How Twinomugisha is thriving catering despite several failed attempts

When she ventured into the business of making snacks nine years ago, Faith Twinomugisha Mushabe never imagined that this would later turn into her source of livelihood.
While she never did any catering course, her business was birthed out of passion.
Originally when she had just joined this business, Twinomugisha did not think of it as a long-term investment. She thought that she was doing it as a by the way as she waited for a job.

Two years down the road, she has never looked back or even sought for any other thing to do.

Inspiration
Her business journey dates back in 2011, when she had completed a course at university.
Although she admired people with white collar jobs, she had to wait a little longer for her opportunity to come. While at it, she signed up for a short course in customer care, where her mentor advised the team to think of a business they would start with only Shs200,000.

“Together with other trainees, we decided to make snacks for sale. We then conducted a market research and we started supplying snacks in shops and supermarkets. Unlike me, all teammates had jobs,” she says.

Humble beginnings
Just like that, she started selling breakfast snacks in different offices. With Shs30,000, she bought a travel bag and went with the snacks to office and by 9am, the snacks were all taken.

“People enjoyed my snacks and asked me to bring more the next day. Because this was a group initiative, my friends were unable to commit to the project. I continued making snacks,” she says.

She was later introduced to many other offices where she found market for her snacks and gradually, her clientele increased.

Ray of hope
Twinomugisha says some of her clients started booking for snacks in advance. She also started supplying snacks for board meetings in the organisations where she used to supply snacks.

Even after completing her master’s degree in 2012, she kept the snacks hustle going.

However, some of her clients were uncomfortable working with a business which was not registered. In November 2012, she registered her company- Phey Enterprises Limited.

Selling fruits
Unfortunately, some of her biggest clients decided to opt for hotels as service providers and she realised she was not making sales anymore. At this point, she decided to opt for a fruits business.

“I was given a section for trial in a supermarket. I started with two watermelons, two pineapples and jackfruit. Everyone loved them and people started making orders,” she says.

But this business too did not see the light of day and in 2014, she decided to start a catering business. “I would pick orders and deliver food. Although during the first month I registered losses, I patiently watched my food business grow,” she says.

Catering business
Her business grew exponentially and in 2014, Twinomugisha got her first big order to do catering for a wedding event. After several attempts at weddings, she has never looked back.

Over the years, she bought items to use and has a team that she works with whenever there is a catering deal.

She also started writing proposals to different offices to provide catering services. In 2017, she opened a restaurant.

That year, she also received a call to go for food testing, and she emerged the best service provider. This opened her doors to get events and more offices that needed catering services.

Challenges
She says there are also seasons when fruits are seasonal yet clients want them, which makes food expensive and clients will not understand the fluctuating prices.

She adds that the costs are high yet some clients delay payments or default completely.

You can make the money only if you are willing to put in effort. She urges women to seek guidance and direction on the kind of business they want to venture into to minimise losses. To entrepreneurs, she emphasises the need to advertise and use social media to market businesses.

She is grateful to her parents and husband who have been supportive of her hustle from the start and advises women not to let themselves be defined by opinions of others, especially when they are less supportive.

Profits
“In a good season especially for office food distribution, we make about Shs1m per month."