Tea vendor whips up recipe for success

• Maina,50, started selling the beverages and snacks like mandazis (buns) in 1979 but then, he used to sell only to coffee pickers at Kimathi Institute now called Kimathi University College of Technology. He did this for a year but coffee-picking at the institute ended and he ran out of customers for a while.
• After two years in employment in hotels, he was ready to start his own business with a capital of just Sh500.
• In a good day, he can make as much as Sh1,000 but on lean days he takes home as little as Sh200. He, however, says he does not intend to open a hotel.
• “You are able to capture customers when you go to them, thus making more money,” he says of his business philosophy which has seen him invest in a bicycle to transport his beverages.
• Initially, he used to sell at market places but the business was not promising because his customers would delay payments until the next day or even two and this hit his earnings. He then decided to sell tea at the bus terminus and his decision has paid off.
• Every day, he makes 40 litres of tea and 10 litres of coffee. He also bakes mandazi from six two-kilogramme packets of flour which he sells overnight. He, however, regrets that due to insecurity and lack of street lights, the town “sleeps” as early as 11pm.
• The cold season is his peak period because many people at the bus park drink lots of tea and coffee to keep themselves warm.

Every day at 6 p.m, Peter Maina alias Muzayuni is always on the road headed to the Nyeri bus terminus to sell tea and coffee.

He braves the cold nights to make ends meet.

Maina,50, started selling the beverages and snacks like mandazis (buns) in 1979 but then, he used to sell only to coffee pickers at Kimathi Institute now called Kimathi University College of Technology. He did this for a year but coffee-picking at the institute ended and he ran out of customers for a while.

He had to look for an alternative. Because he did not have adequate capital to start his own business, he sought employment in hotels in Nyeri town, salting away his earnings to buy the equipment he needed.

“Apart from tea and coffee, I wanted to start making other kinds of food which I learned to do while working at the two hotels,” he says.

After two years in employment, he was ready to start his own business with a capital of just Sh500.

And there been no looking back for the trader who says takes care of his six children from this business.

In a good day, he can make as much as Sh1,000 but on lean days he takes home as little as Sh200. He, however, says he does not intend to open a hotel.

“You are able to capture customers when you go to them, thus making more money,” he says of his business philosophy which has seen him invest in a bicycle to transport his beverages.

Initially, he used to sell at market places but the business was not promising because his customers would delay payments until the next day or even two and this hit his earnings. He then decided to sell tea at the bus terminus and his decision has paid off.

Now, Maina serves the same customers every day and since they know that he takes round his tea every evening, they always wait for him.

Every day, he makes 40 litres of tea and 10 litres of coffee. He also bakes mandazi from six two-kilogramme packets of flour which he sells overnight.

He, however, regrets that due to insecurity and lack of street lights, the town “sleeps” as early as 11pm and if he has not sold everything he has to wait for the following day. Says Maina: “I am compelled to wake up as early as 4am and again head to the bus terminus to serve passengers and matatu operators breakfast.”

The cold season is his peak period because many people at the bus park drink lots of tea and coffee to keep themselves warm. He has bought a four- acre piece of land in Ngobit and is educating one of his sons at Moi University Eldoret with proceeds from the business.

He notes that the reason he decided to start this business is because he comes from a poor family and wants to give his children the best.