Francis Akatu of Safi Knox Cleaning and Janitorial Services leads staff
in cleaning up the Nairobi Railways Club grounds after the Kabeberi
Sevens. Photo Courtesy
By Lynet Igadwah
In Summary
- Currently the company, whose offices are on Nairobi’s Ring Road in Komarok, has 100 workers who are contracted to clean venues, offices, buildings, households and car interiors.
- In a month, the company cleans up to 250 houses, at least three wedding events, funerals, birthdays, sports venues and a number of vehicle interiors.
Rarely do people care what happens to the mess that
remains at a venue after the party is over. But Francis Akatu does and
that is how he makes his money. The latest big event he cleaned after
was the Kabeberi Sevens held at the Nairobi Railways Club over the
weekend.
SHARE THIS STORY
Mr Akatu explains that Safi Knox Cleaning and Janitorial
Services Company, where he is the sole proprietor, is built on integrity
and the desire to offer quality services.
“Aside from the social media platforms, customer
referrals have propelled the business to where it is today,” says the
27-year-old who believes in being his own boss. The idea of venturing
into cleaning services came by chance in 2011 when a client he had sold a
cleaning detergent to asked if he could clean his sofa set.
“At the time, I was doing full-time marketing for
GNLD products. After the demo, the client asked me to clean his entire
seat set, after which he referred more customers to me,” says Mr Akatu
who holds a diploma in Law and has training in marketing.
Currently the company, whose offices are on
Nairobi’s Ring Road in Komarok, has 100 workers who are contracted to
clean venues, offices, buildings, households and car interiors.
Prior to venturing into the cleaning business, he
had made an attempt at event planning but soon discovered the market was
flooded. “Plus it needed getting into numerous partnerships and I found
that too complicated,” he says. He chose cleaning since it is a basic
requirement in any society.
“One can never go wrong when investing in basic
commodities or services since there will always be demand in the
market,” he explains.
Mr Akatu says before quoting the service price, he
conducts prior assessment on what needs cleaning in order to remain
profitable. He recalls a day he undercharged a client for cleaning a car
whose interiors he spent the whole day scrubbing due to stubborn
stains.
“The mistake I made was quoting an amount before
assessing how much work was required to clean the car’s interiors, which
I assumed would take me an hour. I learnt my lesson,” he says.
He adds that his business is driven by the need to
put a smile on the customer’s face. His customer base extends as far as
Bomet, Eldoret, Kakamega and Mtwapa in the Coast. In a month, the
company cleans up to 250 houses, at least three wedding events,
funerals, birthdays, sports venues and a number of vehicle interiors.
He says it is paramount in the business to inform
clients if you are running late for an appointment instead of assuming
they will understand you got stuck in traffic. “This is the kind of
integrity I instil in my workers. My desire is that the company tops
other firms in Eastern and Central Africa in terms of integrity,” says
Mr Akatu
Planning ahead saves him last minute rush and keeps
his clients satisfied. As far as his clientele is concerned, he says he
does not discriminate against whom to serve – whether they are wealthy
or come from the slums.
“The key thing is agreeing on the price for the
services offered and we sing the anthem of ‘quality’ together,” he says,
adding that he never believes in quitting.
While he is not keen on getting into any
partnerships in the near future, Mr Akatu divulges that he remains open
to opportunities to grow the business. “My long-term dream is to own a
waste recycling plant so that we no longer have to import plastic items
from foreign countries,” he says.
No comments :
Post a Comment