Thanks to the pandemic, I chose the internet for my startup

Convinced by a friend that she had good taste in décor and bags, Lydia Amondi Otieno, 29, set up Urembo Creations, an online shop that stocks an assortment of handmade products. She shares her story on what it took to get her business up and running

My background

I was born in Kakelo Ringa in Homabay County. I am the only child and daughter of one Richard Otieno Ongocho and Judith Akinyi Otieno. I am also a mother of two.

I enrolled at Gedions Memorial Academy for my primary school education and then joined Koru Girls Secondary School in 2005. I hold a Diploma in Banking and Finance and a Bachelor of Education Arts both from Mount Kenya University.

The idea

The idea of setting up the business was initiated by a friend who was impressed by my unique unique taste in décor and bags.

She convinced me to start the business as a side hustle, separate from my full time job as the Principal Insurance Officer at Connect Plus Africa Limited.

Soon after that, Covid-19 hit so hard and many people lost their jobs while others were subjected to pay cuts. This became a wake-up call for me to have another source of income. 

What happened next

I set up Urembo Creations Kenya, an online shop on the American platform Etsy.Com where you display your items with prices on them for shoppers to view, make orders and purchase.

I do get orders locally but the higher percentage is clients from the US and UK.

For the business to get up and running, one has to sign up a shop account with Etsy and open a Paypal account since that is the mode of payment accepted by the community. I had to do all this before embarking on selling my products on the platform.

After this, you stock your shop by listing the items you have. Sh20 is charged for each item you list. You also have to link your debit card with the shop for the charges to be easily billed.

One needs a laptop for this to be effective. The only major expense I incurred here was the capital to buy the stock from the weavers. I started with Sh10,000.

Running a startup

Running the business is easy for me since most of the engagements are done online from the comfort of my desk.

However, one challenge that I have experienced is the delay of product deliveries by the weavers, especially when the markets were closed due to the pandemic.

I must say that the Covid-19 pandemic was a blessing in disguise for the business. The idea was very much welcomed since we are in an era when technology is becoming part of our daily lives and activities.

For instance, many people have gotten used to doing their shopping online and paying for deliveries from the comfort of their homes. The only hiccup that was there initially when Covid-19 was at its peak was the high cost incurred for shipping and shipping timings which were very slow.

Currently, we are glad that the curve is flattening and hope that things will be back to normal soon and business will be booming.

Where I am now

The business is still young, and I am also sourcing for a direct contact from the US who can do business with us as time goes by.

I am glad that, so far, I have had several hundred views and visits from online shoppers and a few orders, which have been delivered to the US.

I have also had a lot of clients mark my items as ‘favourites’ which is a positive thing for my shop since it means that clients like what I am selling and others have several of my items in their carts just awaiting payment and shipping.

My tip

The drive to become better is a result of the challenges that we encounter in life. Any turn of events is supposed to act as a lesson for us to diversify and work on starting something that can generate income.

Any young entrepreneur needs to venture into a business that won’t be wiped out because of technology.

Currently, with innovation, we should be up to speed with the current trends and embrace technology.