Rosemary Wahome is the founder of Beyond Profit Kenya Limited where she serves as the managing director.
Wahome quit her job and used her retirement benefits to venture into Sustainability Reporting, using an initial capital of Ksh 210,000.
Here is her story as told by WoK.
Wahome graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce degree at Kenyatta University after which she worked with an NGO based in Kawangware.
She also worked as a manager at Business Mind magazine before going into the corporate world, where she worked at NCBA bank.
Wahome registered her business in 2015 while still in employment and later quit after getting her first client.
“On the promise of the first client, I resigned and used the retirement benefits to pay for my initial training. The initial capital was Ksh 210,000 and this went into legal fees, training and stationery,” she said.
After making the investment, it took Wahome a whole year to see results.
“The entrepreneur always believes their products is the next big thing and the market may not necessarily think so. Know where the market is at
“That would have saved me a couple of months and I would a made more headway in capacity building than in looking for consulting work,” she stated.
Wahome explained that she would have researched and understand better the local market for better and faster results.
“Bridging that gap would have made a lot of money sense. I should have picked a different co-founder who would put in more hours on building the business,” she explained.
Wahome advised those seeking to get into business to try employment first in order to learn things that can be emulated in new businesses.
“You will appreciate the systems that keep the business running and these you can then emulate in your business later. With smaller businesses, you see the grit and hustle it takes to build a business,” she added.
She also advised those intended to get into business not to fear starting early.
“Start early. You are not too young to save. Look for bargains; there’s always a more affordable rate somewhere. Finally, live within your means without comparing yourself to others,” Wahome added.
Wahome attributes her success to prayer and training her mind to stay in check.
“I start every morning with prayer. I also watch what I eat and make an extra effort to spend time with my daughter
“I believe that just as you train your body muscle, one should also train their brain to keep it in tip-top shape. I therefore make it a habit of playing Sudoku every day,” she stated.
