso
Oluwakemi Asefeso 