Varsity venture sets investor on path to real-estate

When John Kin’gori Mwaniki approached his university vice-chancellor to be allowed to open a kiosk in Kenyatta University 17 years ago, his was just to raise money to pay for his fees.

Neither did Mwaniki nor the university administrator think the kiosk he and two others started in 1995 with only Sh15,000 would grow and transform into business success.

Today, Mr Mwaniki, a Bachelor of Commerce graduate, is the Jekmass Services CEO at 39.

Besides the real estate company, he also invests in the hotel industry in Nakuru County with 50 employees.

“My parents struggled to pay my fees. I approached Prof George Eshiwani (the Kenyatta University vice-chancellor at the time) and asked him to allow me to open a kiosk to help me in paying my fees,” Mr Mwaniki said.

“Besides paying the fees, the kiosk opened my mind and became a starting point in my life as a businessman.”

Prof Eshiwani gave Mr Mwaniki an audience, but asked him to write a proposal on the idea and how he would run the business.

Being a Commerce student, he passed the test, says Mwaniki.

He sought to partner with two other students to raise capital. They agreed to contribute Sh5,000 each for the venture.

They had to sacrifice the money, which was meant for their upkeep at the university, to raise the amount — a risk, he says, was worth taking.

They started off by selling snacks. The business ignited Mr Mwaniki’s a passion for investment.

After he graduated from the university, he returned to their family home in Burnt Forest in Eldoret, where he engaged in crop farming and cattle rearing using the little money he had saved from the shop since jobs were not easy to come by.

In 2000, the budding investor returned to Nairobi where he registered Jekmass Services to offer cleaning services with Sh150,000 as start-up capital.

However, after he failed to win enough contracts to sustain the business, Mr Mwaniki put his business on hold for a job in a real estate company as an accountant where he only worked for three months.

“I realised there were good deals in the business and resigned to start my own real estate business with Jekmass.