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STARTUPS THAT SHAPED THE LAST DECADE Some of these companies were just glimmers 10 years ago-and none had yet gone public. Here are the fast-growing companies that shaped the world, over the past decade.
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SCAN ME
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Contents
14 How Pezesha’s Alternative Credit Scoring is Paving Way for MSME Working Capital in East Africa
16 THE MOST INFLUENTIAL STARTUPS OF THE DECADE
30 Oroni Tendera pens down his ‘artful’ experience
28 The Future Technologies in Automotive Industry
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January/February
2020
Contents 12
Interior Design
22
Digitization, Unemployment and the Future of Work in South Africa
Design Firm Redefines Interior Spaces in Kenya 14
Interview
24
Leadership “I am crushed by the criticism. I get so tired of all the hats I wear, jobs I do, and time I spend. I’m exhausted by the weight of responsibility I have!” Does this sound like you?
How Pezesha’s Alternative Credit Scoring is Paving Way for MSME Working Capital in East Africa 16
Economies
Cover Story 26
Digital Marketing How Can A Business Grow with Digital Marketing?
Coffee Break
Some of these companies were just glimmers 10 years ago-and none had yet gone public. Here are the fast-growing companies that shaped the world, for better or worse, over the past decade. 20
Logistics How Running a Business has Changed Over the Past Decade… and What’s Next
28. 30. 32. 36.
Motor Review Travel and Leisure Book Review Song Review
Jan/Feb 2020
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StartUp Magazine is published monthly. Copyright 2019 Kreative Hub Media. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be produced or transmitted in any form including photocopy, or any storage and retrieval system without publisher's permission in writing.
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INSIDE
>Innovation
A Sure Bet to Keep Africa Moving Forward
> Koto Housing
Build Your Dream House in Only 21 Days
> Interview; Andrey Yakunin Understanding the hospitality market in Russia
>Travel & Leisure What to Know about the Marine Parks at the Coastal Kenya
The Driving Force To a Successful Family Business Esther Muchemi, CEO and Founder, Samchi Group of Companies
January 2018 I startupmagazine.co.ke
Managing Editor Sylvester Habil Okumu sylvester@startupmagazine.co.ke
Photographer Versatile Photographers
Associate Editor Adisa Hudson Oroni Tendera
Creative Designer Kreative Hub Media
Contributors John Foley Perminus Wainaina Shalini Gadhia Njeri Muchunu
Published By
Business Development Washingtone Terry Nickson Juma Marketing Executive Irene Okoth Operations Simpson Ayodi
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Contacts 4th Floor, Bihi Towers, P.O Box 3875-30200, Nairobi Kenya. Cell (+254) 724 113 683 (+254) 776 061 644 Email: info@startupmagazine.co.ke Website: www.startupmagazine.co.ke StartUp Magazine EA @StartupMag_EA
The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the position of the publisher. Readers are advised to seek professional advice before acting on any information contained in this publication. Important Information for Contributors to StartUp Magazine By submitting content before publication you confirm that: (a) You (and/or other named contributors) are the sole author(s) of the content submitted; (b) The content you submit is orginal and has not previously been published (unless you specifically advise us on the contrary); (c) You haven't previously licensed the use of the content you submit; (d) So far as you are aware, the content submitted will not infringe any third-party rights, be defamatory or in any way illegal.
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Why do leaders need to recharge and how to recharge?
Guest Piece
By Shalini Gadhia eaders often wonder why they feel drained after certain projects. The thought often comes as ‘I put in so many hours yet I do not see results’. Why would that be? Are we not supposed to achieve more as we do more? We expect more and better outcomes with increased efforts. Think of a battery, it serves us until the time it is charged. It often gets drained once it’s low on charge. Would it not stop serving us completely if it has no charge left? The same concept applies to human beings. As leaders it is very essential that we do not keep working until we get completely drained. One should make time to keep recharging. Recharging refreshes the mind and body by giving them a break. During this break, we are able to get away from the continuous cycle of the same thoughts and tasks related to this project we are attempting to complete. When we get away, it allows us to get a fresh perspective and permits rest. Hence when we return to the project, we are enabled to think better and enhance our productivity. So how do we know when to recharge and how should this be done? We should not let ourselves
work to the point where we can no longer think or execute tasks. The same should be practiced with our teams. Each individual has a different window of working after which a break is needed. There needs to be freedom to allow team members to establish when they need to do this to nurture optimum productivity. Recharging can be done in various ways, which again could vary with each individual’s preference. Taking deep breaths in between tasks helps to refresh the mind and rejuvenate the body. Deep breathing enhances oxygen flow into the brain which in turn improves our thinking ability. Hence one may notice that following deep breathing exercises, one is able to think more clearly which may often generate better ideas for the project in hand. Another way could be to take a walk and get some fresh air. Getting some air often improves brain activity which in turn enhances productivity. It allows us to divert our minds and permits freshness in perspective. A problem that seemed complex a few minutes ago may seem very simple all of a sudden. Closing one’s eyes and being still for a few minutes allows us to focus inwards and gather our thoughts in that moment. Often when we are trying to accomplish multiple tasks, our mind gets disoriented and we are unable to complete anything effectively. Being still for a few mo-
ments lets us calm down and strategize ways of accomplishing each task one by one, which in turn leads to better results. Listening to music (especially soothing music), calms our nerves and cheers us up which instills positivity in us. Feeling energized and working with a positive outlook is sure to guarantee better results as opposed to working with a sloppy attitude. Feeling drained and out of energy only elongates the time taken to accomplish a task. Listening to great music improves our mood which in turn positively impacts results. It’s said that when you face a challenge, the answer is often found in the page of a book. Taking a break by reading also rejuvenates the mind as we completely get distracted from the ongoing project and allows new ideas to flow in. Who knows, a solution you may be seeking could be found in just THAT book! Reading also improves focus and attention which are key attributes for success. To all leaders – Take a break and break the work cycle! The author is a marketing professional with 10 years of work experience across various industries. Email: gadhiashalini@gmail.com
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StartUp Stories
Letters to the editor
“Transport is the highest direct cost we have to contend with because we have to hire pick-up trucks to ferry the briquettes whenever there is an order.” Cecil Chekizie (Kenyan) Founder and CEO, Eco Makaa The 22-year-old engineering student from the University of Nairobi was motivated to start the eco-friendly charcoal-briquette business after the government banned logging of trees. The charcoal prices have since increased sharply prompting him to provide more sustainable and cheaper fuel alternatives for his community. He makes briquettes in Kitengela on the outskirts of Nairobi where he has employed two young men and a woman. He plans to get a pick-up vehicle to help in transporting the prod-
ucts the market as part of his preparation for increased orders. His Eco Makaa, an e-commerce company that connects local fuel briquette producers to customers has seen him win big ticket supplies including leading hotels in the city. He has now set his sights on households to provide them a better alternative to the charcoal as a cooking fuel The entrepreneur has sold about ten tones of eco-friendly briquettes and believes he has saved about 75 trees that would have been cut down to produce charcoal. He recently bagged Sh 1.2 million prize money to boost his business at the Anzisha awards.
“Financial institutions see farming as risky. Moreover, farming is still a male-dominated sector and as a woman you have to triple your effort.” Anna Phosa (South African) Founder, Dreamland Piggery & Abattoir Phosa is often called a ‘celebrity pig farmer’. She is one of Africa’s foremost young and successful pig farmer. She first started her pig farm in. Soweto, South Africa in 2004 with a savings of USD 100. Starting up wasn’t easy as she says she faced a couple of challenges key among them being lack of financial support to scale her operations. But she kept it small and opted to grow organically.
This later rose to 100 pigs per week in a deal worth over USD 1.9 million three years later. She now runs her business in a 350-hectare farm which she bought through bank financing and employs over 50 people on permanent basis and a couple of casual labourers. In addition to the pigs, the farm has an abattoir and maize field. Its main clients are big retailers.
Tansportation and logistics The last edition of Startup where you featured Little for a cover story was insightful. In particular, i liked how you covered the topic in depth and highlighted how ride hailing apps have revolutionized the transport and logistics sector in the country. I hope you feature such insightful stories in future. Namasaka Eric Via Email-Bungoma
Good design and outlook I came across Startup online and got hooked by the elaborate coverage. Curiosity led me to buy the print version and i was impressed to say the least. A very well done magazine with good design and editorial. Keep up the good work. W. Nguyo Eldoret
Music review I get to read monthly editions of the magazine and i am impressed by the quality of the print version. I am also quite impressed in what you cover at the magazine, moreso the music review which is always fresh and interesting. Keep the good work. Mary Wanja In Kitui
Starting with 4 pigs, she grew her enterprise and within four years she was contracted by Pick n’ Pay supermarket to supply 10 pigs per week. Her deal soon skyrocketed to 20 pigs per week in what she saw as her biggest breakthrough.
“We must inspire our kinsmen to look beyond the now and to see the big picture. If we don’t roll up our sleeves and get dirty, no one else will.” Abasiama Idaresit (Nigeria) Founder and CEO of Wild Fusion Abasiama is the founder and CEO of Wild Fusion, a digital marketing agency based in Nigeria but with presence in Ghana and Kenya. He is a graduate of Information Systems and Management from London School of Economics. He founded his company in 2009 with believing that the internet holds the future of marketing in Africa and across the world. After starting up, he spent the first 8 months without making money before he landed his first client. At
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the time, digital marketing was quite unpopular in Nigeria. With little budget, he was able to turn around the sales fortune of his client to the amazement of Google. Google decided to adopt the firm’s digital strategy as an internet marketing study case. Wild Fusion became Google Adwords’ first certified partner in Nigeria. In 2011, it was named Nigeria’s best digital agency. The next year, with no external funding, the company had an annual turnover of USD 6 million. Today, Wild Fusion boasts clients like Unilever, Vodacom, Diamond Bank, Planned Parenthood, and many other African and international clients.
HAVE YOUR SAY ONLINE The editor welcomes reader’s opinions but deserves the right to edit them for publication. Please email to
info@startupmagazine.co.ke More comments are published online about news stories published on startupmagazine.co.ke
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NEWS Kenya Digital Health Startup Selected for Duke UNICEF Innovation Accelerator
Duke University and UNICEF has awarded Lily Health a spot in the DukeUNICEF Innovation Accelerator, which aims to support social enterprises tackling the most pressing challenges facing children and youth around the world. Lily Health is a digital health startup that gives over 120,000 women in Kenya their own personal health advisor via Whatsapp and Messenger. Six social enterprises will join the Innovation Accelerator to develop and scale innovations that are addressing menstrual health and hygiene (MHH) in East Africa and beyond. The innovators’ solutions – which range from digital apps, to reusable and disposable pads, to community health models – all aim to strengthen menstrual health, hygiene, and management while tackling pervasive cultural taboos and educational barriers surrounding menstruation.
begin to menstruate, many face challenges at school and at home that can lead to stress, shame, embarrassment, confusion, and fear. These challenges may include a lack of knowledge about menstruation, insufficient access to menstrual hygiene materials, and inadequate WASH facilities for girls so they can change in a private space and discreetly dispose of used menstrual materials. By emphasizing local solutions and putting girls at the fore, the Innovation Accelerator cohort will collectively bring much-needed MHH solutions to girls and in turn, help empower the next generation of women to be healthy, happy, and educated.
Through the Innovation Accelerator’s two-year program, the entrepreneurs will have access to a multitude of resources, including UNICEF subject matter experts, mentorship opportunities, Duke University faculty and students, monthly capacity building webinars, and a weeklong residency at the Duke Innovation & Entrepreneurship Initiative (I&E).
“We are thrilled to be part of the Duke Unicef Innovation Accelerator. We see it both as a confirmation of our hard work thus far and an opportunity to leverage world class expertise to scale Lily to millions of women,” said MacGregor, Co-Founder of Lily Health.
As adolescent girls enter puberty and Jan/Feb 2020
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NEWS 2020 to Define Intra-African Remittances- WorldRemit
Online international money transfer company WorldRemit predicts that 2020 will be the year of intra-African remittances. The World Bank already estimates that migrant workers within Africa send remittances in excess of $14 billion dollars each year, and in 2018 intra-African remittances represented 20% of global remittance flows according to Ecobank Group. The African Continental Free Trade Area (ACFTA) agreement which promotes intra-African trade and regional integration is fueling intra-continental movement of people. Migrant workers are no longer just traveling to developed nations for work (traditional south to north migration patterns), opportunities lie closer to home. Between 2015 to 2019, Intra-African migrants grew from 16 million to 19 million. During the Startupmagazine.co.ke Jan/Feb 2020
same period, migration out of the African continent only increased from 16 to 17 million. This new trend of south to south migration does not change the desire to send money home, yet the vast majority of remittances are still sent ‘offline’. This informal remittance industry in Africa is estimated to be between two and ten times the size of the formal market. Money is taken to, and collected from a physical agent which can be inconvenient and usually subject to high fees. Africa has the highest costs for remittances globally, averaging 9% for $200 transaction compared to the global average of 7%. This is far from the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal (SDG)
of 3% by 2030. However, with over 122 million users of mobile money services in Africa, and smartphone connections forecasted to grow to 636 million in 2022, hitting the SDG is likely to depend on building the right infrastructure to support an increasingly mobile population. WorldRemit has built an extensive International money transfer service across the continent. Through partnering with mobile money providers, banks and cash pick up locations, such as Vodacom Tanzania, Wizzall of Senegal and Airtel Tigo in Ghana. The network and services will continue to grow to meet the increasing needs of hardworking and generous migrants who want a cost effective, convenient and secure way to send money home.
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INTERIOR DESIGN
Design Firm Redefines Interior Spaces in Kenya
Words Sylvester Okumu
i
nterior design is the art and science of enhancing the interior of a building to enhance a healthier and more aesthetically pleasing environment for the people using the space-according to Wikipedia.
design company formed by Roston Maliazo in 2011 is aiming to redefine the interior spaces in Kenya through their innovative and state of the art designs. Their ingenuity in designing spaces that keeps clients overwhelmed has inevitably drawn attention to them across the country. “A display gives an interior its charac-
Prime House Interiors, a local interior Startupmagazine.co.ke Jan/Feb 2020
ter, shapes it perspectives and communicates the moods of an environment,� says Mr. Maliazo during an interview with StartUp Magazine at his office at Mountain Mall, opposite Garden City along Thika Road. Studies indicate that interior design can create aesthetic appeal in virtually all parts of a home or office space.
13 Once settled on a suitable design theme for a client, Mr. Maliazo keenly works with a client to identify their needs to bring a design to life. Mostly, this will involve coming up with a colour, paint, textures, ambience, balance and symmetry among other aspects to provide a stunning appearance. Proper interior design helps to ensure that an office or living space fulfill its purpose, he adds. Mr. Maliazo grew up with a passion in design, which he has now grown into a business. He tells the StartUp Magazine that he was drawn into interior design when he got a role as a casual laborer in a construction site in Lavington Nairobi where his friend was a contractor. “I was fascinated by the interiors of the building and I kept wondering how I could execute this on my own,” he said. This explains his first love for gypsum ceilings, an industry practice used to develop ceiling plans and three-dimensional displays to enhance the outlook of buildings. He earned meagre payment from the construction job but his desire was to learn the craft much as he could.
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created as a casual laborer. The entrepreneur was once employed in a pharmaceuticals firm but resigned to pursue his passion in entrepreneurship which has eventually paid off. Starting with a few clients, Prime House Interiors has grown in leaps and bounds over time serving a diversified clientele base. “We now serve residential and commercial clients. We have employed a few staff and this can grow to many depending on the type of project we are handling,” he says. Mr. Maliazo is the lead designer at the firm having learned everything on the job. He also researches widely to stay ahead of the curve. “We have a strategic approach to everything we do and we treat clients with keenness. Once we get a project we try to outdo ourselves, and
in the end, we surpass client’s expectations. This probably explains why we have repeated businesses and growth through referrals,” he shares on the journey. “Our job is to transform the lives of our clients through what we do and we have to do it well,” notes the entrepreneur. “This has worked magic for us because when a client is happy they act as good ambassadors for your brand.” Over time, he has learned importance nuances that will help one stay ahead of the game as an entrepreneur. “You have to be passionate, highly driven and resilient to challenges for you to thrive. Be honest and deliver on your promises,” he advises. Going forward the firm aims to expand and establish a footprint in the sector as well as venture into real estate in the long run.
“Every time I walked around town I would be impressed by the designs and outlook of buildings like a kid. Any unique or a well-done design would strike me,” says the youthful executive. He later teamed up with a friend to start an interior design company but his friend opted out. This motivated him to start his own. By this time, he had a better knowledge of interior design having worked on a handful of projects. He bootstrapped his company based on the networks and clientele based he had Jan/Feb 2020
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INTERVIEW
How Pezesha’s Alternative Credit Scoring is Paving Way for MSME Working Capital in East Africa Words Sylvester Okumu
p
Hilda Moraa, founder and CEO PEZESHA
ezesha, a holistic digital financial technology company, is enabling micro, small and medium businesses in East Africa to access affordable working capital, financial literacy tips, credit scores and debt counseling. The fintech analyses a customer’s credit history from over 200 lenders and gathers thousands of data points on income, capital, sales, utility payments, and savings behavior among other wider data sets to build a credit profile through its credit scoring as a service platform, Patascore and from their use their matching technology to define the loan offer an SME can get as either working capital or float financing for their business. If an applicant’s loan is rejected, Pezesha offers financial literacy courses and debt counseling to improve their credit scoring. Additionally, it provides innovative tools to small businesses to enhance their business value and credit score growth to access wider financial opportunities by helping them efficiently track their inventory, sales and cash flows.
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In the following interview with StartUp Magazine, Hilda Moraa, the Founder and CEO of Pezesha shares how her firm taps on alternative credit scoring models that unlocks the potential of
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small businesses.
credit will help them grow.
What were your expectations when you set up Pezesha in 2016. Have they changed over time? Pezesha means financial empowerment, this is our ultimate mission and nothing has changed since I started this journey. We set up Pezesha to serve the financially excluded people and SMEs in Africa which is estimated to be a USD 19 billion financing gap in Kenya alone as our primary market. The mainstream lenders are only reaching less than 20 per cent of this market segment. These SMEs have no collateral or organized businesses with real time data to build and monitor their credit scores.
What challenges have you faced over time? Any possible intervention? It is pretty hard to find the right talent especially in finance and data science as the needed skills as we continue to grow. We have solved this by adopting strategic partnerships and raising financial resources to hire and train people with the right mindset and positive attitude. Getting more quality MSMEs is also challenging as their data rarely exists so we have empowered them with the right tools and tech to build their digital profile that helps them grow positive credit histories over time.
Over time we have continued to learn what our targeted segment needs and improved our value proposition and technology to scale and impact more underserved MSMEs to be included in the financial system. How is your business model unique? We take a holistic approach for credit deployment where we match qualified borrowers with the right credit from institutional lenders on our marketplace by matching them in line with their needs and affordability. This reduces our cost of funds and risk throughout the value chain that starts with financial education and ends with financial empowerment. What can you term has been the greatest impact by your financial solutions? Providing working capital to more than 10,000 micro and small businesses who have exponentially grown to at least 20% on average on their income levels and creating jobs for other people in their businesses. Can you expound on Patascore? Patascore is our financial education and credit scoring as a service platform that
forms a division in our business to help borrowers both individuals and SMEs achieve financial health and financial wealth at the end of the value chain leading to sustainable and productive lending. Over time, Pezesha builds up transactional data that develops a strong credit score for SMEs thus unlocking higher credit limits and business growth. As our data from more than 40 million transactions processed in the last 3 years continued to show us that over-indebtedness, purposeless use of credit or lack of a quality holistic credit score were the key reasons why borrowers defaulted reducing their financial health and leading to them not graduating up the formal financial system. So, we responded to solving this problem with Patascore otherwise it was going to be a dream to reach our vision of impacting millions of underserved to be eventually part of the financial system. From your experience, what would you say has been the greatest impediment to the success of local MSMEs? What can be done to avert this? Working capital is the greatest one as banks would not lend to the majority of them due to the lack of collateral and structures. Access to affordable capital and tools that boost their business efficiency and visibility to then build credit scores that lead to access to affordable
What have you learned about running a fintech firm as a woman? It is not a walk in the park. However, with the right mindset, team and thinking through the right approaches and collaborations to ensure equal access for both men and women are included in the financial system, then it is possible to achieve long term success. What are Pezesha’s future prospects? Going forward, we are looking to grow to more than 100,000 MSMEs across Kenya by going deep and wide and empowering them financial services via a one stop shop value chain where they can also get connected to other services beyond working capital in order to unlock their growth potential and scale to create millions of jobs. In the long term, allowing other local investors in the public to participate in this growth once these MSMEs have proved to be less risky and grow in wealth. We are excited about our partnership with Capital Markets Authority and banks as it creates this possibility at scale for us as a business and the economy at large.
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COVER STORY
THE MOST INFLUENTIAL STARTUPS OF THE DECADE Some of these companies were just glimmers 10 years ago-and none had yet gone public. Here are the fast-growing companies that shaped the world, for better or worse, over the past decade. Words Special Correspondent Startupmagazine.co.ke Jan/Feb 2020
t
A
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the turn of the last decade, the U.S. was still coming out of recession, the term unicorn for billion-dollar-valued tech company hadn’t yet been coined. Facebook was still in its formative stages. Uber and Airbnb weren’t born. Locally, Mpesa was still developing and had not grown into a juggernaut that it is today. There was no Jumia or Little and transactions were majorly cash-based. Since, a whole new ecosystem of influential technologies has matured. Presented in no particular order, these fast-growing companies--which hadn’t launched or were private as of 10 years ago--have left the biggest mark on their industries, the business ecosystem, and our culture through the 2010s.
about 30 million more.
1. Airbnb Back in 2008, when three friends applied the marketplace model to people’s air mattresses and extra rooms, it was far from a sure thing they’d find traction. Within three years, though, the business had booked a million stays, and helped usher in the sharing economy. Now, two million people a night stay in an Airbnb-listed property. Its latest valuation is more than USD 35 billion--higher than the market cap of Hilton or Marriott--and it appears poised for a public listing.
3. Instagram The internet has come a long way since the Valencia photo filter seemed ingenious. With its army of influencers, infinite scroll, and dominance of the mobile-attention economy, Instagram is in many ways the quintessential app of the 2010s. Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger founded the business right at the dawn of the decade. Facebook snapped it up two years later for USD 1 billion, the social network’s largest acquisition to date.
4. Slack Now that Slack has reached near-ubiquity, it seems strange to recall that we didn’t have the workplace chat app before 2013. The company’s freemium go-to-market strategy proved to be genius, allowing it to worm into almost every sort of office, giving workers an unprecedented level of control over their workflow and communications (while also often making them unable to disconnect from their offices). It’s also worth commending the company’s unconventional streak, which was on display when it went public in June on the New York Stock Exchange through a direct listing.
2. Facebook The world’s biggest social network crossed the billion-user threshold right around the time it went public in 2012. Today it reaches 2.45 billion people monthly. While it’s impossible to quantify the ways in which Facebook has helped people connect (or, for that matter, to harass, misinform, or plot genocide against one another), it is possible we’ve learned a thing or two about data privacy and security from the giant. Since the launch of multiple federal investigations into the scandal around data mining firm Cambridge Analytica--in which 87 million Facebook users had their information inappropriately accessed--a security firm uncovered that 540 million users’ information had been left unsecured, and Facebook revealed that hackers had stolen personal information Jan/Feb 2020
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COVER STORY 5. YouTube Founded in 2005, YouTube has created an entirely new path to stardom for ordinary people with talent and dreams. Started as a relatively simple website where anyone could post their videos, YouTube has grown into a worldwide phenomenon that has literally given birth to a new generation of celebrities. Justin Bieber, for instance, launched his entire career by posting YouTube videos of his childhood singing. Countless others have used the site to propel themselves into the limelight. Today, though, YouTube hosts much more than home-made film projects: music videos, interviews, documentaries and just about every type of video imaginable. In 2006, Google snapped up the young company for USD 1.6 billion. 6. Snapchat (2011) While many have called the 2010s the decade of Instagram, and they wouldn’t be wrong, it’s in fact its less popular
peer whose had an oversized influence on Instagram, the startup ecosystem in Los Angeles and the way we and brands communicate with us today. Snapchat debuted or popularized a slew of product features that are now ubiquitous in every other chat product. Three such features to note include the disappearing chat messages, the short length story and face filters. No chat app launches today without having a take on these features. So while the user base wars (or is it still a battle) has been one by Facebook and Instagram, both products wouldn’t be where they are today without Snapchat 7/8. SpaceX and Tesla Elon Musk’s pair of innovative companies born from moonshots have ended up bending multiple industries’ trajectories. The companies have taken considerably different paths: While Tesla began the decade by going public, SpaceX became the first private company to successfully launch, orbit, and recover a spacecraft, in 2010. Now it’s valued at more than USD 33 billion and is a partner of NASA as well as a major defense contractor. Tesla, on the other
hand, is a perpetual fascination for both consumers and investors. It became the best-selling plug-in passenger car manufacturer in 2018, and has pushed other car manufacturers to fast-track more electric and autopilot-ready vehicles. Yet Tesla has never had a profitable year. It earned most of its 2019 headlines for debuting a prototype of a triangular pickup truck--and essentially crowdfunding its development through pre-orders. 9. Stripe Paypal had been around a decade when John and Patrick Collison, college dropouts from rural Ireland, turned seven lines of code into a viable competitor--and a giant break in the ongoing payments revolution. What they’d designed was an easy way anyone could use to connect their website to a payment processer. Today, Stripe provides that function for thousands of small businesses, and is used by giant ones, too: It counts Lyft, Target, and Salesforce as customers. The company still feels there’s room to grown, and has stayed private, with a valuation of USD 35 billion that puts it ahead of other high-profile unicorns like Airbnb and Palantir. 11. Twitter Originally an experiment in micro-blogging, Twitter’s influence has extended to socio-political movements and fueling actual revolutions. Many of its well-documented effect≠s have been nothing short of calamitous--from spreading racist memes to allowing direct harassment of individuals. Still, the company’s role in fueling the Arab Spring, #MeToo, climate walk-outs, and a million other mini-movements, illuminate its deep, enduring cultural influence. 12. Tinder (2012) With over 1.6 billion (that’s a b) daily swipes, the numbers for Tinder are simply staggering. Add to that resume the fact that the app is available in 40 languages, is used in 190 countries and it’s hard to think of another app that has that kind of universal success. Yet even with those numbers it’s still hard to fathom the impact on culture this app has had. If you are single and available, Tinder is inescapable. It’s become so ubiquitous
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19 that swipe right (the action a user takes to say they are interested in someone) has infiltrated our popular lexicon. This makes Tinder an unescapable app if you are dating world today. 13. Uber (2009) Conceived in a snowstorm in Paris and founded in March 2009, Uber quickly moved from liberating premium transportation to enabling mobility for all on a global scale. An Uber can be hailed from the same app today whether you are in Barcelona, Paris or Los Angeles. The fact that this can be done without having to worry about having the right currency or even the local language is nothing short of miraculous. Today, Uber provides 15MM rides per day in over 500 cities both in the US and globally.
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Another impact Uber has had is change the way we think about transportation and mobility. The choices have moved well beyond public transportation and taxis and unto mobility startups like Lime scooters. Without Uber changing perception and expectations, those startups would not have seen the light of day, at least not yet. Today we await with impatience what the latest mobility startup will be. 10 years ago, we were hoping the taxi would take a credit card and mobility was some science fiction dream.
the Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Mozambique and Tanzania.
14. M-pesa Established on 6th March 2007 by Vodafone’s Kenyan associate, Safaricom, M-Pesa is Africa’s leading mobile money service, with over 37 million active customers and almost 400,000 active agents operating across 7 countries:
In the Fiscal Year 2019, M-pesa’s 37 million active customers carried out over 11 billion transactions, averaging over 500 transactions every second in December 2018.
M-Pesa enables customers to send, receive and store money safely and securely via a basic smartphone. Most of our markets have launched the M-Pesa smartphone app, providing customers with a digital platform to manage their M-Pesa accounts, and also to make faster purchases at merchant points via QR code.
Jan/Feb 2020
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COVER STORY
How Running a Business has Changed Over the Past Decade… and What’s Next
Words John Foley
Arguable, running a business has changed more dramatically over the last decade than during any other 10-year-period in history. And while things have certainly changed, it’s a matter of opinion whether it has gotten easier or harder as a result. Here’s a look at the biggest changes of the decade as well as the changes likely to come
Startupmagazine.co.ke Jan/Feb 2020
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.irtual offices It used to be that a person starting a new business needed to network extensively and build a war chest of investor capital to get up and running. Today, the virtual office has eliminated much of the starting overhead of any startup
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business. In the future, many businesses will move to virtual offices because of the enormous savings that come with the transition. The future of small business offices may become entirely virtual as more small businesses realize the savings. New communication skills The communication skills required of a small business owner have changed dramatically over the last decade. Ten years ago, solid phone skills and the ability to draft a professional email were all that were really needed. Social media was in its infancy; as Business Insider points out, just 14 years ago Facebook was called Thefacebook and didn’t even have a news feed. Today, business owners must be capable of communicating in less than 280 characters on Twitter, posting engaging content regularly on Facebook, conferencing with associates
on Skype and recruiting new employees on LinkedIn and many more. The cloud The days of freezing cold server banks taking up a whole floor of the office building are quickly fading as cloud data storage and computing services liberate businesses from the weight of on-site computing. Cloud-based data management is now for enterprises of all sizes, and digital asset management services provide these services at prices small businesses can afford. Cloud computing is becoming the standard instead of the trend as more companies adopt the freedom and convenience that cloud data storage and computing provide.
fice.” Mobile communication was much less powerful 10 years ago – it was in 2005 when High-Speed Downlink Packet Access was implemented into 3G networks to expand their ability to carry data. The demands of the new mobile-connected world means that we are always connected via email, SMS messaging and app-based forms of communication such as Whatsapp Business. In this way, the line between work and home life has blurred and the future of business may very well mean entire offices of remote workers and business owners who rarely are in the same room at the same time. The future of the mobile and remote workplace means that even a small business may be global and employ people from around the world, all communicating via mobile devices.
Mobile life For most small business owners today, there isn’t such thing as “out of the of-
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Jan/Feb 2020
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ECONOMIES
Digitization, Unemployment and the Future of Work in South Africa
South Africa’s Table Mountains
Words Oroni Tendera
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n less than a month, South Africa has witnessed a massive wave of rentrenchments, as companies across multiple sectors have announced job cuts running into almost 10,000. Some of these include network operator Telkom SA, Walmart-owned retailer Massmart,Arcelormittal, Africa’s biggest steel company, Pharmaceutical giant Aspen, and miner Samancor Chrome. Startupmagazine.co.ke Jan/Feb 2020
With a third of the country’s labour force made up of jobseekers – unemployment rates stood at a staggering 29 percent in 2019 with youths making up 75 percent of that – the current trend of job cuts will put even more strain on demand and economic growth. Also, going by expert opinions, the downsizing in January so far is likely to continue throughout the year.
The high rate of unemployment coupled with recent developments in South Africa, which is the region’s most industrialized economy, is reflective of a fragile economy as companies struggle to stay afloat. The worsening situation is further compounded by the fact that 35 percent of all jobs in South Africa – almost 5.7 million – are at risk of total digital automation within the next few years.
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A street in Johannesbugr Southa Africa
Digitization has already reshaped several industries and jobs, and on the medium to long-term, it is expected to reset the entire business environment. And while this may produce an increase in productivity, it also results in the reduction of labour demand.
unemployment and bridging the digital divide. As long as companies continue to procrastinate on putting in place HR strategies and programs to harness the power of human capital to create sustainable futures and close this gap, there will be consequences.
New technology-enabled jobs require higher skill levels and greater application of expertise and management, highlighting the need for a significant investment in human capital by organisations. According to Mercer’s 2019 Global Talent Trends Study, skills are in the spotlight. In leveraging against the backdrop of the Fourth Industrial Revolution in securing economic opportunities and growth, human skills, such as complex problem solving, inclusive leadership, social collaboration, remain essential to digital transformation.
In order to avoid a severe crippling effect, government, as well as the private sector, need to act now to make sure that employees possess the necessary skills to participate in the digital economy by enabling humans and machines to work together in the future. Mercer’s Talent Trends report also points out that in 2019, up skilling and reskilling moved up the executive agenda from 9th to 3rd position; and has risen to the number one spot for the insurance sector. We expect the trend to continue in 2020.
With the threat of automation growing, however, most developing countries are the least prepared, even though the South African government has severally emphasised the importance of harnessing the digital revolution in overcoming
Despite the fact that the general opinion on digitization is its disruptive tendency, it also has the potential to raise productivity and operational efficiency in businesses across sectors. Not just that, it is capable of delivering better outcomes for both customers and citizens, thereby
creating millions of high-quality jobs. With tightening labour markets increased sophistication in hiring for best fit, and a more demanding employee population, the key to achieving business growth is radically redefining how talent is managed, developed, and incentivized. Nonetheless, there needs to be concerted action towards investing in human capital, so as to realise the gains that come with digital transformation. All of which will not be achieved if the country takes a business-as-usual approach or is too focused on short-term gains. For South Africa where poverty remains a pressing issue, alongside unemployment and poor social security, the country requires greater collaboration between government, business and labour in keeping up with the rapidly changing skill demand of jobs today. But even as businesses move to prepare for the future of work, it is crucial that the reskilling process matches the accelerated pace of digitization in the workplace.
Jan/Feb 2020
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LEADERSHIP
The Price of Leading
NJERI MUCHUNU
“I am crushed by the criticism. I get so tired of all the hats I wear, jobs I do, and time I spend. I’m exhausted by the weight of responsibility I have!” Does this sound like you?
Njeri Muchunu is a Leadership Curator and Advocate of the High Court of Kenya. She has extensive experience in the legal profession spanning over 17 years. She has worked in private legal practice, as an executive in the Corporate sector as well as the Public sector.
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L
eadership can be a burden. It will be painful — physically, emotionally, and spiritually.
It is inevitable, inescapable. By its very nature leadership produces change, and change – even wonderful growth and progress- always involves at least a measure of confusion, loss and resistance. To put it another way, leadership that does not produce pain is either in a short season of unusual blessing or it is really not making a difference. Leadership is a magnet for pain which comes in many forms. You catch flak for bad
decisions and people blame you. You get criticism even for good decisions because you have changed the beloved status quo. When people suffer a crisis, you care deeply for them and instead of giving simplistic advice (or blowing them off) you carry their burden which means that some of the weight of their loss falls on you. Along the way, you are not immune to the ravages of betrayal by those you trusted, the envy of your friends and the list goes on. Many a leader feel shackled by past failures or past pains. Others look into
25 an uncertain future and feel paralysed. Even for a leader who was not idealistic about the cost of leadership, certainly didn’t expect the level of conflict, discouragement and struggle they endured as they were doing “a noble thing”. They were blindsided by the pain. Many assume that something is terribly wrong with them or God because the pain is not quickly going away. The solution – do anything and everything to ensure the pain goes away. As such you find a lot of leaders suffer from addiction to various substances and behaviours. What many don’t realise is that this is exactly the wrong response! Numbness is not a viable answer. In fact, it always compounds the problem! My friends, pain is not the enemy. The inability and unwillingness to face the pain is a far greater danger. You do not want to pay the price. You have been conditioned to believe that you have to put on a happy face (or at least a stoic face) for the people in you organisation, so you refuse to admit your discouragement, disappointment and disillusionment – even to yourself. You tell their worried (and maybe angry) spouse “as soon as this project is over, the kids go off to high school or some other benchmark is achieved, I will slow down and the stress with subside”. Jim Morrison put it well when he stated that “Pain is meant to wake us up. People try to hide their pain. But they are wrong. Pain is something to carry, like a radio. You feel the strength in the experience of pain. It is all in how you carry it. That’s what matters. Pain is a feeling. Your feelings are a part of you. Your own reality. If you feel ashamed of them and hide them, you are letting society destroy your reality. You should stand up for your right to feel your pain”.
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I am fully convinced that the act of diving deeply into the feelings we avoid, the feelings we don’t necessarily even know we have is our only hope of breaking our link in the chain of hurt, suffering and pain
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PG. 26
DIGITAL MARKETING Cynicism – The Slide Begins
Paradoxically, Christians have more difficulty handling pain than unbelievers. They look at the promises of God and conclude that God should fill them with joy, love, support and success. That’s not the case – it is reading the bible selectively. The scriptures state clearly and often – that enduring pain is one of the ways, perhaps the main way, God works His Grace deeply into our lives. So you may be asking, I don’t know what to do with this pain. How do I carry it? At Njeri Muchunu Global our leadership programs are designed for the heart, not the head. It is about feeling deeply the emotions we spend our lives avoiding, like the pain of failure and loss. I am fully convinced that the act of diving deeply into the feelings we avoid, the feelings we don’t necessarily even know we have is our only hope of breaking our link in the chain of hurt, suffering and pain. We cannot lead without feeling the pain because the things we do to avoid feeling pain result in poor leadership. That pain is part of the leadership journey and is sometimes forgotten or considered failure. Because of this pain we don’t acknowledge others. We try to control everything. We lose our temper and criticise others disproportionately.
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MOTOR REVIEW The Future Technologies in Automotive Industry
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TRAVEL & LEISURE Nairobi Art Gallery: The Heart of Art
Jan/Feb 2020
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DIGITAL MARKETING
How Can A Business Grow with Digital Marketing?
PERMINUS WAINAINA
With the evolution of modern technologies, it is becoming increasingly important for business owners to do all it takes to ensure that their business grows.
Wainaina is a Certified HR Consultant and the Managing Partner at Corporate Staffing Services where he manages a team of 20 staff. He helps CEOs, executives, and managers solve their biggest HR pains, dysfunctions, and key challenges and turn their teams into a well-oiled machine that contributes dramatically to business success.
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igital marketing has proved to be one of the most effective ways to reach online customers and followers. Following a thoughtful digital marketing strategy will help your business – small and large – grow. It is more crucial than ever to cultivate an online presence to engage with today’s consumers.
1. Establish a strong social media presence
With this in mind, how can you, as a business owner, ensure that your business grows with digital marketing?
Engaging with customers online may seem pointless. However, building an engaged following is a must in today’s world. With the click of a button, you
Because it is constantly growing, social media cannot be ignored as a key marketing tool. Many businesses have successfully been able to grow their customer base solely through Facebook and other social networks.
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can now reach millions of customers. Social Media also gives you access to valuable customer feedback and opens a direct line of communication with your target audience. Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter among others, offer the chance to exchange messages directly with customers and other businesses. If you are just starting out in your business, using influencers is a quick way to increase your number of followers. 2. Leverage the power of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) You may have taken all your time to maintain a functional and polished website. However, truth is, without a strong SEO strategy, potential customers may never see it. Optimizing your content through SEO will ensure your website becomes one of the first search results on Google and beyond. This is one of the most effective long-term strategies for generating highly-targeted traffic. Pay more attention to creating unique,
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“
Remember, the higher your page ranks on the Google results page, the higher the chance of local customers finding out about your business leading to its growth.
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insightful, and engaging content for humans that includes a few of the basic SEO principles. You can know the principles by going through a Digital Marketing training that will equip you better. With the skills you learn, start by researching the most highly-searched keywords in your industry and write several in-depth blog posts that add value to these topics. Remember, the higher your page ranks on the Google results page, the higher the chance of local customers finding out about your business leading to its growth.
way to keep your current customers coming back. With tools such as MailChimp or Constant Contact available, you can send split tests and segment your list according to the interest level of each subscriber. For instance, if someone opens an email, they have shown interest in what you offer. If they click on a link, this indicates higher interest. Seek to use email marketing to deepen your relationship with customers. Send them content from the heart that will connect in an authentic way. Effective digital marketing is key to growing your business. Executing the above strategies will undoubtedly help you achieve this goal. Remember that digital marketing doesn’t have to be expensive. Enrol in our upcoming February class and learn just how Digital Marketing will help your business grow.
3. Know the power of email marketing Engaging in email marketing is a great Jan/Feb 2020
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Motors
The Future Technologies in Automotive Industry Words MHH International-A Prestige Car Importer The CES2020 show held in Las Vegas has, as in the past, always been about the latest technology primarily but such is the interest in high-tech vehicles that cars and autonomy are now a major part of the event. In fact, the strap-line this year is “to go full gearhead to discover a full car show inside a technology show.”It’s the industry’s first chance to take a glimpse into changes in mobility, cars and related scientific advances. CES Evolved Over the last few years CES has evolved into one of the most important gatherings for automotive and mobility enthusiasts, in some ways supplanting many of the more traditional motor shows. CES2020 has proved to be a terrific forum for launching new innovations. It is clear from global events that the automotive mobility industry is in the midst of the greatest disruption ever seen since, it can be argued, the invention of the car itself over one hundred years ago. In The Spotlight On the telematics front the Qualcomm company announced an open end-to-end Startupmagazine.co.ke Jan/Feb 2020
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autonomous, telematics, infotainment, cloud-connected and safety system platform that can be used and adapted by car makers in the future for safety, and lifestyle requirements. It’s a major leap forward for the car dashboard. Perhaps one the most jaw-dropping sights though was the car as aeroplane. Hyundai is going into the air space future with a Personal Air Vehicle (PAV). The Korean company has announced plans to partner with Uber for air taxi services. This big ‘vehicle’ attracted huge
attention, albeit one for the future. In the same way as we expect more from our smartphones so discerning motorists are beginning to expect more personal technology from their cars. We want, it seems, quick, easy, and reliable access to our personal content and therefore are expecting greater connectivity options in our future vehicles. A voice interface that really works is at the head of the queue to avoid distractions. We want to be able to schedule appointments like car servicing or find out where the nearest coffee shop with parking is.
New Cars CES is also proving to be the place to introduce new vehicles. Henrik Fisker (CEO of the first all-digital car maker) revealed the Fisker Ocean to the public for the first time. It’s an all-electric luxury SUV Fisker that is equipped with a fully sourced, state-of-the-art battery with +80 kWh capacity and a range of up to 300 miles depending on driving conditions. More than 200 miles of range can be delivered from 30 minutes of charging from a high-speed charger. That’s an impressive advance. Partnerships are commonly announced at CES and this year it is Daimler’s turn. They are though partnering with the film industry. The German company have introduced The VISION AVTR inspired by the movie ‘Avatar. This is essentially a concept car that has a multifunctional control element in the centre console that allows, in a sense human and machine to merge. By placing a hand on the control unit, the interior comes to life and the vehicle recognizes the driver by his or her heartbeat and breathing. A step too far? Maybe; but there’s no stopping the advance of technology so we might as well sit back in our autonomous cars and enjoy it.
Jan/Feb 2020
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Travel & Leisure
Nairobi Art Gallery: The Heart of Art By Oroni Tendera I am standing here at point zero, the centre of Nairobi where distances to all parts of Kenya are measured. Right ahead of me, sits the Nairobi Art Gallery, carefully holding Murumbi’s African artefacts on her laps. Above me, a fluffy gigantic grey cloud threatens to break loose anytime from now. Lightning sparkles. Thunder roars. A bone freezing breeze blows furiously northward towards the historical Nyayo house tower. As if acting from a cue, traffic on Uhuru highway, adjacent to the art gallery, snarls and stalls. A giant raindrop lands on my clean-shaven head. Scared, I adjust my coat and spring on my toes. “Excuse me,” a sharp tenor voice cuts me short. It dawns on me, I have not paid entry fees. I turn back and mumble Startupmagazine.co.ke Jan/Feb 2020
tens of incomprehensible apologies to the puzzled cashier, standing outside his office. He does not utter a single word. I part with Ksh 150, flash a fake 1000 watt smile at him and half walk half run to the reception. My journey to the heart of art begins right here at the entrance. Two potted plants facing each other at the main door are dancing to the rhythm of the strong wind. Next to the plants, a collection of photographs and sample artwork of pioneer East African artists are on display. Each work has an interesting story behind it. The Women’s Choir, a whimsical statue
35 by Expedition Mwebe, for instance, tells the story of three women singers who often performed in The Old Makuti Pavillion of African Heritage Libra house in the 90’s, namely: Joy Mboya, Susan Gachukia and Susan Matiba. Then there is a photograph of Elkana Ongesa’s 30 tonne soapstone sculpture ‘The Bird of Peace Emerging from the Stone of Despair’ that was unveiled during the opening of the Murumbi peace memorial in 2009. Before Murumbi died (a former Kenyan vice president and art connoisseur), he had requested Ongesa to carve a sculpture for his gravesite. The giant sculpture currently stands elegantly on the grave of Murumbi at the City Park. Next to the photograph is Elkana Ongesa’s restored sculpture entitled ‘Dream.’ It was created after Elkana had a dream about the end of apartheid in South Africa in the early 70’s. The sculpture was destroyed in 1976 by fire that burnt down the only African heritage. John Odoch Ameny’s sculpture of mating cockerel and hen, created of molten iron, beside ‘Dream’, does not escape my eyesight. Odoch pioneered the art of transforming scrap metals to sculptures in East Africa. During his early sculptural years, he used soft wood to create unique figures with convoluted bodies. He started using scrap metals for his artworks in the 1980s− mainly to address the emerging trend of technology and its impact in East Africa. Without warning, a sheet of rain, carried by the wind, whizzes past me, smashing and scattering a million droplets of rain on my face. Partially blinded, I scamper into the art gallery. There is an array of artefacts that appeal to all my sensibilities. I choose to whet my appetite for art with Magdalene Odundo’s pot, delicately displayed at the centre of the first room. The pot is reminiscent of the human form. Its structure follows the curve of the spine and hips. Magdalene’s art of pottery is a creative blend of early Greek Cycladic sculpture and traditional African pottery. Next to the pot is a carved wooden staff from the Kuba people of DRC Congo. It has deco-
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rations of melted aluminum pots on the border and is culturally used by Bakuba elders. On my way to the second room, I walk past South Africa’s Charles Sekano’s painting of two scantily dressed lovebirds embracing each other, Duke Kombo’s reconciliation soapstone sculpture and a detailed portrait of John Katarinawe, Uganda’s versatile artist. The second room is filled with the most spectacular, relaxed and nonchalant fabrics and clothes drawn from several parts of Africa. Ghanian Adinkira cloth printed with stamps made of calabash rinds, Ase Oke prestige cloth woven on narrow hand looms by Yoruba men of Nigeria, Fulani wedding blanket designed in checkered pattern, Kikoi hand woven cotton wraps traditionally worn by Swahili men of Kenya and Tanzania and the Bakuba fabric of DRC Congo woven from palm fibre among many others. I must admit that the sheer harmony created by afro fabrics in this room is immense beyond words. Each piece of clothe is a noble innovation, narration and inspiration. “I would like to be a fashion designer in my next life,” I mumble under my breath as I swagger to the third room with renewed zest and zeal. This (the third room) is a model of Murumbi’s former home at Muthaiga. It is a typical modern living room filled
with wood carvings, soapstone sculptures, paintings, portraits of the late Mr. and Mrs. Murumbi, art tomes, rare books (published before 1900) and ancient Persian vessels. All these items were left behind after the demise of Mrs. Sheila Murumbi, in 2000, ten years after the death of her husband. The items are currently under the custody of the National Museums of Kenya and on extended loan with the Kenya National Archives My reminder alarm screams, breaking the silence herein. It is time for me to leave. I have been here for the past one hour, pretending to appreciate art while in the real sense I have merged with art. Thank you Nairobi Art Gallery, your art has turned me into a storyteller. Bonus •Nairobi Art gallery was built in 1913 and originally served as the colonial government office for storing records of births, marriages and deaths. •It housed the Nairobi PC’s office up to 1983. •Became KANU’s office from 1983 to 1989. •Degazzeted in 1993. •Presented to the National Museums of Kenya in 1997. •Renovated and refurbished in 2005. •Held an art exhibition featuring East Africa’s pioneer artists in April 2015. •Hosted a 3-day workshop for budding artists in December 2015. •Entrance fees: Foreigners Ksh 1000, East Africans 600, Kenyans 150.
Francis Nnaggenda’s Mother Goddess Africa at Nairobi Gallery
Jan/Feb 2020
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Coffee Break
GRIT: The Power of Passion and Perseverance
Book Review
Author: Angela Duckworth Reviewer: Malcolm Gladwell In this instant New York Times bestseller, pioneering psychologist Angela Duckworth shows anyone striving to succeed—be it parents, students, educators, athletes, or business people—that the secret to outstanding achievement is not talent but a special blend of passion and persistence she calls “grit.” Why do some people succeed and others fail? Sharing new insights from her landmark research, Angela explains why talent is hardly a guarantor of success. Angela has found that grit—a combination of passion and perseverance for a singularly important goal—is the hallmark of high achievers in every domain. She’s also found scientific evidence that grit can grow.
Neil Patel
Winningly personal, insightful, and even life-changing, Grit is a book about what goes through your head when you fall down, and how that—not talent or luck—makes all the difference.
Business Review Site Reviewer: Adisa Hudson Link https://neilpatel.com/ About the Site Neil Patel is the co-founder of NP Digital and Subscribers. He also co-founded Crazy Egg, Hello Bar and KISSmetrics. He helps companies like Amazon, NBC, GM, HP and Viacom grow their revenue through digital marketing.
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Angela gives a first-person account of her research with teachers working in some of the toughest schools, cadets struggling through their first days at West Point, and young finalists in the National Spelling Bee. She also mines fascinating insights from history and shows what can be gleaned from modern experiments in peak performance. Finally, she shares what she’s learned from interviewing dozens of high achievers—from JP Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon to Seattle Seahawks Coach Pete Carroll.
The Wall Street Journal calls him a top influencer on the web, Forbes says he is one of the top 10 marketers, and Entrepreneur Magazine says he created one of the 100 most brilliant companies. Neil is a New York Times bestselling author and was recognized as a top 100 entrepreneur under the age of 30 by President Obama and a top 100 entrepreneur under the age of 35 by the United Nations.
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Jan/Feb 2020
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Song Review
Tales of America J.S. Ondara Oroni Tendera
The debut album Tales of America by 26-year-old Kenyan J.S. Ondara bursts out of nowhere into the folk-rock scene of the motherland of folk. Ok not quite, but as good as out of nowhere. After all, the young singer with his tenor voice, which occasionally turns into a falsetto, has already been heard in bars and at “Open Mic” events. A green card lottery won the 20-year-old, who taught himself to sing as well as play the guitar, access to the Promised Land, to Minneapolis in the state of Minnesota, where one of his two role models, Bob Dylan, spent the last ten years of his singing life. His other role model was Jeff Buckley, who was tragically killed at a young age after his debut album Grace. The newcomer from Kenya has yet to achieve the fame of his role models. Whether he will succeed will be seen, since the quality of Tales of America is quite ambivalent. The credit side of the album includes “American Dream” with African folksong echoes and its subliminal longing for the land of his fathers. The straight guitar and bass-accompanied “Torch Song” also
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belongs to the credit side, at least before J.S. Ondara turns into a tremulous falsetto singing with a rather uncertain intonation. “Television Girl” goes through as a skillfully staged folk ballad, in which even the falsetto succeeds harmoniously. With a lower voice, J.S. Ondara’s exotic solo piece “Turkish Bandana”, strongly enriched with reverb, proves its chocolate side, which skillfully includes the falsetto. “Good Question” also belongs to the category of successful songs. With a rather hesitant, flickering voice the other songs on the debut album don’t cut off so favorably. A clearly positive exception is “God bless America”, the last song on the album, which contributes conciliatorily to forget those songs which are vocally partly close to the annoying, in view of the successful songs as a probably avoidable by-catch of a successful fishing. J.S. Ondara has potential. One can only wish him for a successful future
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Jan/Feb 2020
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