Brian Rono, a 25 year old from Baringo is the Blaze Be Your Own Boss TV Show Season 2 winner. Brian is a potato farmer and actuary from Lembus, Baringo where he lives with his mother. Coming from a family of 8, Brain came into the competition knowing what it is like to struggle financially and experience food scarcity. His story is an inspirational one as his story is one full of struggle and strife. Brian used to go to school barefooted and would also wash latrines while wearing no shoes.
He has always wanted to be his own boss and that is why he started farming. His business involves producing potatoes in high season then selling them during the low season. He wanted to expand his business, get great business acumen and gain better interpersonal skills and that is what led him to audition for Blaze BYOB Show. The theme for the season which ran from 5th February to 15th April was GRIT. Brain Rono beat 11 other contestants in a gruelling 10-week competition. Here he stood out for his leadership skills and no-nonsense attitude.
Brian won himself a Ksh. 5 million package where 3 million will go to his personal kitty and then the remainder will be in business support from Safaricom. His plans are to invest the money into his business so that he can expand his business. This includes expanding to production and distribution of crisps locally.
Monica Nyawira, a beef farmer came in second. She is a beef farmer who buys cows during the dry season, nurses them to peak health and then resells them at a profit. She walked away with Kshs. 1 million for her business.
In third place was Daisy Wanzala from Busia, a public relations and marketing consultant. She is the founder of DW Communications, a PR and Marketing Communications Company. Her father had been fired from multiple jobs and since then she has always been afraid of employment. She won Kshs 700,000 to continue building her business.
Babra Chege, the Chia Seeds farmer who was evicted in episode 5 won the Kshs 500,000 fans choice award. This was after getting 9,090 votes out of the 32,000 votes cast through shake and vote on the MySafaricom App. The show which ran every Monday had 3 judges; Caroline Mutuko, Trushar Khetia and King Kaka.
The show is meant to give youngsters the opportunity to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams and goals. It ran for 10 weeks with contestants competing each week in various challenges with the aim of proving their grit.
BLAZE #BYOBTVShow Season 2 FINALE
Contestants for Be Your Own Boss are chosen after pitching at the Blaze Summit. Here are 5 things you can learn from The Blaze Summits
