Tonye Cole Reveals Why Sahara Group Adopted a Foreign Identity in Its Early Years

Sahara Group co-founder Tonye Cole has disclosed that the company was deliberately presented as a foreign-owned business during its early years to overcome what he described as the "colonial mentality" that made it difficult for young Nigerian entrepreneurs to gain credibility in the oil and gas sector. He said the strategy was adopted because many clients believed foreign firms were more competent than locally owned businesses.

Speaking on the Afropolitan Podcast, Cole explained that he and his partners registered Sahara Group in the Isle of Man and operated through a United Kingdom entity to project an international image. They also created a fictitious British executive known as "Dr J", whom they presented as the company's head, while they introduced themselves as staff members rather than owners.

According to Cole, the decision was driven not only by prejudice against indigenous businesses but also by age discrimination, as many potential clients found it difficult to believe that entrepreneurs in their late twenties could own and successfully manage a company in the highly competitive oil and gas industry. He said portraying the company as foreign helped open doors that would otherwise have remained closed.

He revealed that the arrangement worked for about three years before clients began questioning why the mysterious "Dr J", whose name appeared on official correspondence, had never been seen in person. Cole said the experience highlighted the structural barriers young Nigerian entrepreneurs faced and the unconventional measures they sometimes adopted to compete in the business environment of the time.

Sahara Group has since grown into a multinational energy company with operations across several countries. Reflecting on the company's journey, Cole said the experience underscored the importance of resilience, innovation and adapting to challenging business realities while building a successful indigenous enterprise.