Wambui Kuria, a Nairobi businesswoman, on Monday, November 13, sparked a heated discourse after her statement revealing the tough times she had endured in her business.
Kuria, who runs a boutique in Nairobi, announced that she has been operating in a shop with a monthly rent of Ksh50,000.
Despite having been in business for years, she said that the current situation had proven difficult and hence her decision to relinquish her trade.
In the statement on her X account, Wambui, popularly known as Wambo, announced that she was willing to sell the business with a stock valued at over Ksh1 million.
“I am selling my shop fully stocked with men’s official and casual clothes with a stock of not less than 1 million. Monthly rent for that shop is 50k,” she stated.
“Come one come all and buy. Tough economic times cannot allow me to maintain that and others for.”
In a subsequent statement, Wambui revealed that she was looking for a buyer ready to pay Ksh1.45 million for her business.
Also Read: Ruto Praised for Imposing Heavy Taxes on Hustlers
Her statement, however, was met with mixed reactions on the text sharing platform with only a few users sympathizing with her situation.
The users raised several concerns including the fact that she had previously declared her support for the ruling government.
Kenyans react to Wambui’s post
Trolls kept streaming in with users reminding her of a time she posted that seeing President William Ruto’s portrait in her business gave her extra motivation.
In a post on September 15, 2022, Wambui shared post stating, “opening the doors of my shop and seeing the portrait of President William Ruto hanging on the wall is enough motivation.”
Kenyans reacting to the post associated Wambui’s predicaments to the economic constraints facing Kenyans in general in the wake of increased taxes depreciating value of the Kenyan Shilling- among others.
A user identifying himself as Bwire D.N said, “Let’s not lie to each other more specially lie to that things will be back soon. Things won’t be better soon if the country keeps on running the way it is.”
Another one said, “Just open doors to your shop tomorrow and stare at Ruto’s portrait and business will be back to normal.”
Also Read: Top Kenyan Companies That Have Warned Investors So far and Why
However, a few users shared advice for the lady with several propositions including leaving her rental shop and instead taking her operations online from her own home.
Tough economic measures affect business
But Wambui’s situation could be a representation of the overall business environment in the recent past.
According to a report released by the Central Bank of Kenya in May, small businesses had defaulted or restructured loans to the tune of Ksh222 billion- a manifestation of the tough times.
At the time, CBK reported that over 216,000 loan accounts linked to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) had been classified as non-performing loans.
Further, a report published by survey firm KPMG revealed that Tanzania had leapfrogged Kenya as the preferred destination for investors, further painting the picture of a business environment faced with challenges.
