Hellen Kahenya: Self-Taught Interior Designer with a Magical Touch

Talk about passion and Hellen Kahenya’s name will pop right up. She is a creative who is gifted and is confident in her talent. Kahenya believes there is absolutely nothing that’s stopping her from pursuing her passion to its optimum. She left a well-paying job at VisionFund - a microfinance company of the World Vision Kenya in 2012 to start her own Communication Consultancy (Communication Works) and later on H. Kahenya Interior Design in 2016. In her own words, “if you desire to start a business after employment, consider your skills set and your passion, then give it your best years- when you are young and energetic”. We recently visited Ms. Kahenya at her office at SK Offices, along Raphta Road Westlands and we had a brief chat with her regarding her career and entrepreneurship journey.

Who is Hellen Kahenya?

I am an Interior Designer out of passion and a communication strategist by training. Whatever I choose to do, I do it with passion, applying myself fully and give of myself wholly to the process. Above all, I’m a mother and a Christian. My faith has defined my journey a lot. I take each day as it comes; hoping that others could stick along and gain something in the process.

Tell us about your educational/ professional background?

After form four, I started drawing portraits of flowers and I would give them to my sister who would in turn sell them off to her colleagues in the office. But my sister was a hustler and she roped me into her embroidery business. That is where I learnt embroidery techniques and drawing repetitive patterns; I loved it! Especially because I got paid for assisting her. I managed to save some money which I used for registration and admission for

a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration. I later pursued a Masters Degree in Strategic Management at the same University.

I joined the Tourism Trust Fund in 2003 as an intern. I was later absorbed as a fulltime employee to manage the affairs of the CEO office and the PR Agency. In 2006, I joined KADET (Now VisionFund) as an Executive Assistant to the Director and to set up the Communication function. While at VisionFund, I pursued a professional Diploma in Public Relations; an online course by the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR). It was an amazing experience and there was so much to learn. My boss was gracious with me as I set up systems at the pace of my studies.

But as I neared the end of the course I was encouraged to consider agency experience at Tell-EM PR. This was the same firm that supported Tourism Trust Fund and as fate would have it, I was part of an amazing and very experienced team that supported Nokia, Visa, CBK and Tourism Trust Fund, my first employer!

I got married in 2008 and I considered a break from work as I leaped into this new season. While on the break, my former boss at Vision Fund called me back to head the Communication department.

This is where I honed my communication skills; I learnt so much from stakeholder engagements, to internal communication, to brand strategy and all things brands! I was at a good place. But by 2011 I was a mother of 2 and I was already feeling the pressure: Pressure to nurture my children and be with them…at home and pressure to take on more assignments at work. I was restless. In 2012, I decided to resign from my job and venture into consultancy.