The Pair With a Heart For Enterprise

Small Beginnings

 It was when necessity proved priority that invention came about for two accountant students in Day star University. Peter Ndungu a third year Accounts major at Athi-river and Rogers Nzivo of the same major (Accounts) decided it was unreasonable to watch untapped market in Daystar waste away when in fact it could work to their advantage.

The pair settled for a business enterprise initiative after weighing various options most of which were duly profitable."How about we take orders from customers and supply right at their door steps?" Peter Ndungu consulted with his partner in business. I guess he may have borrowed a school of thought from Uchumi supermarkets CEO Jonathan Ciano when he said in the weekly NTV(Nation Television) Daytime show PM LIVE that in business its all about the customer , knowing your customer and his needs will always reward you handsomely."Take the service to their doorstep if you have to."advised Mr.Jonathan.


Chapa Investments was duly born after much oral and written market research. It was a case of taking advantage of the untapped market that the competitors had overlooked.Chapa Investments is in the business of cooking and  supplying such as mandazis,samosa and chapatis right at their customers'  door steps free of charge and at a subsidised rate cost for the snack ordered.

Compared with the local hotels in Daystar University that offer the same food commodity at higher prices,(Chapatis at 30 Kshs) i guess any average consumer would opt for the 'better option'. In fact Chapa Investments style of delivering service plus the student pocket friendly rates is a win win situation if you ask me. 

The challenges

If you have ever established an enterprise before you know that any enterprise doesn't come without its pitfalls. The pair had to invest heavily in managing the most rare of resources 'Time'.I guess i could stand to be corrected as 'rare' could be relative.

Being students the two have to juggle between school work and business which in most cases one of the activities has to come short.  Waking up at 2.30 a.m everyday to prepare not less than a hundred and fifty chapati for supply is way beyond any students scope of sacrifices.This challenge led yet to another pit fall, what the business community likes to call 'overflow of demand' where the demand is higher than the supply.In this case Chapa Investments faces this challenge of too much demand than they can supply despite their considerable sacrifices.

Achievements

Since its small beginnings Chapa Investments has grown within its limits as a small enterprise by adding a bicycle to its assets.
                                                                      

The mountain bike investment which cost the enterprise Kes. 4000 made good its value as it now provides the enterprise with better and more efficient delivery services. Now as your trusted supplier Chapa Investments assures of timely deliveries at the comfort of your house or hostel.

Future plans

The advantage of running a small enterprise is being in position to plan for expansion at the entrepreneurs choice of time. It can be a much recent or future plan. For Peter and Rogers the niche market is rich with opportunities to expand. Chapa Investments plans to go into the computer services business and aquire a permanent premise to operate in.

In the near future the pair plan to employ more people as suppliers in the various hostels identified while they concentrate fully on production. For Chapa  Investment its  partnership is its cornerstone by combining both the  human and financial resources the investment has potential to expand. "I hope to continue with the support from my partner in our future initiative and as for Daystar students Chapa Investments can be a reference point of how practical business is, so take charge and pursue opportunities." says Peter Ndungu.