Byron John Otieno, popularly known as Owago Onyiro, is a comedian, media personality and actor who rose to fame through the Churchill Show then aired on NTV. In 2020 when Kenyans were badly hit by the covid-pandemic, the comedian started to cook fish then post on his instagram account and before he knew it a business idea had been born.
In this article, WoK brings you the story of Owago Onyiro – the transition from comedian to chef and running a successful online hotel.
Establishing Owago’s Kitche
2020 was a tough year for as the ravages of the pandemic were felt in almost all sectors of the economy. Owago Onyiro took advantage of the fact that many people were at home spending time on their phones to market his products online. He would start getting fish from Kisumu, cook then share in his instagram account and soon he began getting orders. While speaking to Daniel Ndambuki in the Churchill show Journey Series, the comedian revealed that it only took one photo of his homemade fish for opportunities to start opening up for him.
“That time I was not doing anything so I decided to cook fish just like any other person and shared a video of myself preparing the fish on my instagram. What followed were requests from my followers and fans asking me to deliver the same to them and the following day I delivered two orders. I saw a business opportunity and decided to run with it and the rest is history,” he said.
Apart from selling the fish online, Owago also started selling roasted smokies over the weekends while attending football matches in his neighbourhood.
“I sell smokies every Saturday and Sunday where we play football. I light the fire myself and at the same time, I play football. During halftime is when I sell smokies to my fellow players and fans,” he explained.
Also Read: Mulamwah: How Troubled Comedian Invested Wisely In His Businesses
The Success of Owago’s Kitchen.
Since its inception, Owago’s Kitchen has grown to become a full-fledged hotel offering different meals such as Kuku kienyeji, omena, fish, sukuma wiki and many others. He has over 363,000 followers on instagram, 3,600 subscribers on YouTube and over 48,000 followers on his Facebook page. The business venture has seen the comedian land several business deals. In 2020, he became the official brand ambassador for Peptang Kenya and Farmers Choice Limited all happening within one week. The comedian took to his instagram to announce his new deals and expressed his joy.
“Thank you Peptang for believing in my brand. When you win they aren’t happy. When you die they pretend how they were close to you. God will fight for me,” he wrote.
A few days later the comedian announced his second endorsement by Farmers Choice Limited saying;
“This week is about Win Win Win… Your guarantee of quality from Farmers Choice. Smokies zikuliwe sasa..” he wrote in an instagram caption.
Last month the comedian signed yet another deal with flour company Exe Unga Limited. The deal saw him become the official brand ambassador of the company which produces different types of flour brands including Jogoo maize flour, Family porridge flour and Exe Chapati flour.
