Davis Kawalya
Ever been perplexed by a speaking rose flower, have you searched in vain for a valentines gift for your loved one. Meet a team of Ugandans that embroil flowers, fruits and any object with words at a relatively affordable rate. Let’s meet this jolly dude trying to get everything right for a bright future, a hard worker, lover of people and very determined. He attributes the success of Speaking Roses Uganda to a great and adorable team, a lovely client base and to attending and sponsoring or co-sponsoring charity events in Uganda. Meet up with one of the brains behind Speaking Roses Uganda, Katukesige Nehemiah a student of Occupational therapy at Uganda Institution of Allied Health Management Sciences(UIAHMS) and also operations manager at Speaking Roses.
What services do you offer, most of all what services do you offer on Valentine’s Day?
We generally engrave on items such as, cups, pens, glass, metal name it. We also make customized arm bands, signage and most of all flower customising. On valentine’s day, we offer a number of packages from single flower stems to large flower bouquets, our offers range from shs.30,000 and we have no maximum price as price is often relative to what the customer wants, some bouquets come with champagne, chocolates among others. We also print on edible products like apples and oranges and they are still healthy and can be eaten. Aww, we also deliver these flowers on VD, early in the morning to people’s work places, hostels, hotel rooms
and homes. We basically offer the best VD surprise, imagine getting flowers before you are fully awake actually before 7:30am.
Why speaking roses?
(laughs) we like to think that the flower speaks as it has wordings on it, hence the name speaking roses. Plus this is our branch is simply a franchise, the main branch or headquarters are located in the state of Utah in the US.
Seeing that you are a student, who do you work as here and how did you start?
Huh, I am the operations manager under my brother Nicholas who is the Managing director. After high school in 2013, I decided to join the speaking roses team as my vacation project, that’s basically how I got in, as a lover of art, I easily understood the pith of my job here.
So, how do you balance work and school?
Man gotta eat bro, so I hustle and juggle the two, it’s all about sacrifice and hard work, since I am often busy, I dedicate my last 2 hours of the day to work and I also work on weekends when I have no tests/exams or lectures. I treasure my studies so, I create time for work and books.
Do you have a girl friend?
Yes, but I decline to say her name, you can refer to her as “Anonymous.”
Okay, then I won’t pry, so, what you going to do for “Anonymous” this VD?
That’s a tough one, because valentine’s day is my busiest day of the year, so I will be working but, I will take her to the serene cassia lodge, it has a nice lake view and quite silent, it’s lovable.
What are some of the challenges you face?
It isn’t an easy thing juggling work and school, so I really have to hustle so that I get good grades and an awesome pay cheque at the end of the day. Sometimes clients/customers tend to despise me because of my age, but I have proved all of them wrong.
It’s valentine season, any few words to the lovers out there!
Definitely! I just wish every lover a lovely VD, stay safe, don’t drink and drive, and try not to disappoint your partner. To the single folk, way to go people at least you get to celebrate every day.
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