Agatha Nkirote is a renowned content creator and interior designer from Kenya. While she has achieved success in these fields, she has also experienced failure in the mitumba business due to inadequate research and the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a video on her YouTube channel, Nkirote revealed how she left her job to venture into the mitumba business, hoping to sell baby clothes. However, the business failed to thrive as most of the clothes in their bales were either torn or too old. Despite selling the remaining clothes and making some profit, the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic further worsened the situation. The rumor that secondhand clothes from abroad contained the virus caused people to avoid buying mitumba clothes, especially baby clothes, which affected Nkirote’s business significantly.
Nkirote’s breaking point came when the government introduced social distancing in matatus, doubling the fare. She spent an average of Sh. 800 per day but had no business as people avoided buying mitumba clothes. Within a month, she went broke and couldn’t even get fare to go to the shop. This forced her to close down the business.
Despite this setback, Nkirote has a massive following of over 10,000 followers on Instagram and over 48,000 YouTube subscribers. Her interior design and lifestyle content attract a viewership of over 3.3 million. Additionally, she is a proud mother to a beautiful daughter.
