[HN Gopher] What are some products and services in the US that a...
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What are some products and services in the US that are not in
Nigeria?
Recently, I have been trying to build something of value, maybe
offer a service or a product and it seems am out of ideas. So,
what are some products and services used in every day living in the
US/developed countries that are not yet available in other
countries(Nigeria)?
Author : pmandedev
Score : 25 points
Date : 2021-08-30 19:48 UTC (3 hours ago)
| vezycash wrote:
| Walmart. Retail chains are still limited to upper class.
| Unlimited sms doesn't exist. Credit cards doesn't exist for
| obvious reasons. Paypal is spend only. Can't receive. Trains IMO
| don't exist. Coffee shops, shaved ice, radio shark, lego,
| unlimited internet, fiber to home, bicycle delivery, yellow pages
| (but there's a craiglist equivalent). Most homes still cook. A
| national Health insurance basically doesn't exist but Ghana has.
| Regular medical check up isn't a thing. Self medication is widely
| practiced. Tax filing is still requires going to the tax office.
| Most markets are still messy, dirty, haggling based. Jobs are
| monthly paid except for labourers who are paid daily. No ikea.
|
| Electronic repairs are done by random technicians rather than by
| the manufacturers or their certified partners.
|
| Arguably clothes are mainly used clothes. Weed is still illegal -
| no medical weed. Airbnb has negligible foothold. Renting of
| properties is mostly a frustrating offline experience.
| pmandedev wrote:
| Thanks, pls keep updating. I need to build a really long list
| :)
| crooked-v wrote:
| > lego
|
| More broadly here, the general idea of a very durable building
| toy that has appeal to both kids and adults. Unlike a lot of
| toys, Lego bricks are both (a) durable enough to last for
| decades or longer under heavy use and (b) timeless enough that
| a kid who gets passed down a box of loose Legos from their
| parent won't be uninterested just because it's themed after
| something that was popular when the parent was a kid.
| anm89 wrote:
| Coffee shops? There are no cafes in Lagos? That seems
| incredibly unlikely to me although I've never been there and
| couldn't prove it.
| superflit wrote:
| Money transfer and check deposits.
|
| I always get some mail from Nigeria asking for help with that.
|
| In US this is solved and you can even deposit at the groceries
| shop.
| gwbas1c wrote:
| Try to travel to the US or another developed country. Observe
| what's popular that you don't have, and then figure out how to
| bring it back.
| pmandedev wrote:
| Yes, it is better to observe then implement. But travelling is
| currently not an option.
| yumraj wrote:
| In addition to looking at US, I'll suggest looking at other
| countries which have the same economic/labor dynamics as Nigeria.
|
| In other words, labor in US is very expensive but many good are
| relatively cheap, so its economy acts in a certain way. For
| example, many times replacing an appliance is a better option
| that repairing an appliance. However, in countries where labor is
| cheap but goods are expensive it is definitely much better to
| repair things than replace them. That is just one example.
|
| So, I'll suggest that look at developing countries with larger
| population and then find what services exist there that are not
| yet there in Nigeria. I have a feeling that you will have a much
| better success.
|
| Having said that, there may be value in looking at US by creating
| products/services that target the rich in Nigeria, if that is
| your intent.
| finiteseries wrote:
| Stable electricity & infrastructure!
|
| No, I would explore agriculture if you can. I had a roommate from
| Benue State while my ag cousin stayed with us once. They had a
| fascinating discussion that I didn't understand in the least, but
| I did take away the impression that most farming was done there
| by households, and almost totally "virgin soil" for lots of
| modern agricultural techniques ($$$).
|
| Huge decentralized prosumer market, could be fun?
|
| Also, ag people in the us love nothing more than talking about
| ag. Cold call anyone and you're in.
| PoignardAzur wrote:
| I recommend volunteering at a local organization. An NGO, a food
| bank, a fire brigade, a police auxiliary reserve, etc.
|
| Trying to fix the problems of people you don't know with
| technological solutions rarely works. Innovation doesn't come
| from brainstorming for ideas. It comes from spending hours being
| frustrated with some problem that affects your daily life and
| wondering how you could make that problem easier.
| musicale wrote:
| I remember reading about some guys whose business model was
| copying US startups (or at least their business model/product) in
| other countries:
|
| https://www.wired.co.uk/article/inside-the-clone-factory
|
| (paywalled)
| https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2012-02-29/how-three...
| kkielhofner wrote:
| Jian Yang?
|
| https://youtu.be/QGcOgKK2H5o
| [deleted]
| jchallis wrote:
| Perhaps the Samwer brothers and Rocket Internet.
|
| For those unfamiliar with the story (and which might be very
| useful thinking for enterprising folks in Nigeria):
|
| https://www.wired.co.uk/article/inside-the-clone-factory
|
| Rocket Internet (
| https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_Internet)
| musicale wrote:
| Ah you posted it before I updated. Yep that's the one.
| vagrantJin wrote:
| The problem space in Africa is quite interesting. For more US/EU
| style products maybe countries like South Africa are a better bet
| since they have good infrastructure down there.
|
| Nigeria's infrastructure is not that bad but bad with respect to
| eurocentric standards. Part of the issue is a lot of capital is
| spent keeping old infra together. If you have ideas in big,
| economically innovative infra projects - that's the place to go.
|
| Another bit is Africa keeps skipping stages of development -
| kinda like products and services don't always come from within,
| driven by pressing needs, rather just sort of fall from the sky
| or an American landing in the airport. So while a 22 year old
| Nigerian kid can say he's never seen a bank cheque because he
| banks digitally, he may also have no proper sewage and barely any
| electricity. The juxtaposition may not compute to a silicon
| valley would-be guru.
|
| So while transplanting tech from industrial nations may work
| sometimes, it's really the nuanced ideas that solve a real
| problem that get a lot off support and those are not always super
| technical projects. For instance, the problem of data costs cuts
| off a lot of would-be products so you will find tech companies
| here always have those limitations top of mind when building
| consumer facing stuff. Mapping just dies in most areas so there
| goes the geolocation services. Addressing and city planning for
| route optimization? Good luck.
|
| Just a side note, there are startups in a lot of these problem
| spaces already - it's just that private funding and venture
| capital are for practical purposes very tiny to non-existent for
| consumer facing startups...for very very very obvious reasons. I
| don't think it's an entirely bad thing but just an FYI.
| type0 wrote:
| Photo gear rental stores with insurance baked in.
| qeternity wrote:
| Network. Then network some more.
|
| Talk to people, find out what their problems are, what their
| opportunities are and what they need to follow those
| opportunities.
|
| The upside of this is you will quickly validate an idea AND when
| you go to market, you will have a large network of potential
| partners and customers.
| snarf21 wrote:
| Good advice. Find out what they would pay money to not have to
| do. Find out what they would pay money to be able to do.
| peer2pay wrote:
| I'm not sure if building a Nigerian solution for an American
| problem is really the way to go.
|
| If I were you I would try to think of a Nigerian problem that can
| only be solved by a Nigerian solution.
| pmandedev wrote:
| true, there are a lot of problems but its easier to build from
| an existing solution present in developed countries. Some
| Nigeria problems have solutions in developed countries.
| diebeforei485 wrote:
| Very often, similar problems have been solved in other
| countries in ways that can very much be transplanted.
|
| For example, Uber inspired several clones in other countries
| prior to Uber entering those markets. Using a de-risked
| business model is a legitimate business strategy for a startup.
| DJN wrote:
| You should try to solve local problems first. A popular solution
| in foreign countries may not have good crossover appeal in
| Nigeria.
|
| Fortunately or unfortunately, Nigeria has several problems
| looking for solutions. Examples include helping people travel
| around more securely, finding affordable healthcare, enabling
| MSMEs to find more customers.
| pmandedev wrote:
| Thank you, You made a nice suggestion, "helping people finding
| affordable healthcare"
| Jensson wrote:
| That is a service many would want in the US as well though.
| slingnow wrote:
| Asking people associated with Silicon Valley about Nigerian
| problems is probably about as effective as asking automotive
| racers about daily bike commuter problems.
|
| My suggestion would be to talk to some Nigerians. Understand the
| people and the culture first.
| AnimalMuppet wrote:
| Nigerians may not be as aware of what's available in the US. OP
| wants the intersection - people who know both.
|
| Also, not everyone here is "associated with Silicon Valley".
| Many are, but some are not.
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(page generated 2021-08-30 23:02 UTC)