November 26, 2024

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Meet hot Female Billionaire Who Owns Storey Buildings in Nairobi CBD

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She is attractive, fashion conscious and enterprising. A self-made billionaire who has an empire. Owns storey buildings in the prime Nairobi City Centre.

Her name is Esther Muchemi, CEO Samchi Group of Companies. Her story of success started in 2000 when she made a daring decision.

She quit a 16-year career as an auditor where she had a handsome salary and opened a shop along Koinange streets dealing with phone accessories, airtime and sim-cards.

Esther is inarguably hot and elegant. She has that infectious smile and rich with ideas besides money and assets. The mother of two prefers to keep a low profile.

Late Safaricom CEO Bob Collymore described her as one of Kenya’s most accomplished but unrecognised entrepreneurs.

Esther launching her hotel in CBD.

She lost her husband Major General Muchemi in March 2007 but the girl from Thunguri village in Nyeri county soldiered on. She is referred to as 0001 for she was the first person to open Mpesa shop in Kenya.

She has invested in real estate in Central region, Rift Valley and Nairobi. In the city centre she owns two buildings.

She owns the storey El-Roi Plaza along Tom Mboya Street. She finished building it in 2010.

El-Roi Plaza along Tom Mboya Street.

This building houses her Heavenly Wings Hotel which she established in 2016. The hotel has capacity of 150 customers.

The other notable building she has in CBD is the nine-storey After 40 Hotel along Biashara Street. A conspicuous building that houses luxury accommodation facilities.

The After 40 Hotel has 63 luxury rooms, a restaurant, lounge and six meeting rooms. Its major customers are tourists and other foreigners arriving in Kenya.

After 40 Hotel along Biashara Street.

Hers is not a mean feat putting in mind that she started from scratch to where she is now, unlike other billionaires who inherited a lot from their parents.

Esther was given the 2017 Global Inspirational Women Leadership Award by the Centre for Economic and Leadership, a global body.

When she quit job at PKF Consulting 20 years ago and with help of husband set the shop, her friends kept off her and others laughed at her, ridiculing her a shopkeeper.

Esther with her children.

Her first order from Safaricom was worth Sh50, 000. Two decades on she is a billionaire and has employed hundreds of people.

“I quickly adjusted my lifestyle to cope with the reality of being a dukawallah, with no guaranteed income. I settled for a simple lifestyle of eating my vegetables with ugali” she says.

The single shop led to establishment of Samchi Group which acquired other telecom companies. Then there is Samchi Credit which is now a registered Microfinance.

Samchi Heights deals with properties in the city centre and parts of Rift Valley and Mt Kenya regions.

Esther relaxing.

In 2007 she established Space International which provides incubation services for businesses in start-up level.

It entails office and accommodation services for people with businesses but unable to rent such space elsewhere.

Her daughter Wanjiru Muchemi says; “The period I have worked with mum, I see many life lessons. Key among them is how she manages to remain calm even in a crisis. Countless times I have watched her keep her cool in the face of a storm”.

Inside After 40 Hotel.

Esther’s son Sam Muchemi says “I have learnt a lot from working with mum. One of the major lessons is that it is okay to be daring in life, to have wild dreams and to go after them. Her life has proved to me that with enough stamina, you can climb any mountain and get to the top”.

When she was young.