Congo iPhone Retailer Says Financing Is Africa's Biggest Startup Barrier

Hamisi Ngalula, founder of iPhone Congo, says limited access to financing is the single biggest obstacle holding back African entrepreneurs — and he's built his case from personal experience running a smartphone retail business across three cities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Ngalula, whose company operates in Lubumbashi, Kolwezi and Kalemie, told The Nation that many entrepreneurs fail to turn promising ideas into sustainable ventures simply because they can't access the capital needed to expand.

"In my opinion, based on my experience, the greatest priority is access to financing. Many entrepreneurs have ideas, ambition, and a willingness to take risks. However, they lack the resources to turn their projects into reality or to expand businesses that are already operating," he said.

How he built the business without a lender

Ngalula's route into retail ran through Dubai, where he sourced products for clients in Lubumbashi and other East African markets before specialising in iPhones. He opened his first shop on Kasaï Avenue in Lubumbashi in July 2024.

Demand outran his cash almost immediately. Capital, not customers, became the constraint.

"My biggest challenge was financial. Our customer base grew quickly, but I did not always have enough stock to meet demand. I had to find ways to expand our supply while ensuring the day-to-day running of the business," he said.

Credit wasn't an option — on either side of the transaction. "I had neither access to credit nor a supplier willing to provide me with goods on credit," he said. The result: growth by drip-feed, funded only by the resources the business generated itself. For a retailer, that's the slowest possible expansion model, because stock is revenue and revenue is stock.

What does this change for import-dependent businesses?

Ngalula named financing as the top barrier, but not the only one. Businesses that depend on international suppliers also face:

• Shipping delays
• High freight costs
• Customs clearance fees

He called for simpler procedures, transparent costs and more predictable delivery times. For anyone sourcing goods from abroad into Central Africa, unpredictability at the port is as deadly as missing inventory.

On management, he was blunt about discipline: "Selling is not enough: you must control your expenses, establish priorities, and preserve the resources needed to continue operating and growing."

The ask: practical support, not promises

Ngalula laid out a concrete policy wishlist aimed at governments and banks: financing schemes tailored to small businesses, guarantee programmes, and financial management support. He also called for targeted tax relief so young enterprises can stabilise and reinvest rather than hand over cash in their most fragile years.

"My request to government authorities and banks would be to provide more accessible and practical support," he said.

He's also looking outward. Ngalula expressed interest in partnerships with Nigerian entrepreneurs in mobile phone sourcing and distribution, and he wants to expand iPhone Congo into other African markets. A DRC retailer plugging into Nigeria's distribution networks would be a small but telling example of the intra-African trade links policymakers keep promising.

The subtext for practitioners is clear: Ngalula proves a bootstrapped retailer can scale to three cities without a bank loan — but he's also arguing that slow, self-funded growth is a ceiling, not a strategy. If lenders and governments take his advice, the next iPhone Congo might expand in years instead of decades.