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Chrystal Kizito is the founder and director of Botanique Naturelle, a wellness business that provides natural solutions for skin, hair, female wellness and chronic illnesses.
I started this business in February 2017. I had Sh. 1,000 which I used to buy a kilogram of unprocessed Ghanaian Shea. I processed this and sold it at Sh. 1,300, making a profit of Sh. 300. I bought another kilogram and repeated the same process. The one kilogram I used to buy turned into 2 kilograms. Four years down the line, I now buy over 50 kilograms for processing. This year, I was nominated on the just concluded Pulse Awards for the category of Business Influencer of the year 2021. Although I did not emerge a winner, the nomination was a validation that I am on the right track.
I was not consistent when I started. It was not as easy as buying a kilogram of shea and selling it off in a few days or hours. It took me three and a half years to break even. My struggles were mainly because the market was not ready to embrace a new beginner. At the time, I only had an online shop. This made it even harder for prospective customers to trust me. I also realized that in Kenya, most people would rather import wellness products than support local or African products. This has made it very difficult for startups to compete with the already established brands which specialize in importations.
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I had garnered some experience in skin care enterprising before I started this business. I had been working as an employee, holding the position of a store manager at an international skin care company that operates locally. Looking back, I can say it is important to gain some knowledge from employment on how businesses operate and how products and sales are run before venturing out on your own. The experience will come in handy.
I assumed that I could use my business money for personal use when I started. This eventually left me without stocks. I had to learn the hard way the importance of separating my business account and personal account. This meant that I needed to be financially disciplined, get a salary and limit my expenses to strictly within my salary.
My business Till Number is synchronized with my bank account. I have found this to be super effective, as it captures every transaction that comes in. It has also made it easy to pay employees and suppliers. Previously I saved money in my house which meant that I could access it anytime. As is wont to happen when money is handled this way, Impulse Buying was always knocking at my door.
When given an opportunity to choose between money and business ideas, I will go for the latter. Money will hardly give you ideas, but ideas will make you money. Over the time that I have been in business, I have learned that it is important to dare to dream big. If I could start all over again, I would stop second guessing myself, seeking validation from outside sources, and believe in the beauty of my dreams.
This profile feature on Chrystal Kizito was first published in the Saturday Magazine. The Saturday Magazine is a publication of the Nation Media Group.
