MEET MERCY KITOMARI - DAR'S ICE CREAM PRINCESS

Being the first event in Dar es Salaam, a lot of the attendees walked in uncertain of what they had signed up for. Most of them were surprised to find the speaker already at the event, interacting and connecting with those who had arrived early, embodying the spirit of what Startup Grind is about and setting the stage for a great event. “Well, at least the speaker is here,” they must have thought. 

The only daughter in her family, Mercy Kitomari is a liberal who believes in fairness and justice for all. She was named “Nenelwa” at birth which means “umesamehewa” in Kiswahili and “you are forgiven” in English. After moving to Lesotho, her mother named her “Mercy”, the closest English equivalent to her tribal name. The naming of Nelwa’s Gelato is a tribute to both her tribal culture and the great ice cream making traditions of Italy. 

Mercy has always been an entrepreneur. She recalls never being too comfortable with the idea of being employed. Once during her studies in UK, she tried being a cleaner at a hotel but ended up giving up that idea half way through the audition. Before long she found herself selling ink refills on eBay and trading in various resale products. 

At another occasion, when asked what she’d like to be doing in 5 years by a career consultant before leaving the UK, her answer was simply: “I want to have my own ice cream business!” He then tore up her CV and told her that she knew what she needed to do, she just needed to start doing it, consultation advice that had cost her quite a bit of money. 

Finally, whilst working for a bank when she came back from her pursuing her Masters, and even though some people thought it beneath her, Mercy delivered food products to fellow workers at the office to save them the hustle of going to the market – for a fee of course!

Click here to read the full article and see more pictures, courtesy of START UP GRIND.