On Thursday afternoon we set out from Ruiru to drive to Nyahururu which is a town about 3-4 hours mostly north and slightly west of Nairobi.  Google maps is notoriously wrong about everything in Kenya, so Chris requests directions from one of our drivers.  Once you leave Nairobi there are very few paved roads you can actually use to move around the country.  At each turn we stop, roll down a window and ask for the next direction. 

The landscape is breathtaking, winding, rolling hills painted with tea fields, pine forests of Aberdare National Park, mountain range in the near distance and true “free range” sheep, goats, and cows grazing along the road.  Just before entering the town of Nyahururu we cross the equator.  Nyahururu is the highest town in Kenya at 7,700ft above sea level.  This is also where most of the elite Kenyan runners train.

We’ve paid for tent space at the Laikipia Agribusiness Trade Fair which is organized by the Kenya Livestock Producers’ Association (KLPA).  On Friday, we arrive at 8:00a.m. to setup.  There are tents planted all around the circumference of the center field within the track, and two rows of tents inside.  We are nine strong with four activators, three sales reps and myself and Chris.  Everyone is pitching jikokoa and the energy is positive and strong.

In the early afternoon our celebrity spokeswoman, “Wilbroda” arrives and the tent becomes saturated with star struck fans.  Wilbroda is a character on a popular local TV show in Kenya, Papa Shirandula.  She is also a decorated actress, singer and activist for many health initiatives.  We moderate pictures, a raffle for stoves and t-shirts, and squeeze as much marketing from her as we can before her short time with us is up.  

Saturday starts in much the same way as Friday, but with less traffic and more free marketing.  Since we started giving away t-shirts, many of the key organizers are wearing them including the MC and the raffle salesman.  Most of our “customers” register their interest and information (phone numbers) with our distributors and micro finance partners, Bimas and Equity Bank.  Micro finance institutions are very popular in Kenya, allowing many people to purchase things they need with low interest and small installments.

Just before lunch, the MC calls me up to the center of the “podium”.  “The mzungu with the jikokoas.”  Mzungu is the swahili word for foreigner or white person, similar to gringo in Spanish speaking countries.  The crowd starts to gather as he makes jokes in kikuyu.  Kikuyu is the language of the largest of the 42 tribes in Kenya.  He teaches me the kikuyu greeting, which I butcher loudly on the microphone, and after confirming I am not married, he offers me up as a single mzungu who speaks kikuyu.  

All in all the fair proves to be a cultural experience.  The attendees are primarily farmers looking to improve and grow their operations.  Cost and savings continue to be our main selling points.  We estimate total traffic to be several thousand, total registrants (potential buyers) to be 300, and total direct sales to be 30 stoves.  A successful start to our Burn road show.  This fair is the first of many to come.