“My Worst Business”: Gulf Hospital CEO Grace Wangare on Losing Up to KSh 30M in Matatu Industry

Listen to this storyAbout 3 min1×Stop ⤢ Full imageThe founder and CEO of Nairobi Outpatient Gulf Limited is Grace Wangare Muthuma Photo/Courtesy The founder and CEO of Gulf Hospital Grace Wangare Muthuma has recounted how her venture into the tumultuous matatu industry left her with losses running into tens of millions of shillings.

Speaking with host Mwetha Njoroge on Daring Achievers Network, Ms Grace reflected candidly on the costliest business error of her career—investing heavily in Kenya’s public transport sector.

When asked about the most ill-advised move she ever made in business, she answered without hesitation:

“Kuweka matatu kwa barabara… Matatu kwangu ilikua ‘no’. Hii ilinisumbua.” (Loosely translated: “Putting matatus on the road… For me, matatus were a big ‘no’. This really stressed me out.”)

Ms Wangare spread her capital across several major SACCO routes—including Lopha, MSL, Forward Sacco, and Nuclear Sacco—hoping diversification would bring stability. Instead, operational chaos, unruly crews, and high maintenance costs followed.

She recalled how debt and crew conflict drove her deeper into losses:

“Zilianza kuanguka-anguka, zingine ma-loan, zingine napata nimeparkiwa na driver na makanga kwa sababu niliwatusi jana usiku nikawaambia hawana akili. Kuja waniambie, ‘Mathee! Kuja uchukue hii, wewe ndio uko na akili, kuja uendeshe… Ahh!! That was the dumbest thing I did in my life. Over 20 or 30 million went down the drain,” she told Mwathe in a lighthearted interview.

(Loosely translated: “They started breaking down frequently, others had loans, while for others, I’d find the driver and conductor had abandoned the vehicle on the side just because I insulted them the previous night. They came and told me, ‘Lady! Come take this vehicle since you’re the smart one—come drive it yourself!’ That was the dumbest thing I did in my life; over 20 or 30 million went down the drain.”)

She added that watching matatus on the road today still leaves her bewildered:

“Mimi ninazionanga kwa barabara zikiwa mingi, nashindwa how people are managing. I couldn’t.” (I always see so many of them on the road and wonder how people manage to run them. I couldn’t.)

During the interview, Grace shared that running for public office proved equally punishing. In 2017, she contested a Member of County Assembly (MCA) seat after being urged on by locals:

“The other dumb thing was vying for an MCA position… Na watu wanakuchochea: ‘Simama, tutakupatia!’ … Na wakukuharibia jina, hata wanajua venye mwili yako imekaa kuliko venye wewe umekaa.”

After stepping back to evaluate the political landscape during the 2022 election cycle, she firmly closed that chapter:

“For politics, it doesn’t need a faint heart… I cannot go for politics again. It’s not in my agenda, it’s not in my line, it is not anything.”

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