When Jurie Willemse founded GroFin a decade ago, he was focused on working with small and medium companies that, as he has said, risked falling into the “m*****g middle” – too big for micro-finance but still too risky for traditional financiers. Whether either ambitious start-ups or growing businesses of between 10 and 50 employees, they were concerns that would benefit from investments usually not larger than half a million US dollars.
In an entrepreneurial career spanning a quarter of a century, Mr Willemse developed an ability to see what others miss, and GroFin stands out as proof of that. By focusing on finance opportunities other entities overlooked, the company raised more than Sh36 billion.
Mr Willemse, meanwhile, has emerged as a leading expert when it comes to financing small- and medium-sized businesses, sharing his experiences with a host of organisations including the World Bank, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation, the African Development Bank, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
U.K. billionaire innovator Richard Branson praised the model he (Willemse) developed for GroFin in his book, Screw Business as Normal.
“It’s wonderful to look back at the successes of GroFin over the last 10 years, but we can’t lose focus of what got us this far,” Mr Willemse said. “We have to continue making smart decisions at the right time.”
That has often meant focusing on Kenya, a central and increasingly important part of GroFin’s strategy. In Kenya, the company has investments in an array of local business including the Electro Watts utility; Autofine motor maintenance and repair company; custom furniture maker Mambo Interiors; Palmy Enterprises, a manufacturer of toilet paper and hygiene products; a renal dialysis center and health care consultants Mediplan; the Neo Amadiva hair and beauty franchise, and even the Nairobi International School, where an investment five years ago helped the institution become one of the top international schools in Africa.
“GroFin has made many good investments in Kenya so far, but the territory still offers so many promising opportunities,” said Mr Rishi Kubchandani, manager of the development fund for GroFin in Kenya. “We’re very bullish about the future in Kenya, and the role GroFin will play in its development.”
GroFin’s philosophy goes beyond simply identifying promising investment targets, according to Mr Kubchandani. He said businesses that catch GroFin’s eye often benefit from advice on growth strategies and the financial options available to them, as well as specific information that comes from a familiarity with the local market.
“We try to offer tailor-made solutions to a company’s needs,” Mr Kubchandani said. “We’ve invested in more than 50 entrepreneur-led businesses in Kenya so far, sustaining at least 1,099 jobs, with many businesses run by women or true startups that could not access finance through traditional channels.”
GroFin has adapted its strategies to a dozen markets in Africa and the Middle East, sustaining more than 17,000 jobs to date through 500 investments. The company supports developing economies and has attracted accolades from sources as diverse as the United Nations Development Programme, which recognised GroFin for its promotion of the Millennium Development Goals, to small business owners who recognise its role in the development of their companies.
“The biggest satisfaction for us is to help concerns that would not have had a chance without it,” said Mr Walter Ogwal, GroFin’s investment director for the East Africa region. “This part of the world has a unique set of challenges and it requires the kind of custom solutions GroFin provides.”
