Agnes Kitumba lost all to Covid: Now she's New York's 'Outstanding Exporter of the Year'
Agnes Netunze Kitumba, the founder and CEO of Arise Kollections.
What you need to know:
- After losing her job, Agnes Kitumba founded Arise Kollections and Koko Agri Farms, turning adversity into a thriving export business.
- Agnes rebuilt her career post-Covid-19, launching global businesses in manufacturing and agribusiness and earning international recognition for her resilience.
When the United Nations predicted in 2021 that more than 200 million people worldwide would be unemployed in the following year, that number seemed like a distant storm cloud.
For Agnes Netunze Kitumba, who had spent 13 years building a thriving business, such a forecast was perhaps more like a thunderstorm suddenly descending on the hills of Mt Kenya. The threat, however, became a stark reality.
As predicted, in 2022, Agnes became one of the many people who lost their jobs to Covid-19’s devastating impact on the global economy. In the blink of an eye, her career profile shifted from country director of Sseko Designs, an American social enterprise, to an unemployed professional, at the top of her game.
Agnes had no intention of becoming another statistic in the pandemic’s wake. She was determined to rise quickly. “The company was the largest African Growth and Opportunity Act exporter of non-agricultural products – the USAID’s Agoa success story,” she recalls.
“At its collapse, I pondered what to do; I thought of taking another senior management role, but I wasn’t content. I decided to start over again.”
She charted a new course with determination and faith as her compass, founding Arise Kollections, a manufacturing and export business dealing in leather bags, textiles and home décor items. Simultaneously, she ventured into cocoa farming and exports, launching Koko Agri Farms, a company focused on agribusiness.
Leveraging her vast expertise in international trade, manufacturing and operational strategies, Agnes transformed adversity into opportunity. Starting anew was both daunting and familiar.
“It was hard because I had ‘tasted’ success. Watching everything I had built collapse was painful. But it was easy because I was still playing within my strengths,” she reflects.
Her experience in sourcing, imports, exports, and operational strategy laid the foundation for her new ventures. In just three years, Agnes’s resilience bore fruit. Her businesses have trained 45 secondary schoolgirls through a gap-year skilling program and created 15 permanent jobs.
They’ve expanded beyond their primary US market, successfully exporting to Germany. In partnership with DHL, Arise Kollections launched an e-commerce platform, making its products more accessible globally. Her impact has not gone unnoticed. She was named the 2024 Outstanding Exporter of the Year by the National Association of Small Business International Trade Educators in New York, USA.
The road to success hasn’t been without its challenges. “High interest rates have made access to funding difficult, but we’ve chosen to grow organically,” she says.
The scarcity of skilled labour in the industry also posed a challenge, but Agnes took matters into her own hands, training women in the craft required for their unique products.
“The best entrepreneur is the one with the best team. I’ve learnt that putting employees first is key; they’re like an extended family,” she says. “We also need more faith-driven entrepreneurs in the marketplace.”
Agnes is among the women featured in the recent documentary, African Women Rising, which celebrates Kenyan and Ugandan entrepreneurs who have made significant strides in the business world.
Felix Masi, who directed and produced the documentary, describes these women as unsung heroes. “I hope the film inspires other women and demonstrates to people across the world the power of enterprising women,” he says.
mobiria@ke.nationmedia.com