James Kinyua, also known as Kinyua Wairatu, is the CEO of Maono Land Ltd.
He began his career as a shoemaker in Dandora, Nairobi County, in 2001 and worked in a variety of industries before entering the real estate industry in 2009.
Kinyua explained that he was not ashamed of his lowly beginnings, observing that God lifted him from grass to grace.
To supplement his income, the CEO worked as a carpenter, building furniture for a small school in Dandora.
“When I started mending shoes, I began to live a better life and rented my own house paying Ksh 500 monthly. In a day I would get between Ksh60-Ksh100 in a day. Things were not smooth but I pushed through,” he said.
In his little shoemaking shop, Kinyua began selling shoe laces and polishing shoes.
In his ascent to fame, he also sold the Shabiki magazine for roughly Ksh 30 per copy.
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In order to produce his first eight-page book, Who is Kinyua Wairatu, he also raised Ksh7,000 from friends.
Given that the majority of the magazines on the market focused on foreign matters, Kinyua contended that it struck a chord with a large number of readers.
“I taught myself how to do everything I know. I am a fast learner,” he stated.
Kinyua clarified that he had to switch to selling land before launching his own business because the growing popularity of cellphones and the internet made his magazine obsolete.
He registered the corporation was initially difficult because a lot of the names were reserved.
Kinyua mentioned that he had a vision of Maono (Dreams). As of now, the CEO chairs the Association of Real Estate Stakeholders.
“Everyone of us has heard the bad stories about real estate. However, I am here to tell Kenyans that we have the solution. We have a clean association that will help us bring sanity,” he shared.
