The narrative of Jubril of Lagos, Executive Director of GAC Motors (GAC), is a powerful lesson in entrepreneurial resilience and strategic corporate ascent, a journey he generously shared during a day of conversations with Odira Ndubuaku for the YouTube channel that bears his name. Jubril of Lagos, a man recognized as a Global 40 Under 40, highlights how his initial, unstructured success taught him the critical importance of discipline and learning within a working system.
Jubril’s entrepreneurial drive, inspired by his mother’s business spirit, manifested immediately after secondary school when he ventured into GSM engineering. By the age of 18, he was already making millions, claiming to have earned around 250 million to 100 million naira. However, he candidly admitted to Odira Ndubuaku that at the time, he did not understand money management, believing he had the capacity to always make money and that it would always be there. This belief was shattered when he learned a painful lesson: "you can have 100 million today and if you remove one 1,000 Naira from it it's now no more 100 million". A later venture in Benue state, where he became the "king" of phone unlocking, was wiped out overnight when locals broke into his store and stole everything, forcing him to return to Lagos "with nothing" after over a year of work.
Driven by creativity, he moved into photography, then cinematography, directing and shooting music videos before being admitted to university in Cyprus. His path to Cyprus was marked by determination; after a political friend of his mother refused to sponsor his application to UK and US universities, he was motivated by seeing his mother cry. He eventually applied to a university in Cyprus and was granted a 100% scholarship due to his strong results.
While a student in Cyprus, facing financial struggles that left him surviving on "egg me bread" for his first three weeks, he spotted a market need: Nigerian students could not use the popular "ping" messaging feature on their Blackberry phones because the local network did not support it. He leveraged a friend in the UK to send him free T-Mobile SIM cards and top-up codes, which he would print, cut, and sell discreetly in class. Through this simple venture, he made his first $100,000 in Cyprus in less than two years.
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His career pivoted upon returning to Nigeria and seeing the "dead" yellow taxis of Lagos, contrasting sharply with the beautiful Mercedes personal cars used as taxis in Cyprus. Determined to improve the Nigerian road experience, he started Smart Cab, a ride-hailing company, and went to GAC Motors to procure cars for his platform. Five minutes into a conversation with Chief Diana Chen, the chairman of GAC Motors, everything changed. He realized he could achieve his ambitions within a bigger platform and committed to spending time learning, an effort that saw him dedicate seven years to learning at Cig and is still ongoing. This commitment helped grow Cig Motors from a 5 billion to a 100-billion-naira company in five years.
Jubril of Lagos emphasizes the critical role of personal branding and storytelling in the modern business environment. He explains that branding must go beyond a logo; people "naturally react to people's story and conversation". Executives must become the brand ambassadors, carrying the brand in their heart, eating, sleeping, and waking with it. He cited his own prominence, noting that if someone wants to buy a GAC in Nigeria, they will first reach out to him because he is "out there for the good reason".
For upcoming entrepreneurs, he provided crucial advice, shared in detail with Odira Ndubuaku. His first advice is to get a 9-to-5 job first in an organization with a working structure to learn operations, communication, and management, emphasizing that "the work will teach you". He also stresses that before starting any investment, an entrepreneur should have 20% to 30% of the required fund in hand. This ensures that "when you burn your money and your money go you will know how to manage other people's money". Above all, an entrepreneur must be a risk-taker, ready to fail many times, and maintain unwavering discipline and conviction.
