Enterprise

Organic foods eatery flourishes on pursuit of healthy lifestyles

BDBRIDGESORGANIC2

Ann Mbugua, founder of the Bridges Organic Health Restaurant in Nairobi, displays the various organic vegetables available at her restaurant. PHOTO | SARAH OOKO |

Coming from a family with a history of diabetes, Ann Muthoni Mbugua knew only too well the devastating effects of such lifestyle diseases.

“I lost both parents to the disease as well as other relatives. And I could see the suffering and pain they went through,” she told the Business Daily.

Ms Mbugua decided she would adopt a healthy lifestyle to minimise her chances of developing diabetes later in life. But she soon realised that most restaurants in Nairobi’s central business district mainly sold fast foods like French fries.

“That did not meet the needs of people like me or others who had certain conditions that required special diets,” she says.

In 2006 she quit practising law to start the now famous Bridges Organic Health Restaurant.

“I felt I had achieved what I wanted in law. It was now time to pursue my other passion of building a healthy nation,” she says.

From the start she decided to go for organic foods, which largely comprise the restaurant’s menu. Organic foods are grown without chemical additives such as pesticides and fertilisers, thus protecting customers from the harmful effects caused by excessive use of these chemicals.

Several studies have shown that most city residents are consuming vegetables with high pesticide levels. For sustainability, Ms Mbugua relies on a chain of organic farmers — certified by EnCert Limited — who supply her with the vegetables and fruits all year round.

As a member of the Kenya Organic Agriculture Network (KOAN), Ms Mbugua is also strategically placed to interact with players in the organic market and to get a variety of products such as organic herbal teas and spices of high nutritional value.

“I have learnt that Uganda and Tanzania are now growing organic rice, which I now plan to import as we have none in the country,” says the entrepreneur.

Her commitment to healthy foods sets the restaurant apart from many of its counterparts in town, making it attract more customers as Kenyans increasingly embrace healthy lifestyles to ward off lifestyle diseases.

Bridges is not the place where you find the usual processed meat or beverages. The restaurant serves whole-meal maize or wheat flour foods such as brown bread, rice, ugali and chapati.

Instead of red meat, it offers fish and indigenous organic chicken. No sodas are available for quenching thirst; they only serve freshly blended fruit and vegetable juices packed with multi-vitamins to boost one's immunity. Moreover, the chefs only use salad oils to prepare food.

This menu has made the restaurant a favourite for people with various heath conditions like diabetes, hypertension, cancer, gout and gastritis, who previously could not have their needs specifically met in other restaurants.

The business, which has been registering robust growth in revenue over the years, now boasts of more than 20 in-house employees and a multitude of farmers furnishing it with produce.

Ms Mbugua says she now plans to open in major malls in the city to positively impact the lives of more Kenyans and is keen on forming partnerships with investors who share her passion for healthy foods. The success of the business has since led her to start another enterprise that supplies organic food products to customers across the country.

“Interested organic farmers looking for markets can contact me,” she says.

She notes that once customers experienced the benefits of organic foods sold at the restaurant, they express interest in buying some for use at home. “This gave me the idea for this new venture.”

Ms Mbugua attributes her success to good customer care, which has generated positive word of mouth recommendations for the restaurant.

“We genuinely care about the entire wellbeing of our customers. Anything else comes second. And that’s why customers keep coming back with testimonies of the benefits they have reaped from the healthy foods,” she says.

Bridges has also employed an in-house nutritionist who develops personalised meal plans for customers based on their needs – be it losing weight or managing a health condition. The nutritionist also advises customers, free of charge, on healthy living with tips on regular exercise, avoiding stress, drinking plenty of water and breathing well.

“These are lessons that stay with them throughout, even when they are not here at the restaurant.”

The restaurant also runs a detoxification programme for customers. The 10 day regime rids the body of harmful toxins in key organs like the liver and kidney.

Despite the high health premium that the restaurant offers, Ms Mbugua adds that food prices are reasonable and compete favourably with other restaurants in the town centre.

“It’s not for a selected few. Everyone can eat here,” she says.

She notes that to succeed in the hospitality industry, entrepreneurs need to be committed to their trade and to desist from compromising on standards.

“If your focus is healthy foods, please stick to that. Don’t cut corners and lie to customers.”

In addition, Ms Mbugua advises upcoming entrepreneurs to be persistent and patient in business. “It may take years before you break even, but you need to keep going.”

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