From Adversity to a Budding Entrepreneur: The story of Amani Laurent
From Adversity to a Budding Entrepreneur: The story of Amani Laurent
From Adversity to a Budding Entrepreneur: The story of Amani Laurent
Amani Laurent shaving a client’s hair at his salon: His story demonstrates that with appropriate support, lives can change for the better
Meet Amani Laurent, a 35-year-old Congolese national whose life was marred by the horrors of civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Amani Laurent's journey from adversity to becoming a budding entrepreneur is truly inspiring. Despite facing numerous challenges and enduring unimaginable loss in his personal life, Amani never gave up on his dream of starting his own business. With determination and perseverance, he has turned his hardships into opportunities Follow Amani's journey as he continues to inspire others with his entrepreneurial spirit and drive for success.
Amani is one young man who has experienced absolute pain as a result of the civil wars in his native country. He has borne the pain of losing close family members. His story is punctuated with the chaos of conflict, where he witnessed the brutal murder of his elder brother and countless others at the hands of rebel groups. “My elder brother served in the army. Unfortunately, the rebels killed him during the civil wars,” Amani says. Having witnessed the atrocities in his home area in Congo, “I decided to take with me my brother’s widow and his children before setting out on a long journey to Kenya,” he recalls. He left Congo for Kenya in 2014.
Amani Laurent at his Billionaire’s Barber Shop in Kayole. He has trained forty (40) young people at his barber shop some of whom have secured employment in different barber shops in Nairobi CBD and residential estates
Amani was able to secure a casual job as a barber within the Nairobi CBD after a few days of his arrival and after working diligently for his employer for several months, he learned about the Shining Hope for Communities - SHOFCO - Re: BUiLD program through his friends and discovered the free training programs. In 2022, he received apprenticeship support for three months, which provided him with hands-on experience in his field. Following this, he was offered a bridging service training on job readiness, equipping him with essential skills to navigate the job market effectively.
The Re:BUiLD training covered personal development, focusing on self-confidence, self-esteem, and a thorough understanding of his strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT analysis). He also gained employability skills, including teamwork, effective communication, problem-solving, flexibility, planning and organizing, negotiation, and networking. Additionally, the training emphasized the importance of getting and maintaining a job, building positive relationships with colleagues and employers, and managing stress both at work and home.
"After these short courses, I developed a strong desire to start my own business," he says.
In 2022, Amani invested Ksh. 70,0000, (522.97 Euros) from his personal savings—earned from his previous employment—to establish a barbershop in Kayole. Three years, his business has grown, enabling him to employ three men and his wife who works as a professional masseuse at his barbershop. In addition to creating job opportunities , Amani earns approximately Ksh.5000 (37.36 Euros) during the on-peak weekends that allows him to cater for his nuclear family of three and extended family of two widows and eight orphans respectively.
His future trajectory involves expanding his business and support more young people seeking job opportunities. He is passionate about entrepreneurship and sees it as the best option for achieving sustainable livelihood. For the record, he has trained forty (40) young people at his barber shop some of whom have secured employment in different barber shops in Nairobi CBD and residential estates . He hopes for his wife to have her separate pedicure/manicure establishment in the near future.
