George Scaria has been in the liquor business for 17 years.

The man behind Goodwill Wines & Spirits shares that the business started at a time when his life was falling apart.

George Scaria is the owner of Good will wines and spirits shops in Nakuru.

Photo credit: DILIGENCE ODONGO/MTAA WANGU

“My entrepreneurial journey began back in 2006. At the time, I was a principal at a school where I taught Economics. One afternoon, my boss told me that the directors were planning to sell the school, a move which would leave me jobless,” George reminisces.

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With the imminent danger of being left jobless and penniless constantly hovering over George’s mind, he decided to cast his net into the entrepreneurial world.

“At the time, the liquor store, located at Pinkam House, was known as Goodwill Trust Limited and the owner, Mr. Wadigo, was putting it up for sale. After consulting my wife, we decided to buy the business and rename it,” he shares.

This leap of faith birthed Good will Wines & Spirits in October 2006.

Unknown to him, the world of entrepreneurship was not going to be welcoming.

In fact, so hard was the business in the beginning, that George resumed formal employment until 2009 to finance the business after exhausting all his savings.

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“Without my wife and good friend, George Mutura, the business would not have survived that trying time. I would have been severely fatigued trying to juggle employment and entrepreneurship.”

Years later, a business that began as one store with only four employees, including him, has grown into a full blown business with over 20 employees and two more operational branches in Nakuru.

George was a principal at a school in Nakuru before opening the Good will wines and spirit business.

Photo credit: DILIGENCE ODONGO/MTAA WANGU

The staunch Catholic credits his business’ success to God, his great support system, having incentives for your employees to ensure motivation stays high and having the discipline to develop and stick to a strict daily routine.

Running a business however doesn’t come without its fair share of challenges. George says his biggest stumbling block was getting stabbed in the back by one of his employees.

“Just last year, my driver, a man I trusted a lot, stole from me leading to a loss of close to Sh 15 million. The case is currently in court,” he notes before adding, “as much as it was a hurtful experience, it was an eye-opening one, affirming my hands-on management style.”

Read: Duo Charged with Stealing Alcohol Worth Ksh 15 million To be Released with Ksh 2 million Bond

His advice to aspiring entrepreneurs, “be sure to have great relations with your suppliers and distributors by paying them on time and being honest when you can't make timely payments. This good relationship enabled me to get goods on credit during the Covid-19 period, a period when finances were really tight.”

He further asks those in the alcohol business not to fall into the temptation of selling fake products.

“Your products and services are your reputation. Once you ruin that, no amount of marketing or good public relations can change that.”

George says he is currently working on opening a new store in Pipeline which will be housed in the business’ own 7-storey plaza that is currently under construction.

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The man behind Good will wines and spirits business

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Diligence Odongo