Across Nigeria, feeding a household has become a complex balancing act. Rising food prices, inconsistent market quality, and the logistical stress of grocery shopping place enormous pressure on families juggling work, children, and limited budgets.
Farmers, meanwhile, face unstable off-takers, post-harvest losses, and unpredictable demand, which diminishes their earning potential and threatens food sustainability.
In this edition of Techparley’s Drive100, where we spotlight Africa’s most promising emerging innovations, we turn the light on Starflakes Enterprise, an online grocery startup founded by Oluwatoyin Salisu.
Starflakes integrates community-driven group buying, direct sourcing from farmers, and flexible payment models to make fresh, hygienic, and affordable food accessible to families across Nigeria.
As Salisu explains, “Our goal is simple yet impactful: to deliver Grade A foodstuffs, fresh, hygienic, and affordable, directly to our customers’ doorsteps. We don’t just deliver food, we deliver peace of mind.”
Starflakes’ mission underscores a dual commitment to social impact and operational efficiency, seeking to address food insecurity from the ground up.
The Problems Starflakes is Solving
Starflakes emerges as a direct response to a disrupted and costly food ecosystem. Families contend with inflated prices, poor quality, and time-consuming shopping routines, while farmers struggle to access reliable markets.
Salisu frames this challenge clearly saying, “We are a purpose-driven brand committed to transforming how families and businesses access essential food items. We are driven by a mission to combat food insecurity, support local farmers, and empower families to eat better and live healthier, without breaking the bank.”
Starflakes targets these issues through a community food-sharing model, which allows households to buy in bulk at wholesale rates, enjoy split-payment options, and reduce post-production food waste.
This model turns food procurement into a predictable, manageable, and cost-effective process for both consumers and producers, providing families with affordable nutrition and farmers with reliable demand.
Key Innovations of the Starflakes Enterprise
Starflakes’ innovation lies not only in the products it delivers but in how it structures accessibility. Unlike conventional online grocery stores, the startup leverages cooperative economics to maximize affordability and minimize waste.
“Through our community food-sharing model, customers can buy in bulk at wholesale prices, enjoy split-payment options, and reduce farmers post production food waste, all while ensuring families are well-nourished,” Salisu elaborates.
By sourcing directly from farmers, Starflakes bypasses multiple intermediaries, ensuring freshness and stability in quality.
The model further incorporates flexible payment plans and thrift systems, which allow customers to plan their grocery spending ahead of time, a crucial feature in a volatile economy.
Looking ahead, Starflakes plans to integrate an AI-powered grocery assistant, which will automate ordering, provide reminders, optimize household budgeting, and suggest healthier food alternatives, demonstrating a commitment to technology-enabled convenience alongside community-driven solutions.
Traction, Progress and Milestones
Since its inception, Starflakes has achieved meaningful growth and market validation. The startup currently serves over 1,000 customers in Lagos and plans to expand its reach to 10,000 within the next three years.
“While our operations are presently based in Lagos, Nigeria, we plan to expand into other major cities, including Abuja and Port Harcourt, within the same timeframe,” the founder notes.
Starflakes operates a hybrid model combining online orders through its website, WhatsApp, and social media platforms, as well as a physical walk-in store. Revenue comes primarily from service fees on food-sharing initiatives, complemented by direct sales.
The recognition by the Tony Elumelu Foundation in 2024, through its grant program, validated the startup’s impact-driven approach, providing financial and reputational leverage for its future expansion.
“We are looking forward to growing the business with it (the TEF grant), while staying profitable. We look forward to raising 50 million naira for the business in the next three years,” Salisu emphasizes the role of traction in proving the model works.
The Team Behind Starflakes’ Driving Force
Starflakes is driven by a small but capable team whose skills complement one another.
Founder and CEO, Oluwatoyin Salisu, brings her expertise as a CRM professional and entrepreneur, overseeing daily operations including order management, deliveries, marketing, customer support, and business development.
“I oversee the day-to-day business activities; from taking orders to deliveries, marketing to sales, customer support to CRM analysis, and business development,” the founder narrates.
Babatunde Shittu Akande, an accountant with nearly a decade of experience, managing the startup’s financial framework, accounting, and corporate administration.
Ranti Salisu, a seasoned trader with extensive food market networks, supervises sourcing, operational logistics, and quality assurance.
Together, the team’s combined experience in finance, operations, and market knowledge equips Starflakes to navigate the complexities of Nigeria’s food supply and delivery ecosystem.
Challenges facing Starflakes Enterprise
Despite progress, Starflakes contends with challenges typical of African retail startups. The primary hurdles include staffing, funding, and partnerships.
“My biggest challenges so far in business are staffing, funding, and partnerships. Building a winning team and accessing finance are our key priorities,” Salisu acknowledges these obstacles candidly.
The startup has partnered with VFD Microfinance Bank to secure customer funds for split-payment purchases, demonstrating a proactive approach to trust-building.
To address staffing, Starflakes plans to work with HR outsourcing firms initially, with the long-term goal of developing an in-house recruitment system.
Accessing more capital remains critical for scaling, and the startup targets raising N50 million over three years to strengthen operations and expand its geographic footprint.
Vision for the Future: Food for All
Starflakes’ vision spans immediate regional expansion to long-term national impact. In the next 6 to 12 months, the startup plans to launch operations in Abuja, Port Harcourt, and Ibadan, increase its customer base to 10,000, and recruit skilled personnel to bolster its logistics and operations network.
Looking ahead over the next 2 to 5 years, Salisu envisions a fully automated grocery ecosystem integrated with AI, extended farmer partnerships, and expansion into additional states.
“This expansion will significantly increase our reach to more families, making quality food more affordable and accessible across a wider community.”
The overarching goal is clear, to make affordable, nutritious, and reliable food a standard experience for Nigerian households, regardless of economic volatility.
Talking Points
Starflakes Enterprise exemplifies how technology, cooperative economics, and social purpose can converge to solve a critical gap in Nigeria’s food system.
Its community-oriented approach, combined with flexible payments and direct sourcing, addresses both supply- and demand-side inefficiencies.
However, scaling such a logistics-intensive model demands disciplined execution, robust capital reserves, and resilient operational infrastructure.
If Starflakes can strengthen fulfillment, maintain quality control across cities, and integrate AI-driven logistics as planned, it has the potential to become a transformative force in Nigeria’s food distribution landscape, balancing social impact with commercial sustainability.
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