It is becoming increasingly clear that there is power in harnessing the talents of young people. Unlike in the past when people only gave white collar jobs prominence, today talent is the real gold mine.
This has been demonstrated in the lives of so many young people including Alex David, popularly known as Alex Mouldings Mouldings, who has been able to completely change his life for the better thanks to his special talent.
He is a molder who has given houses across the country grandeur thanks to his magic hands. He has worked for the who is who in Kenya including newly elected president William Ruto, COTU Secretary General Francis Atwoli and Former Mandera Governor Hon. Ali Roba.
Here is his story as told by WoK.
Background
Alex David was born in Machakos county. Speaking on the Lynn Ngugi Show, he said his childhood was difficult and at times they slept hungry. He attended school in Machakos and later moved to Mombasa.
He was always in love with the arts and this was reinforced by the fact that his father was a sculptor. He accompanied his father as he worked on different sculptures and helped out, all while observing.
At times, he would be the one to sell his father’s creations to clients. It was here that he met Indians who took him to Mamba Village in Mombasa.
He worked with another person to sculpt crocodiles. Later, he worked under the person and they got more jobs around Mombasa. This continued and they even got to do some moulding.
Moving to the Capital
Alex then made the decision to move to Nairobi and look for work. His first job was at a house in Kitengela.
When the client asked him how much he wanted, he said Sh500 a day since in Mombasa he used to be paid Sh400 per day.
Being kind enough, the client offered to pay him Sh1000 instead to mold her house. He finished the work in a month to the satisfaction of the client. She then began recommending him to her friends.
Thus, he got the second job in Karen where he worked at the same rate for three months since the house was bigger.
Instead of the daily payment he received for his work, a client opted to pay Sh350,000 on a one off contract. With the money, he continued to better the life of his parents.
Another client who liked his work advised him to advertise his services on social media platforms. He was not a social media person and smart phones were not even his thing. He also continued to train other young men who worked with him.
Difficulties
2018 became a very difficult year in his career. Some clients would refuse to pay or complete payments after he was done with the projects.
Feeling helpless, he would not push them but would choose to let go. In 2019 he got married to a pastor’s daughter and it was during a period when his business was down. Having grown up knowing what hunger was, he didn’t want to go back there again.
The girl’s parents also felt the marriage was not done in the right way since they didn’t do a wedding. This has changed over the years and the parents respect the union. The couple is also blessed with one child.
Alex Moldings continued to get clients despite the ups and downs and in 2020 he got a call from Hon. Ali Roba. He wanted him to go do some moldings on a project.
The politician paid for his plane ticket and he boarded a plane to Wajir for the first time. Upon arrival, he was picked up at the airport and taken to his office. He was given a Sh700, 000 contract and his employees joined him.
They did an excellent job and the money continued coming in. He even got the chance to mould Francis Atwoli’s house in Kajiado and Hon. William Ruto’s Karen residence.
Today, he employs about forty young men and believes that his hard work and belief in God have gotten him to where he is.
He has been able to better the life of his parents, whom he loves very much and believes he wouldn’t be where he is today were it not for them. He also has land in Kitengela and is building himself a stately house in the village.
