msafiri habariinspiration 30 Jane Barsby meets Henry Muhia, a flower- seller in Waiyaki Way, Nairobi, and finds out about his daily life A life in... VITAL STATISTICS NAME HENRY KAMAU MUHIA OCCUPATION FLOWER SELLER AGE 34 country KENYA background " I know I work long hours, but it's an investment in my own future, you have to work hard, you have to make sacrifices to succeed. I believe that. Also, I value my job: eight years ago, I had to leave my home in Central Province because I couldn't find any work. My uncle knew a man who wanted someone to run his flower stall in Nairobi and he put us in touch. I didn't originally intend to be a flower seller; I wanted to be an engineer – an electrical engineer. I loved physics at school, and I was really good at it. Now, though, I love my flowers - I'm committed to them, they're my life. As for the future, I'd like a stall of my own: just business, my own business. Until then, I believe that this is fate – this is the will of God." FURTHER INFORMATION Q Henry's stall is opposite the exit to ABC Place Shopping Centre, Waiyaki Way, Nairobi. Q He can be contacted for advance orders on weddings and functions on mobile: 0722 282944 06.00 I have to get up very early, because my home is quite a long way away from my stall. I travel by matatu and arrive at my stall, on Waiyaki Way, just next to the ABC shopping centre, around half past seven. 07.30 I leave my stock of flowers in their buckets of water overnight, so my first job is to roll up the canvas sheet, which protects them from the sun, and open the stall for business. Then I spend time caring for my flowers – they need lots of fresh water, which I renew by at least one third every day. This way they keep fresh. My customers know that I only sell fresh flowers. I don't pick off the outside leaves of roses that are past their best like some sellers do – and then pretend they're fresh. My customers trust me. I have a lot of repeat business. You have to look carefully at the flowers before you buy. Check that the stems are fresh and green, not brown and woody. With lilies you have to check that the buds are not going brown at the tip, because that means they won't open. 08.30 Once my flowers are ready, I wait for the arrival of my customers. I enjoy meeting people and I have a wide range of customers, many from the international community. I also provide flowers for weddings and parties, or as floral displays for offices. I'm good at flower arranging – I have taught myself: I like that sort of work; and my customers like what I do for them. 11.00 During the morning hours I often receive deliveries of flowers; they come from all over Kenya: Naivasha, Nakuru and Limuru. Sometimes they are delivered to me by a broker, a ' middleman', who buys direct from the flower farms and then delivers all over Nairobi. 13.00 I take my lunch on my stall, because lunchtime can be busy for me. My average sale is around Kshs 500: most of my customers buy a number of bunches – they last them the whole week: I also give a discount to good customers – always in the form of additional flowers. 14.00 If I have not received deliveries in the morning, I may go by matatu into the centre of town, to Nairobi City Market, where I select my flowers – I know what my clients like, so I always stock roses, lilies, tuber roses, gladioli and alstromeria. Whilst I am away, I ask a friend to mind the stall – we help each other out. 18.00 Business begins to tail off by six o'clock. So, I close the stall, wind down the canvas shade and leave my flowers. There are no locks on the stall, but people generally respect each other's property and the need to earn a living – so theft is not a problem for me. Alexander Budge