As technology advances, opportunities have emerged for budding business owners to discover untapped markets. Wilfred Chege is the CEO of Shulemall Ltd. Photo: Maryanne Jeane. Source: Twitter The emergence of advanced technologies such as augmented reality, blockchain, and artificial intelligence has significantly expanded the entrepreneurial landscape. From software development to website creation and app design, youthful Kenyans are making significant gains within the tech industry. One such entrepreneur is Wilfred Chege, the founder and chief executive officer of Shulemall Limited. How Wilfred Chege established Shulemall Ltd Chege’s tech foray began as a secondary school student at Nakuru High School. He participated in the young achiever’s programme and developed an online shopping platform with other learners. When the school emerged second in the contest, the programme was suspended. Chege opted to monetise and modernise the app after he completed his Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examination in 2018. The youthful entrepreneur defied his grandfather’s advice to study a ‘lucrative’ course such as medicine or banking to focus on his tech business before enrolling at Jomo Kenyatta University Of Agriculture And Technology to pursue a bachelor’s in business information technology. How Shulemall works According to TV 47, the app allows learners to directly access learning materials from producers. These include uniforms, textbooks, supermarket goods and other school materials. “Once you create your account, you add products to the cart and then proceed to pay. We have partnered with M-Pesa as a payment method in such a way that the account owner can pay using another number e.g. a teacher’s,” he explained. His efforts bore fruits as the app now generates between KSh 2 million and KSh 3 million monthly. Speaking to KTN News, he disclosed he’s paid roughly 12% of the monthly revenue, translating to over KSh 200,000. The Shulemall Ltd application has garnered more than 11,000 downloads from both Android and IOS users. With a user base of over 3,500 individuals actively engaging with the app every month, the platform witnesses a consistent flow of orders, ranging from 1000 to 1500 per month. Chege has employed four people and co-founded Zendawa, an online pharmacy that delivers medicine to remote areas.
by Japhet Ruto
