RUNDU – Three young people at Rundu ditched the excuse of being unemployed by starting a mobile carwash business venture, which is already showing plenty of promise.
However, the entreprising young men say the carwash venture is just the beginning and a fundraising endeavour for their big business idea, which is to establish a fitness and training centre. “We just wanted to generate money for the project that me and my two friends plan to start to keep the youth busy with activities that will keep them away from trouble,” says 21-year-old Wilbard Kangwiya, who owns the business together with 23-year-old Joseph Haihambo and 24-year-old Steward Somseb. Currently the three entrepreneurs operate the lucrative carwash venture with a pick-up (bakkie), which belongs to Kangwiya’s mother, and a vacuum cleaner and soap which they provide themselves. The electricity to vacuum clean vehicles is at times sourced from nearby electrified dwellings from people who are willing to assist. That is done however only in cases where the person whose car is being washed has no access to electricity. Haihambo says they are happy with washing cars anywhere, adding that they are just a phone call away.
“We only started on 20 March and we washed 50 cars in two days for the price of N$25 per car. We realised that this can be a good business, since we noticed that people in Rundu need a service of this kind because most people working people do not have time to take their cars to a carwash and so we are bringing the carwash to them. They can call us wherever they are, be it at work or home we can go there and clean their cars,” said Kangwina.
According to Somseb they are not going to stop now and intend to forge ahead with their business venture. Their main business idea – the Rundu Fitness and Training Academy, is expected to focus on sports activities such as boxing and athletics. The slogan of the three young entrepreneurs is – ‘Work with your hands, do not steal.’
By John Muyamba