From Scholarship Student To Million Dollar CEO In USA

What does it mean to be successful? Do you have a picture of how a successful life looks like? If you are charting a pathway for your life, why not think about the direction of your life? What is it you have in mind for the future? You do not have to look that far into the future, but perhaps just consider two or three years ahead of you. What might that future look like for you? If you can give yourself some type of direction, then you can establish parameters for success.

Buttler’s story is one that defines success in its own unique way.  Buttler Omuchei is a Kenyan-born US citizen minting money from a truck and farm equipment business he founded in Maryland under the brand name, Bay2Bay Freight.

The CEO had been running the business for 11 years, importing farm equipment and trucks from Japan and distributing them across America.

His journey to the top, as he narrated to Daring Abroad, began with football in Kakamega.  Omuchei recalled being a young football player in Kakamega High, doubling up as a player for the Western Stima team based in the Western Kenya town.

He first went to the United States to pursue a degree in accounting at the University of District of Columbia in Washington DC. When he was enrolled, his football skills impressed the soccer coach at the institution and the university offered him a scholarship.

The scholarship, he noted, included stipends that enabled him to easily find his footing in the foreign land.

“I came to the US after applying to the University of District of Columbia and they accepted me. After my admission, I went to the soccer trials and the coach liked me.

“I was playing football for Western Stima in Kakamega back at home so when I came to the US, I automatically got a scholarship that helped sustain me during the four years in college. I was also given a stipend that helped me find my footing,” he stated.

After finishing his degree, Omuchai proceeded to pursue a Master’s degree and landed positions in some of the big companies in the US.

“I joined corporate America and started doing accounting. I became an accounting manager and a controller. I worked for some of the biggest companies in the US including Lockheed Martin for about eight years,” added Omuchei. 

The CEO then decided to quit his job in 2012 and start his own business using the experience he had gained from the different companies.

“I learnt how to manage people, how to manage finances, how to work with people, how to negotiate with clients and how to budget,” he noted.

However, he noted that running the business had not been smooth sailing explaining that he faced many challenges to satisfy his customers including maintaining drivers and making sure the deliveries got to the clients on time.

Omuchai shares his success with his community in Kakamega by sponsoring students and funding three children’s homes in the region through a local church. 

He noted that his goal was put up a computer hub in Kakamega to empower the students in technology-related studies and well as run a computer business.

Key takeaways from this story;

Success does not a have an exact definition. Success is different for everyone and it is up to you as individual to charter your own path and set goals that work for you.

STORY COURTESY OF: KENYANS.CO.KE