Creating a Cash Cow in Kenya: Adventures in Starting a Social Business and Living in Africa

Greatttt book! I couldn't put it down, and read the whole thing in a day.

At last - a book about social enterprise in East Africa... by someone who's actually been DOING social enterprise in East Africa. A must read for anyone involved in the sector. Great opportunity to get 'under the hood' of one of its success stories.

A great read! The book is a well-told and engaging story of the 'nitty gritty' of starting a social business in Kenya. Nat accurately and succinctly describes the ups and downs of trying to create sustainable change for smallholder farmers, and dispels many myths about social enterprise along the way. He also vividly describes life as an expat in Nairobi, which is a large part of the experience (and the most fun one as well!). I think it's a must read for any entrepreneur, social or otherwise, trying to build something new from the ground up. Well done Nat!

Disclaimer: I am a friend of Nat Robinson. I think this is the first book of the new genre about entrepreneurs who actually make an impact doing business in Kenya. So far the most similar books to this talk about how aid is broken. This one talks about entrepreneurship and even how social impact is broken. It was shocking to find out how Nat was treated by his supposedly social impact investors. I don't want to give away the suspense so I'll let you read the book and find out what I mean. The first few chapters were a bit slow, but pretty soon I couldn't put the book down on my plane ride. Some reviewers have said this book should be mandatory. I don't think it should be mandatory, but it is a fantastic story and inspiring. I don't think this book would help someone run a business in Africa any better, that can only come with personal experience. It's not prescriptive. It's descriptive. I don't think Nat left with all or any answers. It was more like there were more questions on questions upon questions.

Great Read! Are you interested in micro finance? Business? Adventure? Africa? Kenya? This book is for you! Nat successfully blends informative lessons on micro-finance/ agricultural business development with fun tales of adventures throughout Kenya and Africa. The author balances brutal honest about the challenges he faced along with a lighter sense of humor. Buy this book, you will not be disappointed.

Very funny and entertaining book about the journey of Juhudi Kilimo- from small startup, to attracting funding from big foundations like Rockefeller, Ford, Soros....and the drama and politics involved with that funding. The really funny anecdotes and side adventures as the author explores Kenya make the book interesting and tick along. And, the question about keeping the agency funded (and loans originating, and staff with jobs) keeps you wanting to turn the pages. Great book, doesn't hold back, highly recommend!

"Creating a Cash Cow in Kenya" is a fun and entertaining book for anyone that loves travel and adventure. Within the first couple of chapters, I had to put the book down multiple times just to laugh about some story he told of his first few weeks in Kenya. It is also an informative book and a "must read" for anyone moving to Kenya or starting a social enterprise. Nat is surprisingly honest when talking about the highs and lows of raising money and managing people. Finally, it is an inspirational book as Nat describes taking a dream of running a microfinance company to help poor farmers in Africa - and he does just that!