Cyprian Orakpo: Building Resilience in Business

At 60, Cyprian Orakpo still works from the office where the past has not been allowed to speak for him. Awards and certificates fill the room, a 32-channel CCTV monitor shows different parts of the operation, and his wife works at a nearby desk.

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Success changes with age.

His career has moved through trading, international commerce, manufacturing, corporate leadership and, more recently, healthcare. But age has changed the questions he asks. “Success changes with age,” he says. At different stages, success meant passing examinations, finding a job, marrying or owning a house. At 60, he says, reflection turns toward what truly matters.

Orakpo has seen businesses rise and fall, technologies disappear, colleagues die and priorities shift. The things that once appeared permanent, including cars, fashion and public fame, eventually change or fade. “So you begin to ask yourself, what is the value of life?” he says. His answer centers on relationships, impact and the legacy he wants to leave.

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So you begin to ask yourself, what is the value of life?

After studying Economics and Statistics at the University of Benin, Orakpo began in trading. He calls Alaba International Market, where he spent his formative business years, an “international business school.” There, he learned that commerce depended on more than price. It relied on suppliers and customers, especially because major transactions often used credit.

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It was about relationships with suppliers and customers.

He also remembers the informal tests that young apprentices faced. A senior trader might give an apprentice money to buy food, knowing the change would exceed the cost. Returning the balance demonstrated honesty. “You passed your first examination in honesty,” Orakpo says. In his view, that early reputation later becomes the asset that helps a person establish a business, even when available capital is limited.

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You passed your first examination in honesty.