#LadiesWhoRule | Omar Chindah on a quest to change the breakfast narrative in Nigeria

Hello readers, welcome to another episode of #LADIESWHORULE. Today we have on a serial entrepreneur, Omar Chindah, popularly known as The Chairman/ Puff Puff Princess!

Those are the nicknames you’ll find Omar being associated with. Omar just loves life and living it to the fullest. She thinks of herself as vain and I totally agree with her. I mean, why not? Who doesn’t like the fine things of life? 

In Hebrew, the name Omar means Eloquent or Speaker. It also means Long life, Popular and Flourishing in Arabic. It is truly apt for the personality of Omar Chindah. I never knew the name was unisex until I met her in 2018. She let us (me and my former colleagues) pronounce her name the way we “thought”. You wouldn’t blame me, I even thought it was a traditional Nigerian given name. 

I don’t think I’ve ever met a more lively person. When she walks into a room, it practically lits up. If you’re not one who is open-minded, you might not like her at first. You might consider her loud or “too happy” especially meeting her for the first time. I know I did. 

However, you cannot help but love Omar. You are sure to have a good time and laugh whenever she’s around. She’s easy-going, friendly and loves to talk, she’s truly the life of the party. When I found out she was a barrister and solicitor of the Nigerian bar association who had practised in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory for a few years, I understood her personality even better.

The only time I’d seen her sober was when she spoke of her parents passing; how she’d risen up to fill their shoes and to be there for her siblings at a young age. That has not deterred her optimism towards life and her service to God. Despite life’s turbulence, Omar strives to make the best of it. She doesn’t let things get in her way. She took a tough decision to do what makes her truly happy: Cooking. She also loves to sing out loud and enjoys spending time with family and friends.  

Omar has a tradition to vacation yearly with friends, “not to escape life, but for life not to escape us”. As an ardent follower of her WhatsApp status updates (you’ll understand later), I’ll have you know that Omar loves her friends, family and herself to bits and she’ll go to any lengths to protect them.  

Omar Chindah, on a quest to change the breakfast narrative in Nigeria.

She gives us an insight into her life as an entrepreneur, why she ventured into it, the perks and downsides of it. Enjoy! 

Can we meet you?

Hi, my name is Omar Chindah. I’m thirty years old. I’m the first of six children, I’m an entrepreneur, a fashionista, a foodie. Basically, I’m a miracle in a dress. 

How do you start your day?

My day starts at 3:30 am. I wake up, pray and study the bible which takes me roughly an hour. I head downstairs, arrange and prep for the day at the Breakfast Club. 

Can you give us a glimpse into A day in your life?

At the breakfast club, we usually prep the night before. So I continue prepping, grilling, planning and scheduling delivery routine for the day. 

How did you venture into entrepreneurship?

I started when there was a rise in the Dollar. I used to work for a UK based lifestyle firm and when there was a hike in the dollar and a lot of inflation in the country, I knew it was going to be quite stressful. I quit my job because I was going through a lot of anxiety at that time. I was out of work for about a year and I was travelling during that period. And at that time, I saw a lot of businesses and I was intrigued.

I wanted to do something I really liked so I pulled my savings together and started my Fish Farm. After a couple of years in the fish farm, I realized that I had succeeded in delegating most of the jobs on the farm. There was little or nothing left for me. Then I proceeded with The Breakfast Club. I wanted to do something I really loved to do. Cooking is my hobby and I love to eat as well and try out new things. So, I figured, why not? 

I remember I used to have issues with breakfast when I had a 9-5 job. I knew there are people like me out there and maybe this would help them. That was how The Breakfast Club was born. 

What do you consider as your most remarkable business day?

For The Breakfast Club, a multinational sent a message asking for a quote to cater to their international managers coming into the country. That was a good day for us, and when they paid of course. 

As for the Fish Farm, we woke one morning, got to the farm and realized that some fishes, two hundred fingerlings to be precise had escaped from the pipes and were going down the drainage into a gutter. We were able to recover about one hundred and twenty-five of them. They were sick for a period of two weeks. It was a memorable day for me because I cried and it could have been worse. 

Worst day?

My worst day for the Breakfast Club was when we kicked up. Somehow, my assistant and I skipped an order. We completely forgot. I won’t say my assistant because I took the order. I completely forgot I was supposed to make that delivery. When we were done cleaning up, I had even gone to sleep. The customer called by 1 pm asking if the delivery was made and it was wasn’t. 

For the Fish Farm, it was when my fishes died. A lot of fishes died. It was truly a terrible day for me. 

What are the perks of running your own business?

One of the perks of my job for both businesses is that I have a lot of access to food. If I’m craving it, I most likely have the ingredient to make it. And it has broadened my taste palate and my knowledge of food and spices. It’s like an exciting journey, every day you uncover new things, new terrain. I actually feel sad for people who just eat the same food over and over again.

There’s a lot of food you can eat; there’s Thai, Chinese, Korean and that’s just in the middle east. There are even Indian foods and that’s just Asia. There’s American and European food. There’s just so much out there. We limit ourselves to Nigerian meals a lot. There’s so much out there. 

One misconception people have of you and your work

Because I work from home, people are of the misconception that I’m lazy person because I’m always at home. I really don’t go out often. I’m not an introvert but I’m a home buddy. I’m an extrovert that likes to stay indoors: eating, spending time on my workstation, trying new flavours with my spices and ingredients, and spending on my phone which is actually research for work because it’s the easiest appliance I can use. A lot of people think I’m lazy because I don’t come out often because I’m always indoors, lying on my bed. 

Another misconception is that people think I’m a bit of a snob which I’m not, I’m really easy going. People think I’m wild, I’m not. I’m just very blunt and truthful. I believe in speaking my truth, people don’t like that so they think I’m too wild. 

What would you have told your younger self ?

I would have told my twenty-five-year-old self to calm down. I know you want to get married but that’s not where you’ll find your happiness. There’s so much ahead of you, there’s so much about yourself you don’t even know; you have not even discovered. I’ll tell myself to be a bit more patient and have fun. 

Oh my God! I see a lot of young people now and they are in such a hurry. There’s no hurry! Life is in layers, take your time and enjoy each season of your life, don’t rush it. Party and pray. You can do all of it. You can do both. I’ll tell my younger self you can actually party and pray. You can actually have fun and still love God. I mean life is not that serious, I know God doesn’t take it too seriously anyway.  

How do you unwind? 

(Laughs) I unwind via my WhatsApp updates. I go there and I spill, I say everything I want to say. I express myself, my views, everything; all on my WhatsApp status updates. That’s how I unwind. A glass of wine, my phone, enough data and I’m updating. Which is why everyone thinks I’m jobless anyways. 

And then, I read a good book, I love to read books. That’s one of the best ways to unwind actually. 

What do you love most about being an entrepreneur? 

Creativity! I’m able to create without any form of limitations or roadblocks. I’m doing it to the best of my abilities, as excellently as I possibly can. I have room to go back to the drawing board over and over again. 

Another thing I love about being an entrepreneur is that my time is my time. My day works for me, I know how to make my day work for me. I’m able to manage my time properly, sometimes I waste it but I manage it most times and I manage it really well. Yeah.  

If you were to quit, what would you do?

If I were to quit being an entrepreneur, I’d be a trophy wife (laughs) because I need money. I can’t imagine quitting though, I can’t. 

If you are given a chance to design another career path, which will you choose?

I’d be a top chef for food network. I would cook full time, properly, professionally, fine dinning. That’s what I’d do. 

Omar and I had this interview via WhatsApp chat of course and Omar thought it best to send via voice notes which I didn’t object to at all. If anything, it’ll make the process easier. But she took time in sending in replies because apparently after each voice note, she listens to her “wonderful voice”. Trust me, I had fun doing this, I know she did too and I also hope you had fun reading. 

There you have it guys. A sneak peek of Omar Chindah.

You can follow her on Instagram at @omarchindah and @the_breakfastclub.ng