Ashley Karanja was a customer service manager at a fintech company in Nairobi until she lost her job in March 2021.
The company she worked for, a start-up, downsized due to the dire impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on the economy.
After staying home for three long months and getting down to her last 500 bob, the 24-year-old saw an Instagram post that changed her life.
"A famous Instagram influencer posted that she hated doing shopping and was looking for someone to do errands for her," she said.
"So I quickly rushed to her inbox and told her I could do the errand for her at a fee. However, it was too late because by the time I did, someone else had gotten the gig. But this got me thinking, this could be a service I could offer."
Motivated by the new niche she had bumped into and using the 500 bob left in her pocket, Ashley reached out to a friend to create a poster for her, highlighting some of the services she would be offering.
These included running errands, shopping for people and providing chaperone services.
More than a year down the line, Ashley couldn't be more proud with the step she took.
"The business is doing well. It has expanded and we are now a team of three, including me, my assistant and the rider I have employed," she said.
HOW IT WORKS
Ashley charges according to distance and hours. Her charges range from Sh900 for shopping in Eastleigh to 2,500 for chaperone services in Kamukunji.
“When I began, I would take people to do shopping for a whole day with no time limit,” she said.
“But over time I realised I should start charging by the hour as time is money and in this business particularly, time divided means more customers in a day.”
To ensure trust, privacy and accountability between her and her clients, Ashley updates her clients minute by minute using photos and videos on her mobile phone while doing the errands.
This, she says, helps to keep her clients calm. She also keeps a meticulous record of audio conversations and paid receipts in case of disagreements.
"My job requires trust and if I feel like there is mistrust between me and the client, I choose not to work with the client because mistrust can harbour disagreements in the end," she said.
Ashley says some of the challenges she encounters in her business are similar to those encountered in all online shopping businesses: clients’ item measurements lack accuracy, hence causing a mismatch once purchased.
“Some clients get extremely disappointed with items once delivered because the measurements they sent me pre-shopping were not accurate,” she said.
“In such instances, it breaks my heart to disappoint them, but there’s really nothing much that can be done.”
November last year was one of my best months as I made up to Sh70,000 in profit
LUCRATIVE BUSINESS
The errands and chaperone business, which is fairly new in the Kenyan market, is becoming a rather lucrative venture, with online shoppers popping up left right and centre. Ashley says in a good month, she has made up to Sh70,000 in profit.
“November last year was one of my best months as I made up to Sh70,000 in profit,” she said.
“My worst month was the in the first three months of the birth of my business, where I made less than Sh3,000 a month.”
Asked if she would go back to a white-collar job after tasting the murky waters of entrepreneurship, Ashley said a strong no.
“My job might seem odd to some people, but it combines my passion for shopping and the flexibility that comes with self employment,” she said.
“I might never go back to employment as I hope to build my business to greater heights and employ more people in my team.”
The unemployment situation in Kenya, together with the Covid-19 pandemic, made an already bad situation worse. According to the Ministry of Labour, at least 740,000 people in Kenya lost their jobs in the year 2020-21 as the country’s economy contracted due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
This has forced the youth to come up with creative ways to put food on the table. For instance, a content creator called Ian Asunya, alias 'Nduru Man', records himself screaming in different parts of Nairobi in the name of content of content creation.
My job might seem odd to some people, but it combines my passion for shopping and the flexibility that comes with self employment
His videos went viral after he recorded himself screaming outside State House, a matter one would term quite risky and extremely daring. He was arrested.
Further statistics from the International Labour Organisation (ILO) show that in the 1st quarter of 2021, the unemployment rate in Kenya increased to 6.6 per cent against 5.4 percent in the previous quarter.
The Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) also shows that inflation hit a 23-month record high (6.91 per cent) in September 2021, and is currently around 5.8 per cent.
A recent Instagram thread by influencer @Just_Ivy, on her famous “Money Monday posts”, also revealed how dire the situation is as far unemployment in Kenya is concerned.
A prompt on what you studied vis-à-vis what you are currently doing showed nurses who are now estate shopkeepers, to engineers who are currently “watu wa mjengo”, to tech guys who are now in sales.
This publication was produced with the financial support of the European Union. Its contents are the sole responsibility of Zainab Mohammed and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.