How to build a business with your community

There's a famous saying: "If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together." It's often described as an African proverb. Whether or not it began that way, it describes how many African businesses actually grow.

Behind many successful shops, restaurants, farms and brands, there's not just an entrepreneur — there's a community. The tontine that provided the first capital. The neighbours who were the first customers. The local suppliers who gave credit. The association that shared a stand at the fair.

How can entrepreneurs build a business with their community — not just in it — and why does this approach often last longer?

"In" vs. "with" the community

A business in the community sells to local people. A business with the community involves them: as customers, suppliers, workers, partners, advisors or even owners.

The difference matters. When a community feels part of a business, it protects it. People recommend it, defend its reputation, stay loyal when times are hard and help solve problems.

Joke break: One shop owner in Cotonou said her best security system wasn't a camera. It was Mama Ayaba across the street, who notices everything. "If a thief comes, the whole street will know his name, his father's name and which primary school he went to."

The community as a source of capital

For many African entrepreneurs, banks are hard to access. So communities finance each other.

Tontines (rotating savings and credit associations, or ROSCAs) Members contribute a fixed amount regularly. Each period, one member receives the whole pot. Tontines exist across Africa under many names: tontine in francophone West and Central Africa, susu in Ghana, esusu or ajo in Nigeria, chama in Kenya, stokvel in South Africa.

In South Africa alone, the National Stokvel Association of South Africa (NASASA) has estimated that stokvels involve millions of members and manage billions of rand every year.

Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs) Groups of 15–30 people save together and lend to members at agreed interest. Organisations like CARE International have supported VSLAs across Africa for decades, reaching millions of members.

Stokvels in South Africa are estimated to involve around 11 million members and circulate tens of billions of rand a year. (NASASA estimates) Community savings groups are one of the largest informal financial systems in Africa.

The community as first customers

Your neighbours, colleagues, church, mosque and family are often your first market. But building with them means more than asking them to buy:

• Ask their opinion before launching.
• Let them test products.
• Offer loyalty benefits.
• Involve them in naming, designing or choosing products.

People support what they help create. Read The first customers: lessons from local entrepreneurs.

The community as suppliers

Buying from local suppliers keeps money circulating locally. Economists call this the "local multiplier effect": money spent with local businesses is more likely to be re-spent locally, supporting more jobs.

Examples:

• A restaurant buys vegetables from local farmers and fish from local fishers.
• A fashion brand works with local tailors and fabric sellers.
• A cosmetics brand buys shea butter directly from women's cooperatives.

Local sourcing also makes great marketing: customers love knowing where things come from. See The hidden work behind an African made product.

The community as workers

Hiring locally builds loyalty and reduces transport costs for workers. Training young people from the neighbourhood creates skills and goodwill. Many businesses become known as "the place that gave my son his first job."

Tip: Be fair and professional even with people you know. Clear contracts and fair pay protect relationships. Read What young workers want from their first job.

The community as owners: cooperatives

A cooperative is a business owned and democratically controlled by its members. Members share profits and make decisions together — often one member, one vote.

Cooperatives are common in agriculture, crafts, savings and credit, housing and transport across Africa. The International Cooperative Alliance reports that cooperatives worldwide involve more than 1 billion members.

Strengths:

• Shared capital and risk.
• Bargaining power: small producers together can negotiate better prices.
• Shared equipment: a group can buy a machine no individual could afford.
• Training and mutual support.

Challenges:

• Decisions can be slow.
• Conflicts over money or leadership.
• Some members contribute less than others.

Well-run cooperatives have clear rules, transparent accounts, regular meetings and elected leaders.

"Cooperatives are a reminder to the international community that it is possible to pursue both economic viability and social responsibility." — Ban Ki-moon, former UN Secretary-General

Social enterprises: business with a mission

A social enterprise is a business that aims to solve a social or environmental problem while earning income. Examples across Africa include businesses that:

• Collect and recycle waste while paying collectors. (Wecyclers in Lagos, founded by Bilikiss Adebiyi-Abiola, rewarded households for recycling.)
• Provide affordable solar lamps to off-grid homes.
• Train young people in digital skills and connect them with jobs.
• Sell sanitary pads and keep girls in school.

Social enterprises show that profit and purpose can work together. Read about Wecyclers and others in The people making African cities easier to live in.

Giving back (the smart way)

Community support is not only about what the community gives the business. It's also about what the business gives back:

• Sponsoring a local football team or school event.
• Offering apprenticeships or internships.
• Supporting clean-up days. (See What it takes to keep a street clean together.)
• Sharing knowledge through free workshops.
• Donating products during emergencies.

Giving back works best when it's genuine and regular — not a one-time photo opportunity.

Risks of mixing business and community

Building with your community is powerful, but it has traps:

• Credit to everyone. Friends and family may expect free products or endless credit. Set clear rules: "Credit only up to X, payment by Y."
• Hiring only relatives. It can lower quality and cause conflict. Hire for skills.
• Mixing money. Community contributions must be recorded carefully and transparently.
• Gossip. Business problems can become neighbourhood drama. Keep communication respectful and clear.
• Obligation overload. Being asked to contribute to every event can drain the business. Plan a "community budget."

Clear rules protect relationships. As a Beninese elder might say, "Good accounts make good friends."

A step-by-step plan

• Map your community. Who are potential customers, suppliers, workers and partners nearby?
• Listen. Talk to people. What do they need? What would they support?
• Start small with local partners. One supplier, one partner business, one group of early customers.
• Share the story. Show local suppliers and workers in your marketing.
• Create a feedback channel. A WhatsApp group, regular meetings or a suggestion box.
• Give back regularly. Choose one cause and support it consistently.
• Keep records and be transparent. Especially with any community money.
• Grow together. As you grow, bring the community with you — more local jobs, more local suppliers.

Real inspiration

• M-Pesa's success in Kenya relied heavily on local agents — neighbourhood shopkeepers trusted by their communities.
• Women's shea cooperatives across West Africa have negotiated better prices and access to export markets by working together.
• Many successful restaurants and bakeries in West African cities became institutions because they were rooted in their neighbourhoods.

These stories show that community isn't just a nice extra. It's a competitive advantage.

An illustrative story: the bakery that belonged to a street

In an illustrative neighbourhood of Porto-Novo, a young baker we'll call Sèna (illustrative) wanted to open a small bakery but had only part of the money. Her tontine of twelve women agreed to give her the pot early. A retired carpenter on the street built her shelves in exchange for bread every morning for three months. A local secondary school agreed to buy snacks for its canteen if she hired two students for weekend work.

Sèna kept careful records of everything and read them out at the tontine meetings. She bought flour from a wholesaler in the same market, eggs from a nearby farm and packaging from a young woman who made paper bags. When the rainy season flooded the road, neighbours helped her move sacks of flour to a dry house.

Two years later, the bakery has four workers — all from the neighbourhood — and supplies two schools and a hotel. Sèna says the business isn't really "hers." It's the street's. That's exactly why it survived its hard first year.

Questions to ask before involving your community

• What role do I want the community to play — customers, suppliers, investors, owners?
• What rules will protect relationships (credit, contributions, hiring)?
• How will I report back on money and progress?
• What will I give back, and how often?
• What happens if the business struggles? Who carries the risk?

Answering these early prevents misunderstandings later — and shows people you take their trust seriously.

Grow far, together

In a continent where formal finance is limited and trust is precious, community is one of the strongest resources an entrepreneur has. Businesses that grow with their communities are harder to kill — because they're not just one person's project. They belong to many.

So look around. Your first investors, customers, suppliers and champions may be closer than you think.

Keep reading: How small African brands earn trust, How one small community action grows, and our Business & Work section.

Questions

What is a community-based business?

A business that involves local people as customers, suppliers, workers, partners or owners, and contributes to the community's wellbeing.

What is a tontine?

A rotating savings group where members contribute regularly and each member receives the full pot in turn. It's known as susu, esusu, chama or stokvel in other countries.

What is a cooperative?

A business owned and democratically controlled by its members, who share profits and decisions.