By Staff Writer
Kenyans are an industrious lot always on the lookout for business opportunities. That said, starting a business in this country is no walk in the park. The licenses involved are many and sometimes confusing. City council askaris can be brutal if you don’t have these pieces of documents. Then you have to deal with many other bodies like MCSK, PRISK etc. This writer looks at some businesses that can easily kill you with stress.
M-PESA Agent Shop
If you want an early appointment with your maker this is probably the fastest route. Cons have made running an M-PESA agent shop a nightmarish undertaking. M-PESA shop attendants are easy prey to clever con artists who use a myriad of tricks to clean their float. Calling Safaricom in a bid to have the money trailed is a waste of time. Then we have the trigger happy gangsters who will not hesitate to shoot if the MPESA attendant tries to play smart with them.
Playstation
Running a playstation business is lucrative until your shop is broken into and everything stolen. And this is very common. Then we have the lot that will pretend to be playing but their intention is to steal your pads and games. Pads go for around kes4,500 apiece while the games range from kes3,500 to upwards of kes6,000. Don’t waste your time taking insurance with companies like Britam, they will find all manner of excuses from earth, hell and heaven not to pay you. This business requires balls of steel and alot of investment on security.
Also Read: How To Start And Run A Successful Playstation Business
Matatu Business
This business is not for the faint hearted. The money you make is divided four ways: the police, cartels manning the stages, your touts and driver and finally you the owner. To succeed you must know how the game is played otherwise you will wish you had invested in some other business.
Car Hire Business
Hiring your car at a fee is good business. But risks are ever present like one of your cars being used for robbery. Incidents of robbers hiring cars and using them for robbery is not new. If things go awry you will find yourself in a police station trying to absolve yourself from any involvement.
Network Marketing (like Global Aim)
Multilevel marketing has been in Kenya for sometime now. If you’ve not attended meetings organised by these companies you most likely know someone who has or is trying to recruit you. Those who have been recruited are bamboozled by stories of how they will be rich-own cars, houses etc. They are vigorous in recruiting new members in what looks like a pyramid scheme. Sad enough, the recruits look miserable and pitiful as they try to recruit new members.
Shylocks
The number of shylock businesses are on an upward trajectory in Kenyan estate. Some of the goods given as security in exchange for loans are stolen. If this happens to you, overzealous police officers will charge you with handling stolen property.