Nairobi Man Turns "Stubborn" Childhood Passion Into Multi-Million Real Estate Company

• Growing up, Cleophas Nyagaka always knew that his passion for interior design would one day pay off
• His stars aligned when a well-wisher spotted him and sponsored him for a real-estate course abroad
• He told TUKO.co.ke that he merged the newly-found skills and childhood passion into a thriving company that he built from scratch

As a young boy growing up in the village, Cleophas Nyagaka got into a lot of trouble with his mother for mutilating her walls.

It was a passion that the inborn struggled to overcome, so much so that his mother let him adorn the walls without stopping him.

When did Nyagaka develop interest in business?

Deep down, he always knew he would one day turn his creativity into a career in professional interior design.

As it turned out, the "mutilation" was a good problem as it became the fire that drove Nyagaka into owning an interior design company.

He told TUKO.co.ke his entrepreneurship journey started in 2013 when he launched a small design workshop in Samburu.

"Back then, I did not see the business becoming a real estate firm that would take on major projects both in Kenya and abroad," he said.

How did Fine Urban Interiors start?

As luck would have it, he found a well-wisher who supported him to study a real estate course in South Africa.

When he returned home, Nyagaka secured a job at the National Construction Authority, but he often felt inside that something was missing.

"I often found myself subconsciously analysing rooms during meetings and imagining how I would enhance their appeal," he said.

When his desire became unbearable, he resigned and launched a small workshop for designing and selling house furnishings.

What was Nyagaka's turning point?

What started as a small outfit soon grew into the Fine Urban Construction and Interiors real estate company people know.

One of his secrets was approaching clients and requesting to redesign or repaint their homes for free.

Nyagaka's fortunes changed when he won a tender to do interior design for a hotel in Samburu.

"I used most of the earnings from this project towards renting a better office space in Nairobi," he recalled.

What has been Nyagaka's secret?

With the office in place, he employed people and meticulously built the business from an interior design firm into a construction company.

It was a shift that saw him clinch several other jobs to demolish and redesign outdated houses whose clients wanted to upgrade.

From a workforce of two employees, his company now employs more than 30 permanent staff, with several others on contract.

"Our secret to success has been listening to advice from our predecessors, focusing on clients, and building trustworthy relationships," he said.

Power of social media

Nyagaka was also lucky to enter business when social media was growing, as he leveraged different platforms to showcase his projects.

His business has since grown in leaps and bounds and handles projects beyond Kenya.

"Most of the foreign clients we receive admit that they knew about us after watching our content on YouTube," Nyagaka revealed.

The businessman advised more Kenyans to consider venturing into interior design as he struggles to get quality labour and skilled workmanship.

Man who loved replicating cartoons turns passion into profit

In a different story, Dennis Ochieng started gravitating towards newspaper cartoons when he was still a young boy, a hobby his parents disapproved of

When he cleared high school, he channelled his energies towards his passion and grew it into a lucrative business

Despite having missed a slot at the university, Ochieng now earns a decent living from sketching commissioned works of art.

Proofreading by Asher Omondi, current affairs journalist and copy editor at TUKO.co.ke.