Today’s episode is an interview with an Odogwu who left Russia and moved back to Nigeria to start a thriving hotel business. We are discussing his story, his work, how he moved from Russia to Nigeria, and how he currently runs this hotel business in Nigeria.
Can you just give us a brief story of why and how you moved from Russia to Nigeria. When did you move back? Why did you come to Russia in the first place?
Okay, I actually did not come to Russia directly, I initially went to Belarus to study and to play football. By chance, I landed in Russia and I stayed for a few years. There was really no work for me. Things were not moving fine at all and I was a private student. I came by myself, because the only way I could have my document is through the student route, before even playing football. And when I came in 2002, Russia was not open at all so thriving or doing well was quite difficult.
When I was in Belarus, I had no person to support me and I did not want to go around begging, and that is why I left Belarus and came back to Russia again. However, I had always nurtured the idea of building my own business– specifically to own a hotel. So I started building the project in 2020 and I finished building in 2024.
Although I had a life in Russia, my business is something that I intentionally put much strength, money and everything into. I always wanted it to grow and have that prestige. I wanted to make sure that it was run well. So because of that, I decided to stay in Nigeria to watch over my business. And I am now teaching people how I wanted my business to run, so that I could visit Russia and return home at will.
For me, I believe that if you are comfortable, Nigeria is the best place to stay. You can be going to Europe for vacation but Nigeria is home for me. I stayed in Europe for about 20 years and it still doesn’t feel like home.
I know Nigeria is not really secure but I dare say that if you build something worthwhile, you will be appreciated and you would want to do more but in Europe nobody knows you. And whenever you establish something here in Nigeria, there is a special caliber of people you get to meet– you know, people like Obi Cubana. I am just saying that name as an example, you know. You meet big people, people of class and you can share ideas, rub minds and do business together. It gives you a sense of purpose and that you have reached somewhere in life.
For example on how these relationships can help you. I already made some money before I met my wife but I did not use it to work well until I met her, but then she opened my mind and made me understand the importance of having something solid for the future. Women are God’s gift to men– you can be going astray and your wife can call you back.
At that point, I started listening to her and making bigger investments in Nigeria. Now, I don’t stay in Nigeria permanently; I also travel to Europe but my long days are in Africa. This is because I have many businesses I have to attend to and like I said, you know, it gives me more opportunity to meet more valuable people. I still have good friends in Russia and we meet together whenever I visit but that is where our relationship can reach; unlike when I am in Nigeria for a while where I can connect more with people.
I believe making money in Europe and coming back to invest in Africa is the way.
So you mentioned your wife. Did you meet her in Russia?
Yes, I met her in Russia. She’s actually Nigerian, from Benin. At that time, I was not even thinking about the fact that she’s from a different tribe, because you know, love is blind. I am Igbo man. So, at first when we met, our people were against her being from Benin but it worked out. We are always trying to break that narrative now in our generation.
Okay, so, about your hotel now in Benin? How do you go about running the day to day business? Are there people in charge of it, and how do you control that?
Doing business in Nigeria requires patience and for hotel business, I have realised that the location is 80% of the whole business process. Location is very very important. The location you build your hotel will determine the type of people that patronise and to a large extent the success of the business.
Doing business in Nigeria is good but issues like bad roads can literally run a business to the ground. There is also the need to be present physically, consistently manage the business yourself as much as possible and make sure you are aware of how the business is faring.
I mentioned that location is 80% because if you don’t get a good location, your hotel just becomes a community hotel, because that community will be the one to run it for you. The members of the community will be the only ones patronizing you. Any small offence to the community members can even crush your business.
Okay, so do you miss life in Moscow? Or how do you think life in Moscow is different from life in Nigeria.
Apart from the business, like I said before, I definitely miss life in Moscow too. It’s a very lovely place. That is why, when you’re pursuing business, you also travel to Europe to relax your head and get some beautiful experiences.
Is there any advice you have for somebody that is thinking of going into hotel business now, or somebody that maybe has started their business in Nigeria, but is thinking of moving back to Nigeria permanently. What would you advise them to take note of?
First, try to get a good location for a hotel business. Yes, you can do your business in Europe and still make good money. The thing is that both sides have advantages and disadvantages. Relocating to Nigeria finally can be tricky because you have to decide if you are closing everything and moving back permanently or if you are just opening a business in Nigeria and moving to organise things temporarily?
Like I said already, you can make money in Europe but nobody values it well, unlike when you are in Nigeria where you are a big man on a new level– you just get more benefits
because you meet different calibres of people. When someone does not appreciate in value, with time, you will not be thinking that you have gone far, but you need to be in a bigger environment so that you will be exposed to new things.
Another thing is that you must get a stable source to finance because building a hotel or even starting any business is a big project and if you don’t have anything substantial to rely on, it can affect you badly.
Thank you very much for sharing!
