Many Kenyans want to be entrepreneurs, but there are many obstacles which determine the ease with which they can conduct their ventures. Nyambura Ndung’u is the owner of Clay Republic, a pottery business manufacturing clay products like water pots, clay tandoori, clay grills etc. Noah is a Law Firm Associate at Mali Advocates.
What was the main drive towards establishing your own business?
Nyambura: Coming up with a unique idea is what propelled us into the pottery business. We identified a market gap in that, the pottery idea has been fairly dead among people as well as very few business ventures in the sector. Having established my marketing company before gave us a good ground in terms of marketing our products instead of venturing fully into the marketing sector, which is somewhat flooded currently.
Noah: Passion drove me into Law. Despite the seeming overflow of law firms and lawyers in the market, my inner passion of having to litigate court cases on my own instead of working behind the scenes was my main drive towards establishing my own law firm.
How do you deal with the common critique of your products, especially the ‘traditional’ bit of it?
Nyambura: Selling our products in a healthy cooking way has really helped us to boost our sales. We have managed to sail through the stiff competition from modern cooking pots and products by identifying the unique benefits that the customer gets from using our products. We also focus on how we can modify our clay products to feel modern, for example, by changing the shape from the traditional pot shape to fit modern customer preferences.
Which are the main challenges/obstacles in your line of business?
Nyambura: Our main challenge in service to customers has been the limitation to meet demand. For new businesses, it’s not easy to come up with new products that are completely appealing to the customer in terms of training your producers to give top-notch designs and quality as well as meet the quantity demanded.
Secondly, when starting a business, funding is a main problem. This is mainly due to the inability to access funds from banks and other loaning institutions when at the start-up stage, which leaves the entrepreneur with the option of selling personal property or borrowing from friends, which in most times, is unreliable.
Thirdly, most SMEs do not understand taxation. KRA can organize training for business owners on all the required taxes instead of being fast on the tax penalties since many SME owners do not understand which taxes to pay as well as when they are supposed to be paid.
Noah: Starting out a law firm needs a lot of experience and adequate skills to run successfully. As such, being straight from Law School had its own constraints, which led to the decision to do what we were comfortable with as we continued to learn.
Secondly, there are definitely household names in the industry when you come in. The existence of already well-branded firms and successful law firms is a major challenge for the law sector since many clients are looking for experience and skill of work when sourcing for law services.
Thirdly, you will hardly have many people supporting your idea. Most times, you’ll not earn the support of friends and family as you are starting, and many will present you with criticism as well as negative energy, which can hold you back in your venture.
How can the Government show support to SMEs?
Nyambura: The government should put up policies that support start-up funding. Some of the existing policies do not resonate well or lack clear information for entrepreneurs who need funding, such as group loans. The government should be able to avail enough loans per business rather than the minimal funds one can get through Hustler Fund or even the Women Groups and Youth Groups.
Additionally, the government can also put up policies to provide an enabling environment for SMEs to grow. Most SMEs face unfair competition, mostly from imports hence the need for government to come up with protective measures for brands made in Kenya.
Noah: The government can come up with a one-time system where the SMEs can get the required licenses and certifications in one place. Getting the required certifications has been a major challenge for start-ups as they are both time-consuming and costly.
How have you been able to navigate through the challenges?
Noah: The support, either financial or guidance, has been helpful to us. We have been privileged to have the support of Cytonn as well as family and friends, which has helped in grounding the firm. Criticism, as well as staying focused on your goal, is important too in navigating through the obstacles.
Ibrahim (Real Estate Developer): You cannot underestimate the power of networking. Networking in the business market has proven to be the most important tool for my success in the real estate development sector. Most of the time, my projects are from referrals and networking.
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