Sylvia Onzere is one of the founder and director of Sylvek Limited, a Kenyan company involved in transporting goods in the East African region. She speaks on how she has made it in a male dominated field. Tell us more about your company Sylvek is a Mombasa based company that its main operation is cargo transport within Eastern African countries. Mainly we transport cargo from Mombasa port to Kampala, but we also do any other destination within the region. With the help of registered clearing agents who we business partner with, we assist our clients in port clearance. Our company also does general supplies only for bulk quantities of commodities. As a woman was it easy to fit in the male dominated trucking business? No. I actually have to work twice as hard. This is not only a male dominated field in terms of business owners but is also quite technical. Respect is earned and this takes time. I believe I am beginning to prove myself from the deals I have been able to make. This is a very competitive field where large companies, which own more than 100 trucks, call the shots. How do you cope? We are not taking competition from big multinational companies lying down. Instead, we sub-contract from other truck owners. This has helped us win contracts from big corporations in East Africa looking to transport goods in the region. Describe some of the challenges you face in running the business? Financing and external factors such as unpredictable fuel prices are some of the challenges we face. When we get contracts, say for several years, we put into consideration the costs we will incur, including fuel costs. However, when the fuel prices go up it eats into our profits since we cannot go back to our clients and demand a renegotiation. Poor infrastructure in the corridors linking Kenya and its neighbouring countries, and human resource issues such as recklessness among drivers, leading to vehicle damage and downtime as a result, are also sources of concern. To overcome these challenges I have learnt to be streetwise and sniff for new business opportunities. To avoid running into problems with the authorities, I comply with all statutory requirements and avoid overloading. Any words of advice for other entrepreneurs? Before you invest ask yourself what is your motivation? For some it is money, for others it is passion. For a few it is both. The harsh reality, however, is that money will trickle in, but what happens when it stops flowing, do you quit? There are high failure rates among business start-ups because entrepreneurs do not undertake research before investing and therefore have no clear strategy. Before you take the leap, know what you are getting into. What are your future plans? I would like to have a fleet of 50 trucks and a clearing and forwarding firm. This will give us a competitive edge. We are looking for partnerships that will put us in the league of big transport companies in the region. |
SYLVEK LIMITED