MY HUSTLE: Welcome to the world of aquariums

Recent studies have linked aquariums to stress relief. For Martin Mwimbi, they have also offered him financial relief as well because they are his bread and butter.

The 27-year-old civil engineering graduate from the Technical University of Kenya (TUK) got interested in the art after watching a friend at work. His friend showed him the ropes but then Martin noticed a gap in the industry and set out to fill it.

“After studying the aquarium market in Kenya, I realised that manufacturers were only coming up with traditional aquariums so I thought out of the box then came with this idea of making aquariums which serve as coffee tables, desktops and TV stands,” he says.

MARKETING STRATEGY

In December 2013, after graduating from TUK, he decided to venture into the aquarium business. His civil engineering background helped a lot because the course is big on innovation, he says.

To get started, he opted make his cousin a wall mounted aquarium for free:

“This was a marketing strategy since she lived in an upmarket home that receives high profile visitors and that way I could get future clients.”

The whole project cost him Sh25,000.

After making the free one, he took photos and created a Facebook page and that’s how Aquacentury Interior Solutions came to be. He posted photos of his works on the page and clients came in droves.

“In my first sale, I earned Sh15000 for a wall mounted aquarium though it was a loss because I didn’t program my time and chain of activities well so I spent much travelling to and from the site,” he says .

Martin raised his capital from savings during his campus days where he did online writing. He realised that Kenyans spent a lot importing aquaria yet the country has many people with the technical know-how of making aquariums.

“To import a traditional aquarium will cost you around Sh150000 yet you can find a locally made one from us going for Sh15000,” he says. A traditional or desktop aquarium goes for Sh15,000 while the sophisticated aquaria such as wall mounted aquarium, TV stand and coffee table cost Sh17000 . A tower aquarium goes for Sh18,000 while a cabinet aquarium goes for Sh35000. These prices vary according to designs and sizes.

His business is based at the Jevanjee Gardens Shopping Mall in Nairobi and he has two employees: a shop attendant and a saleswoman and he deals on an order basis which can be made on Facebook at Aquacentury Interior solutions Though his target market is everyone, he says newly married couples and women are his niche market because they are conscious of how their houses look like.

After being in the business for 11 months, he says he’s finally breaking even. In an average month, he earns a profit of Sh30000.

“I don’t see that as an opportunity to celebrate because I always plough back the profits into the business,” he says further revealing that the venture is costly.

He sources the glasses locally but other accessories are imported. For the fish, he buys them from ponds located in outskirts of Nairobi while rare species such as shubunkin are imported.

He goes for fish species such as koi fish, sharks, red comet, yellow comet, catfish and clown loach. He says the smallest size of these go for sh.350 but the prices vary depending on the size and species.

BIGGEST CHALLENGE

The biggest challenge to the business is ignorance.

“There is a lot of ignorance among customers who think maintaining an aquarium is an expensive affair. There has been this view that aquariums are a preserve for the rich yet in the real sense all you need is a fish food.” He also debunks the myth that fish always die in case of a power loss. For their designs, they always leave space for air to penetrate. He plans to introduce more fancy and complex designs and also cheaper designs that are meant for the mass market.

What are some of the lessons that he has drawn from having a business?

“When starting a business, mentorship is a key thing. I attribute my success to a mentorship program by Lapid Leaders Africa that helped me know how to strategise and identify my market niche in this business.”

Martin says that aquariums are the best décor that you can ever have in your house. “It is believed that they are a perfect stress reliever. In fact, some of my clients are doctors. Some place them in their bedrooms and it offers a great rejuvenating experience after a day of stressful activities,” he says. He is capitalising on that.