EMTREPRENEURS WATCH:from ksh 3,000 investment to raking ksh 50,000 per month

In his early forties, Patrick Mutuku is in a line of business which will never run out of demand. “You know, as long as people keep eating, which is something they will always do, then what I do to  eke a living will always be in demand,” he says with a lilt of pride in his voice when I meet him at his place of work along Ring Road Westlands just next to Oil Libya petro station.
Just in case you are wondering which line of business he is in, fruits, groceries and all manner of vegetables ranging from potatoes, cucumbers, fruit salad to cauliflowers are his specialty. But that’s not where his story begins.
“I did a lot of electrical work in the past which was also part of self employment and for two years I was into private car hire business and after things didn’t turn out as I had hoped and expected due to challenges here and there,  I decided not to be a fool about it and dropped the business altogether.”
The father of four says that after his botched plans, he decided to venture into the line of food business. “Initially I started working with my mum but I later inherited the place from her.” He recalls that at the time of inheritance in 1994 there was nothing much in the grocery shop and he had to use part of his savings to refill the stock.
“I used roughly Sh3, 000 to Sh5, 000 and the rest as they say is history,” says the businessman who gets his produce from Wakulima market.
The irony of his business is that he is situated in a location where you will spot around three to four similar businesses but this is one thing which does not make Patrick lose a wink of his sleep over. “It really doesn’t matter because competition is always welcome in any line of business and when you’ve been in business for long like I have been, you tend to have loyal customers who will always come to you even if the guy next door is selling same things as you,” boasts the 42 year old who enjoys the luxury of supplying groceries and vegetable to Galileos Lounge in Westlands, Galileos Extreme in town and the famed French cuisine restaurant, Alan Bobbe’s Bistro.
“I rake in Sh20, 000 to Sh30, 000 when I supply to such high end places and this is just during the weekends when business on their end is booming,” says Patrick who adds that, “From normal customers who will just walk in the store and buy something off the rack or order fruit salads from their comfort of their offices, I can make up to Sh50,000 in profits during a good month.
From a venture that has been able to provide and sustain his family through the years, he has also been able to provide employment to three young people who he refers to as his helpers. “They help me unload and pack things and they are able to handle and manage things when I am not around. I also encourage them to in the future start their own businesses as they will not work for me forever.
Interestingly, Patrick points to the shop adjacent to his and says, “He used to work for me in the past and after teaching him the loops of the business, he decided to go his own way and there is no joy greater for me than seeing him do his own thing.”
But business have not been all glory for him and no pain, “I part with Ksh 10,000 as rent and as you can see for yourself, this place is so small which is one of the major challenge that I have to deal with plus no insurance company wants to cover us since we are in what they refer to them as vibanda’s,” he says that due to this, he cannot purchase expensive assets such as a refrigerator as it’s easier for thieves to break in the place of business at night.
For a man who confesses that he prefers his line of work other than employment because he has the luxury to be the boss and make the decisions which seem fit for the business without consulting anyone,  he says that his number one secret in succeeding in this line of business for so long is treating customers as they ought to be treated. “They always come first,” which is true as he has to stop talking to me several times to serve them. “Plus you have to be fair and reasonable with the prices also.”
To keep abreast with the times, he says he is on the way of having a website to help him tap the online market where people can order his products on line.
“I am content with what I do for a living otherwise I would have bolted a long time ago and my advice for anyone especially our young people who are still figuring out what they should with their lives is realize that no business makes profits overnight and don’t be discouraged by how much you have to start with, it’s your hard work that counts.

source: career point