He saw a problem and turned it into a business idea. Anthony Chege is the owner of boomark.co.ke a website which allows sellers to post books for sale or exchange at a Sh350 fee per year.
He spoke to Benson Mwikali of Business Daily and below is how one can seize teh opportunity and come up with a brilliant business idea.
How did he come up with the Business Idea?
He remembers his sister trying to buy school books for her children in December last year and complaining about how expensive they were. The initial idea behind Mr Chege’s website was to offer parents an avenue to exchange textbooks or buy pre-owned ones at a cheaper price instead of buying new ones.
How did he develop it?
“I thought, why stick just to school books, so I decided to widen my target market to include other genres of books. I knew I would make it possible for people to exchange or sell books to each other at an affordable price.
I like reading all genres as so long as it is a page turner and a light read.”
About His First Website.
His first website was , harusi.co.ke, an online directory for wedding service providers in the country which was launched in 2010.
The website’s popularity has continued to grow. With bookmart.co.ke, he had to start by dealing with Kenyans’ poor reading culture. But Mr Chege is confident that his formula to get more people to read will work.
What are his future prospects?
“We are launching book mixing events where members can meet on a weekend every month to socialise as they exchange books and contacts.
We are also working with schools so that this venture gets covered in school newsletters and parents get to know about bookmart and its benefits.”
He adds that these events will be taking advantage of the Kenyans’ habit to socialise.
How much do Kenyans pay to the websites?
Members pay Sh1, 000 per year and each month they receive an e-book to read and discuss with other members. They also have an option of three books to vote on every month and the title chosen becomes the book of the month. This should be non-fiction and with an emphasis on personal growth or motivational work.
What challenges has he faced in this venture?
The challenge thus far has been trying to convince people to sign up though most admit that it is a great idea. Still, the website has managed to get over 92,000 hits and some people are signing up for the service. They have managed to sign up over 500 people. This is due to aggressive marketing through social and mainstream print media.
Last word.
“I only want to exchange and sell books but also give the members an opportunity to widen their networks. Readers are leaders so such people are great to know not just for connections but for intellectual growth”
Source ; Business Daily
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