Segment: Stop Calling Yourself a Startup When Building Legacy - Know the Difference or Stay Confused

Summary

Konnected Minds Podcast with Derrick Abaitey
Episode Segment: "Stop Calling Yourself a Startup When Building Legacy – Know the Difference or Stay Confused"
Date: June 18, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode of the Konnected Minds Podcast, hosted by Derrick Abaitey, dives into the critical difference between startups and traditional (legacy) businesses. Together with a business expert guest, Derrick explores how context, competition, and financial methods define business success in Africa, particularly in Ghana and Nigeria. The conversation challenges copycat entrepreneurship, discusses why many entrepreneurs misunderstand the real nature of their business ambitions, and stresses the importance of authenticity, tailored business planning, and meeting entrepreneurs at their level.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Startups vs. Traditional Businesses: Knowing the Difference

• Rapid Growth vs. Legacy:

  • Startups: Designed for fast growth, high investor attention, rapid scaling, and often structured for quick exit/sale (ref: OpenAI as an example)
  • Traditional Businesses: Built for generational transfer, focusing on sustainability and legacy, not for quick flips or rapid scaling
  • Notable quote:

    "Startups are meant to grow fast. They involve rapid growth. That's why you would see more like OpenAI... Those types of businesses are not passed to your kids. They are grown to a point to sell or to exit."
    — Business Expert (03:24)

• Mislabeling SMEs as Startups:

  • Many African entrepreneurs confuse SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises) with startups, which affects their funding approach and business model
  • Traditional businesses can still raise funds but often follow a different pace and structure

Timestamp: [03:12–04:26]

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2. The Copycat Trap and Real Innovation

• Market Validation vs. Blind Copying:
  • Having competitors can mean a market's already validated, but duplicating an idea without differentiating your value leads to market saturation and minimal profit
  • Example discussed: "Lip gloss pandemic"—many entrepreneurs copied the same business, even using identical packaging and branding, rather than innovating
  • Notable quote:

    "What makes you different from the other person if you can't add any value to what the person is already doing? ... If you came with your own concept, brand, story—even the packaging—it's still the same. You're all buying from the same wholesaler and selling to different people."
    — Business Expert (01:46–02:41)

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3. The Funding Challenge: Context Matters

• Imported Ideas Need Local Adaptation:

  • Simply copying Silicon Valley approaches (pitch decks, financial projections) doesn't always fit the African context
  • Local informal sector (e.g., market women) may not use bank accounts or software like QuickBooks, but still have effective financial systems (phone records, memorials)

• Bridging the Gap:

  • The entrepreneurial ecosystem needs to merge the formal (tech, startup) knowledge with informal practices—for inclusive funding and business growth
  • Notable quote:

    "Most of the businesses in Ghana take money where? On their phone. That can actually be translated to replaced with the bank statements."
    — Business Expert (06:14–06:41)

Timestamp: [04:32–06:41]

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4. Practical Steps: What Every Entrepreneur Needs

• Essentials Before Pitching Investors:

  • Register your business
  • Prepare a pitch deck
  • Write a business plan (and keep updating it)
  • Create realistic financial projections
  • Notable quote:

    "If you are not registered, it's kind of like a red flag because how can you not be registered and you are pitching to me to give you money? Cuz how much is a registration?"
    — Business Expert (08:32)

• Business Plans Are Living Documents:

  • The host shares that 80% of his original business plan didn't happen as planned because real-world numbers always change
  • Adapt, tweak, and update plans regularly

Timestamp: [07:18–08:57]

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5. Low-Hanging Fruits: Social Media & Validation

• Online Presence Helps, But Isn't Everything:
  • Social media and websites are useful, but for early-stage businesses, validating the idea and financials matter more
  • Different industries may or may not need a strong online presence from day one

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Memorable Quotes

• On Copycat Entrepreneurship:

  "I have a big problem with the copycats, right? Because we're not being innovative... You're just coming into the same space doing the same thing. There's no difference. You probably won't make much."
  — Business Expert (01:46–02:41)

• On Merging Formal and Informal Sector Practices:

  "We don't have to get the Makola woman to understand accounting. Why? Because she already has her own way of doing accounting... She probably doesn't need to use QuickBooks."
  — Business Expert (05:46)

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Important Timestamps

• Startups vs. Traditional Businesses: [03:12–04:26]
• Copycat Problem & Innovation: [01:41–02:41]
• Funding and Local Context: [04:32–06:41]
• Core Business Documents Before Investment: [07:18–08:57]

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Final Thoughts

Derrick Abaitey's conversation makes it clear: not every ambitious, growing business is a "startup," and using one-size-fits-all solutions doesn't help African entrepreneurs succeed. Distinguishing between startup and legacy models, adapting business frameworks to local contexts, and focusing on authenticity and real validation are keys for long-term success.

This episode is a call for ambitious African founders to build businesses with clarity—respecting local strengths, innovating beyond copycatting, and equipping themselves properly for both legacy and scale.

Transcript

[Commercial Narrator]

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[Business Expert]

Consistent users, consistent sales, that's what we need. Right. And I like the fact that you said, okay, so how then do we actually solve problems for ourselves if we're importing ideas? Importing ideas is not a bad thing. We just need to make sure that we apply it to our context. Right. Because the reason why people are also not getting funded. Right. Is that the yardstick in which they are using to measure these entrepreneurs, we don't meet it. We don't meet it. And people don't know. Right? People don't know that we don't meet the yardstick. So it becomes a problem. So your competitors, very important competitors, you need to understand that when you are looking for a business that actually has competition.

[Podcast Host]

Yeah.

[Business Expert]

They validated the market for you, right? They validated it already. They're telling you they are users. They are people that are actively paying for things in that space. You don't need to come and validate it. You don't need to come and experiment with your money.

[Podcast Host]

I don't know, I mean, I like the idea, right. Of it's just this part of the world.

[Business Expert]

Yeah.

[Podcast Host]

It fuels the copycat mechanism.

[Business Expert]

I like that as well.

[Podcast Host]

Right.

[Business Expert]

Okay. And I have a big problem with the copycats, Right. Because we're not being, we're not being innovative. And I was talking to some people about this recently. We're not being innovative. We can take the same. There was a whole lip gloss pandemic. I don't know if you know this. Everybody started making lip gloss, right? Because somebody started it and it, it was nice. Right. And so everyone started making lip gloss as well. I'm like, okay, for something like this, what makes you different from the other person if you can't add any value to what the person is already doing? You're just in the, you're just coming into the same space doing the same thing. There's no difference. You probably won't make much. Right. The difference is not there. If you came with your own concept, brand, story, even the packaging is still the same. You're all buying from the same wholesaler and selling to different people.

[Podcast Host]

They're all white labeling. Let me stop you here for a minute. So if it's your first time watching Connected Minds or you have been here before but still have not subscribed, do us a favor because majority of the people that watch our videos have not subscribed. This doesn't help us grow beyond what we expect. So help us by hitting the subscribe button. Thank you. Now let's get back to the conversation. We have traditional businesses and we have startups. What's the difference?

[Business Expert]

Okay, good. I like that you mentioned this because one thing here that I've realized is that we exchange the SMEs with startups.

[Podcast Host]

Okay?

[Business Expert]

Startups are meant to grow fast. They are rapid, they involve rapid growth. That's why you would see more like open AI. Right? OpenAI is a startup, right? They are rapid, they're growing fast, they're getting investors investing money quicker, they're doing things faster. Right. Those types of businesses are not passed to your kids, okay. They are grown to a point to sell or to exit or to put in the market for people to buy shares, right?

[Podcast Host]

IPOs.

[Business Expert]

Yes, IPOs. But for traditional businesses, you want to pass like this to your kids, you want to pass this to your generations. You're trying to build legacy. A legacy that you're trying to build cannot be a startup. You're an SME, right? Because it's not fast paced like that. You're not trying to build it quickly and put it on the market and exit and make your money.

[Podcast Host]

Can traditional businesses also raise funds? Yes, same method.

[Business Expert]

Same, same. So we're using the same framework across board, right? Same framework across board. So traditional businesses and even. Let me, let me highlights the informal sector. Right? The reason why we're having issues with the informal sector is that we were always widening the gap because they don't understand what is going on here. And this. So there's, there's the people that know, okay, about all of these Silicon Valley stuff, pitch decks, financial projections and all of these things. And then there's the informal sector that doesn't truly understand everything in this space. Right. Does that mean that they don't deserve funding? So we leave these people to go back to the traditional frameworks that have existed before. So you see them doing the SUs and the apprenticeships and stuff like that. Right? Because this is what is working for them. Now we need to find a way where we merge these two. Right. And that's what we're struggling with and hence Why a lot of people would still not get funded. My goal is to bring people up to speed. Up to speed that you, we meet in the middle. You understand what these people are doing. Right. And you're able to move up the ladder with what they're doing as well you may. We don't have to get the Makola woman to understand accounting. Why? Because she already has her own way of doing accounting. She probably doesn't need to use QuickBooks. We don't need to teach her how to use QuickBooks. She has memorials.

[Podcast Host]

Right.

[Business Expert]

Most of the businesses in Ghana take money where. On their phone. On their phone. Right. That can actually be translated to replaced with the bank statements. Because maybe these people don't have bank accounts because they are not formal businesses. Right. So they probably don't have bank accounts for the business.

[Podcast Host]

But that's a form of a bank account, essentially.

[Business Expert]

Exactly.

[Podcast Host]

And they can still get statements.

[Business Expert]

Exactly. Right, right. And so we need to get to the point where these things are used and validated because the more we keep trying to force them to do something, it feels as though we're trying to get them to change. But we need to meet them where they are and create solutions for them where they are. So we build solutions around them. And that's even what I plan to do in the next few years. Right. Because even though we have Fundvestor now, we are going to have Fundvestor local.

[Podcast Host]

Okay.

[Business Expert]

Yeah.

[Podcast Host]

You've spoken about what goes into a pitch deck.

[Business Expert]

Yes.

[Podcast Host]

Now let's talk about a business plan.

[Business Expert]

Okay.

[Podcast Host]

Okay.

[Business Expert]

So the business plan is, it's is a full blown plan of your entire business. Okay. It's in its name. A business plan. Yeah. Right.

[Podcast Host]

At what point do you do a business plan?

[Business Expert]

I would say that like when you get your idea and you have the concept in place and you're, you know, you started working on, you know, putting things together.

[Podcast Host]

80% of the things I wrote in my business plan didn't happen.

[Business Expert]

Why?

[Podcast Host]

Because the numbers were either inflated or under.

[Business Expert]

Exactly. So what happens is that most people don't update their business plans. Right, Right. It's a plan. So it needs to change. If something goes wrong, it needs to change. It's a plan. Right. You're planning. It's more like you're planning your life. Okay. You take this route, it doesn't work. You're moving to this route. So you have to tweak it. Right. You can give what, financial projections? And I always tell people this before you even go and talk to any investor, before you Talk to any investor at all. You need a pitch deck.

[Podcast Host]

Yep.

[Business Expert]

You need a business plan.

[Commercial Narrator]

Yep.

[Business Expert]

Your business needs to be registered.

[Podcast Host]

Right.

[Business Expert]

Because you need to show that you actually believe in what you're doing.

[Podcast Host]

Okay.

[Business Expert]

So if you are not registered is kind of like a red flag because how can you not be registered? And you are pitching to meet give you money. Cuz how much is a registration? Right. So you need to make a little investment in what you're doing. So pitch deck, business plan, financial projections.

[Podcast Host]

Okay.

[Business Expert]

Right. And I think these three can do.

[Podcast Host]

Should they have like social media accounts ready? Websites maybe. I mean today's world, easy even that

[Business Expert]

it's, it's not too much of a big deal. I feel like those are the low hanging fruits.

[Podcast Host]

Okay.

[Business Expert]

Right. Social media, you can have a social media you're posting or not depending on the industry that you're in. But social media is a good tool to actually showcase what you're doing. But if you have a, like if you have a website and you don't make money. Right. So you need to validate your idea. And validating your idea means different things to different people.

[Podcast Host]

Okay.

[Business Expert]

Right. Before I decide that I'm going to work on something and go full force into it, what I would do is I would validate my idea. Connected Minds Podcast

[Commercial Narrator]

when you're a maintenance engineer in a beverage manufacturing plant, you keep production lines moving and quality on track because there is no room for slowdowns. With Grainger's vast selection of high quality motors, sensors, belts and hard to find parts, you can get what you need fast and all in one place. So nothing gets in the way of getting the job done. Call 1-800-granger-cranger.com or just stop by Granger for the ones who get it done.