• “If they can live and earn smoothly in school without missing their exams and also not feeling embarrassed, I could try that,” she said. That’s when her plans started.

Emmaculate Adhiambo, a fourth-year student at Kabarak University pursuing a Bachelor's degree in Procurement and Logistics Management, runs a successful snack business.

Emmaculate had a challenging first year in her studies because her parents couldn’t provide everything she needed for school. She would sometimes miss her exams due to unpaid fees.

This hardship drove her to think of a bold idea. Seeing some students being employed around campus motivated her to start her own business. “If they can live and earn smoothly in school without missing their exams and also not feeling embarrassed, I could try that,” she said. That’s when her plans started.

The business began in 2022, during Emmaculate's second year, second semester. She identified a business opportunity in providing snacks in students’ residences. She later found a smokie trolley that she could lease for fifty shillings per day.

Emmaculate used her Higher Education Loan Board funds to buy her initial stock, including a packet of smokies, half a crate of eggs, a jiko, a liter of cooking oil, and groceries. With much faith, she set up her trolley along Kabarak Rafiki Road and successfully navigated her first day, earning about six hundred shillings.

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Emmaculate has truly bossed up! She wakes up every day at 5:00 a.m. to study, attends all her classes during the day, and rushes home around four in the afternoon to boil eggs and fry smokies. She assembles her trolley and starts selling by 5:30 p.m., getting help from her friend Faith Atieno, especially when she has an evening class.

“It was so difficult in the beginning that I felt like giving up but now I feel good that I am now making samosas and I have so many customers,” Emmaculate said.

As time went by, Emmaculate's sales continued to rise, and she finally bought her own trolley in December 2023, allowing her to run her business smoothly. Emmaculate now manages her budget, does not call home for upkeep money, and also contributes to her school fees to avoid missing exams.

Emmaculate is proceeding towards her graduation this year. She has been an inspiration to many, mainly since she provides for herself and encourages other ladies to be independent.