BigFish: Meet Graduate Siblings Reaping Big From Booming Fish Business

When we visited the BigFish outlet at Thika Road’s Rosters, just behind Mountain Mall, nothing had prepared us for what we were about to encounter, an easy guy with his sisters sweating it off to run the hottest outlet in town,’the BigFish restaurant’.

we expected it to be an easy interview but Osumo Brad, the guy behind the business, was one whose attention was totally demanded by the business and we had to settle with occasionally breaking to ensure both runs efficiently, the interview and the Big Fish.

“Business is good, being this busy means your customers are loving your fish,” I say as Osumo leads us into the restaurant where we grab a seat and create conversation, he is a natural talker, no wonder he is attracting such a heavy clientele.

As we sit down at the already almost fully occupied space, I cannot help but notice the number of cars parked outside, from Mazda’s to Range Rovers, “are you always this busy?” I ask obviously surprised at the heavy turnout.

“We are now even busier on deliveries, we deliver to our customers especially in the CBD and around and the sales have really gone high, we have chosen to stick to Tilapia fish, seeing the demand,” Osumo says.

Most Parents Enrol their children to University, What do they say when they see you selling fish?

Most African parents enroll their children at university expecting them to work in executive offices with a complete suit and a twang in their English or a foreign language, what do your parents say about the business?

“I graduated from Kenyatta University with a Bachelor’s in Biochemistry, I was wrong to focus my energy in seeking employment for a year as the jobs that are there are mostly for those that ‘know people’, Osumo reveals.

“After a year of tarmacking, sending application letters, attending unfruitful interviews and thinking I was the one who was wrong hence burning the midnight oil working on my interview skills, I gave up,” Osumo says.

“I gave up on applying for jobs and attending unfruitful interviews and refocused my energy into thinking of a business instead, you see I come from Migori county and there, fish and ugali is our staple food,” Osumo tells why it was so easy for him to settle for the fish business.

Osumo had grown seeing his mother preparing fish and later in life his sisters, in fact, their firstborn Maureen had taken her love for fish from their home county Migori to the Capital city Nairobi.

Maureen, Osumo’s sister prepared fish as a side hustle and permanently worked as an ECD

During Osumo’s tarmacking days after graduating Maureen, the sister was selling fish in her free time and was soon joined by her other sister Cynthia who would request her to deep fry fish for her to deliver to her clients.

Osumo realized that if he joined his two sisters in the fish business, they could all raise better capital and grow the business and the birth of ‘Big Fish’ was realized.

Why The Name ‘BigFish’?

“The name BigFish was as formed by our sister Maureen, she dreamt of the business’s growth and thought of it as a place where she could sell big fish at an affordable price,” the Biochem graduate tells us.

“We merged our finances, Cynthia, Maureen and i and embarked on the journey of preparing for Nairobians healthy fish that only has unprocessed spices, looking back, we are all happy and proud with how the journey has brought us,” Osumo says.

Cynthia was on maternity leave at the time of the interview, is a graduate of procurement and is also currently partly pursuing her masters at Kenya Methodist University.

Cynthia has given up on seeking employment and instead runs her business including the jointly owed BigFish, making her an inspiration that indeed ends can be made to meet without having to be employed.

Osumo, on the other hand, has lost interest in employment,” given a chance, would you agree to be employed?” I ask.

“You see, being self-employed gives me my freedom, the sales, feedback drive me not a boss or board, I can be me and be accepted without having to fit in some specified character,” Osumo says adding that he currently has no interest in employment.

How Much Do You Sell Your Fish At?

“Do not be misled by the heavy machines parked outside, its the aroma that calls them in, the environment and yes, the great prices, “Osumo says bursting into a shy smile.

“Our fish ranges between 200 to 500 shillings depending on the size and is accompanied by a chunk of nicely prepared ugali, those that have tasted it know what I’m saying,” Osumo reveals adding that they only sell tilapia fish.

So Why Big Fish And Not Any Other Joint?

“We sell passion, love, respect, form how we receive our customer to what we serve our customer, “Osumo says adding that with BigFish, one is sure to get more than their monies value.

“My sister has spent her whole life preparing fish and the art by now is just perfect going by the feedback we get,” Osumo says inviting everyone else to go try it and leave their feedback.

Where Do You See BigFish In The Next Five Years?

“I look at growing our deliveries, we deep fry fish and deliver to our customers, I look at us growing that, work with uber eats, Jumia, and other agents to grow our deliveries,” Osumo says.

“We want more Kenyans to have easy access to the local fish since it has also been said to be healthy compared to the Chinese fish,” Osumo adds.

Born in a family of seven, the three siblings are running a booming fish business at Thome road which is just next to Thika Roads Mountain mall.

The three siblings who are all graduates have refused to allow the employment sector to dictate their lives and are now what is likely to be soon the biggest family fish business in town.

To contact Osumo visit his twitter handle @osumo_brad or dial 0715 148 388 for fish deliveries from BigFish.

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