Business Hours: Who Told Us That Business Starts at 8 and ends at 17 Hours?

By Jerry M Nyazungu

AS a business consultant, I’m called in when companies are stuck — not growing, not making profits, or slowly dying despite their potential.

Recently, I was working with a retail business whose shops are located in some of the busiest areas in the city. They sell quality products at lower prices than competitors. On paper, they had everything going for them.

But they were failing.

 

When I asked about their operating hours, they told me:

“We open at 8:00 AM and close at 4:30 PM. We also break for lunch from 1:00 to 2:00.”

At first, I laughed — I thought they were joking.

But they weren’t. They were dead serious.

I asked, “Why those hours?”

Their answer?

“That’s just how it’s done.”

No strategy. No customer insight. Just cultural repetition.

So we conducted proper market research — and what we found was shocking, yet predictable.

Most of their customers were actively looking for their products before 8:00 AM, on their way to work.

Others were available after 5:00 PM, once they’d knocked off.

During the lunch hour (1:00–2:00 PM), the business was closed — but guess who wasn’t? Their customers. That’s when they had time to shop.

We helped them adjust their operating hours:

• Open earlier
• Stay open later
• Rotate staff to avoid lunch-hour blackouts

And guess what?

Sales shot up.

Customer feedback improved.

The business turned around — just by shifting the clock.

But here’s the real issue:

This company is not an isolated case.

It represents a multitude of businesses across Zimbabwe, Zambia, and the rest of Africa.

Somehow, we’ve blindly accepted the idea that a business must run from 8 AM to 5 PM.

We never asked why. We never questioned the logic.

We just copied a corporate culture — one that doesn’t always serve entrepreneurial realities.

True Story: A Restaurant Closed for Lunch

To make things even more bizarre, we once worked with a restaurant in Zimbabwe that was closed during lunch hour.

Yes — a restaurant. Closed. For lunch.

I thought it was a typo on their business hours. So I called them.

They confirmed: “We are closed from 1 PM to 2 PM for lunch.”

I laughed so hard I almost dropped my phone.

How can a place that sells food take a lunch break during the only time most people want food?

It’s like a fuel station closing during peak traffic because the attendants need to rest from pumping fuel!

The 8–5 Myth: A Legacy That’s Failing Us

Where did this belief come from? Colonial systems? Civil service patterns? Big corporate structure?

Whatever the source — it doesn’t work for the customer-driven, SME-dominated landscape of Africa.

While customers want convenience, flexibility, and extended access — businesses are closed when the demand is highest.

We’re not failing because we don’t have good products.

We’re not failing because of the economy.

We’re failing because we copied a culture without questioning its fit.

Time to Shift the Culture

Business is about being relevant to the customer.

If your customer knocks off at 5 PM, why are you closing at 4:30?

If your customer shops early, why are you opening late?

If your customer has lunch break freedom, why are you on lunch too?

Strategy Beats Tradition

To every entrepreneur reading this:

Don’t do things just because that’s how others do it.

Do it because the customer demands it, and your data supports it.

Rethink your hours. Reorganize your staff shifts. Be where your customer is — when they need you.

Business is not about being busy from 8 to 5.

Business is about being available when your customer wants to buy.

Let’s break the cycle of blind tradition.

Let’s build timeless businesses — rooted in strategy, not superstition