Dangote Reveals His Biggest Business Mistake

Billionaire businessman, Aliko Dangote has revealed that his investment in the textile industry was his biggest business mistake.

Naija News reports that Dangote disclosed this in an interview with Arise Television.

Reflecting on some of the challenges he encountered while building his business enterprise, Dangote stated that the textile business collapsed due to inadequate policy protection and what he described as dumping by foreign manufacturers.

He said, “My biggest business mistake was textiles.

“We were swamped by Chinese dumping and Indian dumping. So eventually we had to close down.” 

He said the closure had a significant impact on workers, particularly employees of Nigerian Textile Mills in Ikeja, Lagos.

Dangote disclosed that almost 8,000 workers were laid off across the textile business, with 6,920 of them coming from Nigerian Textile Mills in Ikeja alone.

“We laid off a total of almost 8,000 workers, 6,920 workers from Nigerian Textile Mills here in Ikeja alone,” he said.

He said the experience shaped his approach to subsequent investments, stressing the need to ensure that businesses remain viable even when government protection is eventually withdrawn.

Dangote’s comments come amid ongoing concerns over the survival of local manufacturing industries and the impact of imported goods on domestic production and employment.