On May 8, 2016 I was in Nairobi. There is always something capital
about capital cities and for that reason, it is good to visit the cities quite
often. People in capital cities, especially in Africa tend to be very
enterprising. The city of Nairobi is a great place to be. Live is really busy
in Nairobi and I know this is something many people do not like. You only need
to sit somewhere on the street and observe what people are doing and you will
be amazed how ordinary things can be done in a great way.
Just the other day, I was
traveling to the northern town called Lodwar and I had to stay overnight in
Nairobi. As usual, when on such a trip I stay in a small hotel within the
central business district. My flight was
at 3.30 pm so my morning was quite relaxed. Soon after breakfast, I decided to
walk around to catch up with early live on a Sunday morning. There, they have
nice shoeshine points on the main streets, just next to public toilets where
you pay a little money to help yourself in a very clean place…..what a good
idea! As I was passing, a lady requested to clean my shoes. She had this nice
smile that you get from airline staff. I joked.....”will my shoes shine like
your face?” She confidently promised exactly that and I sat down. The shoeshine
points are made in a way that she had to work on my shoes while standing and
this improves efficiency. Within no time, my shoes were looking great in a way
I cannot achieve myself. I joyfully paid KES 40 (equivalent to less than half one
US $). They do it in less than 10 minutes, including retying your shoe laces.
We talked a little regarding the
business. We agreed that income from such activity is just the same as what a
high school teacher gets in a month. Surely, shoe shining in Nairobi is that
good. We compared what she was doing to similar activities in the city, like,
trolley pushers and motorbike taxis commonly known as “bodaboda” here. Now, let
look at this from an open point of view. The activity is very ordinary in
nature, you can do it, anyone can do it and it is a service that people actually
need. When I arrived in Nairobi the previous night, it was raining so my shoes
did not look nice. We all agree this is an ordinary activity that is being done
in a great way. As I walked away, I found I had something to write about….this
story.
When the first such shoe shine
point was established, I went to the guy and told him…this is great, I have
come to support you. He did my shoes and that was more than 10 years ago. For
many years, that kind of work was done by men only. Now we have many women
doing it, you will find them in every street. This is to say it is a
good business in that it provides income to many, including income earning
opportunities for women. For that, I say it is something to replicate in all
cities in Africa.
When you have some luggage with
you within the central business district in Nairobi, you do not need to worry.
Get a trolley guy and you will get where you want to go very safely. They are
part of the street economy and nobody will steal from you. Their presence has improved
security in the street. Again, this is a good enterprise. Many guys do not even
own the trolleys they push and they hire from someone.
As I walked down the street back
to my hotel, I found a shop doing something we do in Mombasa…fresh fruit juice.
We charted for few minutes with the owner, only to learn that a glass of juice
was 150% more than our place. I felt like it is time we opened a branch in
Nairobi. Now, this is also something to think about whichever city you live. The
idea is great and we have sold fresh fruit juice for 8 year. You will be amazed
how much you can make just by having one staff and as few as 15-20 customers in
a day! Kenya is a great country; you can make it greater by running an
enterprise just by doing the ordinary in a great way. Someone must do it and it
is you and me!
