Duo designs events website
In this era where the Internet has become a basic source of information, 29-year-old William Phiri and 18-year-old John Sochera have capitalised on their skills information and communication technology (ICT) by developing a website.
After completing their tertiary education at Soche Technical College, the two residents of Ndirande in Blantyre decided to use their skills to make money and earn a living.
The two each hold a diploma in Information Technology and they are today the brains behind a website specially designed for events—Wijon. The website has upcoming events scheduled for various venues across the country.
“When we finished our diploma studies, we thought of doing something that will not only earn us money, but also enhance our knowledge and compliment what we were taught in college,” says Phiri.
The business has been up and running for six months and the two say their business has been growing over the months, owing it to their hard work despite having a low capital base.
“Running a business has helped us realise that a business can only be successful if you commit your time, attention and resources to it. Following these principals, we have managed to survive the business environment,” says Sochera.
The duo is full of praise for their new business, claiming they are able to do a number of things out of the proceeds from business.
“We have started seeing fruits of entrepreneurship and we are partly fulfilling our dream of being successful entrepreneurs.
“On top of that, bringing a new website to Malawians that is tailor-made for local events is an achievement to us. It is also pleasing to note that people, especially event organisers, have shown interest in our services and are using it,” says Sochera.
The pair, however, bemoans lack of trust in budding entrepreneurs by some potential customers, saying such tendencies are a blow to their business.
“Most customers prefer people that they already know to provide services to them. Such tendencies are a blow to budding businesses and they hinder growth,” says Phiri.
Phiri also faults poor perception of Malawians towards things related to the Internet.
“Most Malawians are aware of the existence Internet but it is just a few Malawians that have opened up to the experience. Most people are hesitant to make use of information they get or hear on the Internet, as they think online information is not credible,” he says.
Going forward, the duo say they want to explore other Internet-related businesses and reach out not only to Malawians but the international audience as well.
Phiri and Sochera encourage the youth to make use of their free time for other entrepreneurial activities that can earn them a living and keep them busy besides white collar jobs.
