Tell us about yourself
My name is Kolapo Olufemi Ogungbile.
I have a B.Tech in Geology from Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Nigeria and had my Internship with Divcon Engineering Limited.
My life philosophy is don’t let money stop you from dreaming and acting big.
Tell us about your business
Talking Bookz was founded in 2014.
Talking bookz is an audio book company that provides access to unique African content with International best sellers. We currently have 3000+ international best sellers on the platform.
Our value proposition is to make reading convenient for people.
Audio books are used while traveling and commuting. Other uses revolve around lifestyle activities such as exercising, relaxing, cooking and cleaning.
What was your inspiration for starting this business?
Talking Bookz idea came during my final year as an undergraduate. One day, I was to do the dishes and I had a test the following day, which involved reading bulky notes and textbooks. I wondered how I would be able to revise them all; at that point, the music player came on. Then I thought , wouldn’t it be nice if my notes were being played to me. I shared the Idea with my friend Damilola Aransiola. We researched on how we can make this work and the rest is history.
How did you get funding for your business?
We started out with funds from Family and friends, till we got investment from Passion Incubator and After 7 months of working in passion Incubator, we got additional Investment from a Swedish Angel Investor (Nicolas Waern). We are also selected as part of the 1000 most promising startup by +The Tony Elumelu Foundation which has qualified us for a grant of up to 10,000 USD.
What opportunities have you been able to leverage on in your business so far?
Talking bookz has been able to leverage on Passion Incubator network to get to the point we are now. The Investment we got from Sweden was through their network.
The +Mara Mentor program has also helped me connect with +Nkechi Ali-Balogun and +Taizir Ajala whose insights as mentors are invaluable.
What Challenges have you faced so far and how have you been able to overcome them?
The biggest challenge for us has been to get a committed Developer on the team to work on the product
How will you summarize the journey so far?
Though and interesting
Given the Chance, will you do this again?
Yes
What lessons have you been able to learn from your journey so far that others should know
You will never get it right the first time. Great ideas require a lot of iteration and pivot before the ideal product will be finally created.
How can people connect with you?
www.facebook.com/kolapoogungbile
www.twiter.com/okolapo
Mobile: 07069359788
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