Worse still, two months before she finally moved in, Ochieng
suffered the shock of her lifetime after authorities bulldozed bungalows neighboring
her house in one night. Luckily, she had procured legitimate land that was not subject
to legal tussles with the Kenya Airports Authority. She finally moved in only
to start agonizing over the lack of social amenities in the new community. That
Syokimau lacked such facilities as sports grounds where her 8 years old
daughter would take part in physical activities further convinced Ochieng that
she could have hurriedly decided on Syokimau.
Does owning a home mean increased susceptibility to
frustrations and inconveniences? These worries would end with the discovery of
Mutco, a budding roller-skating club in the neighboring Mlolongo market.
Mutco, a brainchild of Francis Mwanzia, 30 and Dennis Makori,
45 began in earnest at the tail end of 2011. “The idea started casually when my son
acquired a pair of roller skaters from his uncle. He trained himself on how to
skate and soon he would be the center of attention in the neighborhood. Over
the weekend, Tom would be busy showcasing his prowess to his friends from far
and wide. This way, I admired the popularity of roller skating in the society
and starting thinking business. The rest is history,” offered Mwanzia grinning
from ear to ear. Makori, a fellow machine operator of Mwanzia in Kapa Oil
Refineries, would come in handy in raising the 20,000 shillings (USD 235) seed
money the two would require to operationalize the business idea.
Less than two years later, the idea behind Mutco has flourished.
When I met the duo, I was petrified on how fast a noble idea could quickly
transform to a thriving business. Besides the scores of skaters from children through
teenagers to adults, I could easily tell the beeline of activity in this club
from the scores of posh cars parked alongside the 4-kilometer long truck lay by
overlooking the Police Station in Mlolongo, the track on which the skating
takes place. Starters and those who had not mustered the requisite balance had
the accompaniment of instructors. Conspicuously, everyone taking part in the
skating had protecting gear ranging from helmets, reflective jackets, to knee
and elbow protections. This prompted my interest in knowing what it takes to
have the skating business rolling.
“Immediately we got the required capital, we prioritized on instruction,”
Mwanzia offered, adding that they had to think of hiring instructors. “The bulk
of the remaining money went into acquiring more skating shoes, and safety
equipment. From the little experience we had, it was imperative that we
emphasize on personal protective equipment. In this activity, protection of the
client is of utmost importance,” he offered, suggesting further that this alone
explains much of their success.
“This pair of shoes,” Mwanzia continued, stretching for a
pair of size 8 roller skates, “costs over 1000 shillings in Gikomba.” Christened
‘Pro-Skaters’, this was a tough-looking skating shoe. Insights from the duo indicated
that this brand of skates is ranks highly in terms of quality of rubber rollers
and the comfort it guarantees the wearer. As expected, not everybody interested
in skating could own a pair of skating shoes.
That many enthusiasts of roller skating could have
difficulties affording their own skating shoes was anticipated during the
development of Mutco, according to Mwanzia. Here, one can lend a pair of high
quality skating shoes at only 200 shillings (USD 2) for two hours. Those with
their own skating shoes pay some minimal registration fee to enjoy the services
of the instructors and the facilities.
“You see those ones,” implored Mwanzia pointing at one of
the lady instructors whom he had earlier introduced as Cate, “they keep this
business going and thus take home over half of the proceeds.”
With these metrics, I could not help wonder whether this
business is sustaining. It does. Mwanzia confided that three months into the
business, he resigned from formal employment. “I was able to earn three times
what my Asian employer paid me in a month. His partner followed suit a month
later. “This way, we resolved to accord the business the attention it
deserved.” On her part, Cate whose full names I learned were Catherine Njeri, a
final year Physical Education student in Kenyatta University, owned that
working in Mutco has been rewarding. “It deserves much of the credit for my higher
education. Raising fees has been easy,” she told me before excusing herself and
rolling back to the track to assist a middle-aged woman with balancing on her
skates.
“By taking part in these activities, I feel that I am
applying my skills and passion to meaningful causes in the society,” Njeri
offered, when she came back from the track. By this, I quickly remembered that
she would be most suited to inform me on the benefits of roller-skating.
“Skating
is an intensive physical activity and thus helps in burning down body
calories,” she offered. She went further justifying how such activities as
skating should be encouraged today owing to the tendency of people to lead
sedentary lifestyles. “With physical activities, one significantly reduces the
chances of suffering from life threatening disorders such as obesity and
cardiovascular diseases,” she added.
Njeri went ahead and explained how roller-skating stood
above all other sporting and physical activities. The thrilling nature of the
activity makes very it interesting such that one would be involved willingly,
she offered narrowly missing comparing roller-skating with jogging. This
explains the irresistibility of roller-skating especially with youngsters that
Ochieng concurs. “Once she enrolled, my daughter has been quite energetic. She
seldom spends the weekends watching television or even playing video games. Over
the weekend, everything has to stop so that I drive her here to skate,” she
said, wearing a celebratory tone.
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| Some people turn to diets to address diseases such obesity and cardiovascular infections. Oftentimes, this approach fails in sustainability and efficiency |
Osborne, 6, a recent member of the skating club concurred
that roller skating is thrilling. “It feels close to riding a bike but it
causes more fun. You see, in skating, especially if you can balance, you feel
that you are on top of the world,” he said, before adding that he is thankful
to his parents for introducing him to skating. He expressed optimism that one
day he will participate in national skating championships.
With all these benefits of roller-skating, I had to inquire
whether the club will last at least long enough for more people to benefit. Mwanzia
and Makori are currently maneuvering a number of challenges such as the
dependability of the track by procuring a plot in the neighborhood and
developing it to a track. Meanwhile, they are in some agreement with the local
Mavoko Municipal Council to continue using the truck lay by for roller-skating.
The fruition of such endeavors will make Mwanzia, Makori, Njeri, Ochieng and
the hundreds of roller skaters in Mutco proud to be associated with Syokimau.
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