Our Story
Premium service runs in our blood.
Wazobia African Market is one of those great American success stories! But the real story began in Lagos, Nigeria where a young boy, Tunde Fasina was getting a grip of the intricacies of the service industry in his mother’s retail shop. By the time Tunde was 12 years old, he was a full-fledged employee of the shop and a favorite of several customers. The home-grown education gained as a member of an entrepreneurial family honed Tunde’s passion for customer service and after his graduation from University, he found a path back to his first love: the retail and service industry. With over 30 years spent in retail and service establishments in Nigeria and the USA, Tunde’s extensive experience in, and love for premium service soon birthed the Wazobia African Market.
Tunde recognized the appeal of a grocery store that evokes memories of the homeland, serviced by people with a common heritage and providing access to products Africans grew up enjoying. He extensively studied the landscape and found out how Nigerians got their food supplies. He discovered that there was a market for a store where Africans could get products that were relative to them. At the time, he was working with a retail store that tried to do just that, but he soon saw gaps that he knew he could fill by adding his personal touch and applying his years of experience in the sector. He decided to start a store where customers can find all they need under one roof, and at the same time, interact with people of common heritage and enjoy a better overall customer experience.
Tunde is passionate about seeing people grow and thrive. When he wakes up each morning, he asks himself: ‘How do I make life better for the people around me today?’ His prevailing attitude to life is routinely adopted by the staff of Wazobia African Market. As a result, the brand has developed a tradition of welcoming employees and customers like members of the family and the Wazobia African Market has become recognized for its philanthropic efforts including annual funfairs, food drives, disaster relief efforts and donations to various charitable causes within the Houston community and environs.