By Roxane Morgan
Published December 8, 2019
“No one succeeds immediately. Every successful business was once a beginner,” says Fredrick Ochieng, founder of Afrotronic Home Design in Nairobi, Kenya.
With his passion for functional architecture spanning from the age of 15 years old, his business provides pre-designed as well as bespoke residential, commercial and institutional building plans to millions in Kenya and Africa. But it wasn’t always this way.
Over a period of four years since 2015, Fredrick Ochieng has grown to a staff complement of ten employees and he supplies affordable home plans at sometimes 2% of what other institutions are charging. This enables his clients to get a foot in the real estate market at a fraction of the normal cost. He also consults with clients and builders where needed, once they get started.
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In 2013, the pressure of starting a business without earning a steady income, paired with the criticism of family and friends meant that he was hospitalised for three months due to stress and related illnesses following surgery. But where others would throw in the towel, he saw it as a turning point.
Fredrick Ochieng recalls, “I believed in my product more than anything and I knew that it would help many people. I just had to get it to them. So, I ended up hawking home plans at Kimathi Street in Nairobi and in the process, people got to know me and my products. My innovative product managed to get media attention and my story reached Kenyan newspapers. From then on, my business picked up and our service and our homes have reached millions of people within and outside Kenya. This gives me a sense of fulfilment and drives me to move on.”
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Today his business address at Regus 14 Riverside Business Park in Nairobi is a far cry from his start on the streets below. Once his business grew, he says he needed a convenient and professional place to receive customers and host meetings. He also wanted to provide his prospective clients with better client service. His business continues to grow as customers trust in his product, owing to his work ethic and the professional image the new offices and reception and phone-answering services portray.
The benefits extend to his team.
“The flexible workspace layout encourages social interaction and communication and the fact that we don’t have to worry about copiers and coffee machines and networks, means we are more productive and can focus on the business of helping people build homes,” he says.
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His advice to other entrepreneurs?
“Don’t allow fear and people’s opinions to prevent you from investing time in your business idea.”
