Sidian Story — Kenneth Mwangi, Afric Salt

Meet Kenneth Mwangi, the founder and director of Afric Salt Enterprises. Kenneth is a beneficiary of the ISBI Institute and Sidian Bank partnership. The two institutions have partnered with a goal of empowering Sidian Bank clients in entrepreneurship; particularly to improve financial literacy, general business operations and capacity. This eventually leads to scaling up of the business and reduction of risk of default among the Sidian clients.

As a result of this partnership, Sidian clients get a sizeable discount. He is part of the July cohort of the Advanced Entrepreneurship Program at the ISBI Institute at Strathmore Business School. At the time of joining the program, Kenneth was looking to better his business skills and improve the overall management of his business.

Kenneth wanted to introduce more products into the market as well as charter new niches into which he can expand. Unlike the previous times he made such a move, this time he wanted to avoid making mistakes. ‘The program has been very useful in equipping me with practical insights which I have continuously applied in my new business project. I have been able to avoid some pitfalls that previously held me back and I can’t wait to see how profitable this venture will be’

From the AEP session, Kenneth gained valuable and practical insights from the Marketing and Marketing plan sessions. He learnt on the importance of shifting from mass marketing to narrowing down on a specific target market for his product. This would help him work on becoming the best option for his customers by continuously giving them value.

He was able to pick up a few tips on time management. This has allowed him together with his team to drastically streamline operations. ‘Everyone now knows on what to prioritize and when to go about it. There is less firefighting as there is a clear understanding of the important and urgent tasks for which all efforts should be channelled to.’