I sold our wedding gifts to start my first business

Clad in a white overall and sandals, you could easily mistake him for one of his factory workers. But Benon Lugya, 59, is no ordinary factory worker. He is the brain behind Maganjo Grain Millers, a multimillion business that could easily lead the local foods processing industry in the Great Lakes Region. Yet his beginnings are anything but grand. Trained as a Grade III teacher, he quit his job to peddle

roasted groundnuts 35 years ago. He told MICHAEL KANAABI how he transformed himself from that to what he is today

A HUMBLE START

What was the turning point in your life?
I started out as a Grade III teacher at Nakyesanja Primary School in Kawanda in the 70s. In 1977, I got married. I soon realised my teaching job was not bringing in enough money to sustain the family. That was my turning point as I decided to ‘drop the chalk’ to seek other sources of income. 

What was your first business and how did it go?
After I quit teaching, it was challenging to look after my family, yet I had no job. It so happened that I had never believed in going to shops to buy items I could make with my own hands. 

I never bought eggs because I could rear chicken. Similarly, I never bought beverages like coffee because I could roast coffee beans from my garden and grind them. 

The notion that I could use my hands inspired me to start my own business. I started roasting groundnuts and soya beans with the help of my wife and peddling them around town. I would sometimes go to places as far as Gayaza. Click here to read more