It All Began With One Client
In 2006, Flower Bliss began with just one client in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Our client had been sourcing for flowers from Europe and was delighted to discover that beautiful, premium flowers could be sourced much closer home, from Kenya.
It seemed like a simple opportunity. Kenya was already known for producing exceptional flowers, and here was an African customer looking for exactly what we could offer.
We were entering a largely untapped market, full of possibilities but also full of barriers.
The first was language.
Communication wasn't always easy, but we found our way. A word here, a phrase there, and somehow we understood each other. We learned that a willingness to communicate can often bridge differences in language.
The much bigger challenge, however, was logistics.
The Long Journey of a Flower
At the time, Kenya Airways had an embargo affecting our shipments to the DRC.
To reach our client, we had to route the flowers through Ethiopia.
What should have been a relatively straightforward journey between two African countries became a complicated process involving a third.
Our flowers would arrive in Addis, only to remain there for days while waiting for available cargo space.
For a product as delicate and time-sensitive as fresh flowers, every additional day matters.
By the time some shipments reached our client, the quality had been compromised.
It was frustrating. We knew the quality of the flowers leaving Kenya, but we had limited control over what happened along the journey.
Still, we kept trying.
One lesson became clear: the right partnerships can achieve a great deal, even in the most challenging circumstances.
Our client believed in the opportunity, and so did we.
Then, one day, the embargo was lifted.
Suddenly, our logistics challenges involved two countries rather than three.
It wasn't perfect, but it was progress.
Every shipment brought another lesson. Every setback taught us something about resilience, relationships, quality and the realities of doing business across African borders.
Yet one challenge remained particularly difficult to understand.
The cost of shipping flowers from Kenya to the DRC was higher than sourcing them from Europe.
How could flowers grown much closer to the customer be more expensive to transport?
It was a question that would stay with us for years.
A Valentine's Day We Never Forgot
As our journey continued, another opportunity came from Sierra Leone.
A florist reached out looking for fresh flowers for Valentine's Day, one of the most important occasions in the floral calendar.
We were excited about the opportunity.
We made the necessary arrangements well in advance, carefully planning the shipment to ensure the flowers would arrive in time.
But despite our preparations, the flowers were repeatedly offloaded due to limited cargo space as priority is given to passenger baggage in most African routes.
They eventually arrived a day after Valentine's Day.
For a florist, timing is everything.
Flowers arriving on February 15 may still be beautiful, but they have missed the occasion for which they were ordered.
The experience was deeply disappointing.
It reinforced something we had already learned: producing a premium product is only one part of the promise. Getting it to the customer reliably, affordably and on time is just as important.
And sometimes, the greatest obstacles are beyond the control of the producer, supplier or customer.
These are just a few of the many experiences that have shaped our journey over the years.
Why Is Trading Within Africa So Difficult?
Nearly two decades after our first shipment, the question remains relevant.
Africa is home to exceptional products: flowers, coffee, tea, fresh produce, textiles, minerals, beauty products and countless other goods.
Many of these products are successfully exported to markets around the world.
Yet African businesses and consumers can struggle to access those same products from neighbouring or regional markets.
In some cases, it is easier to send a product thousands of kilometres overseas than to deliver it to another African country.
The issue is not simply geographical distance.
It is about connectivity, transport costs, available cargo capacity, customs procedures, infrastructure and how our markets are organized.
Africa and Europe: A Different Trading Experience
Europe has spent decades developing integrated transport networks, common trading arrangements and systems that make cross-border movement more predictable.
Within much of the European Union, businesses benefit from a common customs framework, established road and rail corridors, and extensive logistics networks.
Africa's trading environment is more fragmented.
Many African countries operate with different border procedures, documentation requirements, transport systems and market-access arrangements.
Direct transport connections are limited on numerous routes, making additional stops necessary.
Those stops introduce more handling, higher costs, longer delivery times and greater uncertainty.
For perishable products such as flowers, this can make the difference between a successful delivery and a lost commercial opportunity.
The irony is that Africa has the products, the markets and the demand. What is often missing is the efficient connection between them.
The Netherlands offers an important lesson in how infrastructure, logistics and market connectivity can transform an industry.
Although the Netherlands produces significant quantities of flowers, its position as the world's leading flower trading and export hub is built on much more than domestic production.
Through its world-renowned flower auctions, particularly Royal FloraHolland, efficient cold-chain logistics, Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport and an extensive European distribution network, the Netherlands has become a central marketplace for flowers grown across the world
What Needs to Change?
If we want Africans to enjoy more of the premium products grown and manufactured on our continent, we must make intra-African trade work better in practice.
1. Better connectivity between African countries
We need more reliable direct routes, greater cargo capacity and transport schedules that recognise the needs of time-sensitive goods.
2. Competitive and transparent freight costs
Regional shipping should be commercially viable for African businesses. Pricing structures, handling charges and limited competition should not make nearby markets unnecessarily expensive.
3. More efficient border and customs processes
Simpler documentation, coordinated clearance procedures and predictable transit times would help businesses plan with confidence.
4. Infrastructure that protects product quality
For flowers and other perishables, cold-chain facilities, appropriate storage, efficient handling and reliable delivery timelines are essential.
5. Stronger partnerships across the supply chain
Airlines, freight agents, producers, governments, distributors and customers must work together. A successful shipment depends on the entire chain, not just the quality of the product leaving the farm.
6. Turning African trade agreements into practical results
Initiatives such as the African Continental Free Trade Area offer an important opportunity. But progress must be felt by businesses through simpler processes, affordable transport and reliable access to regional markets.
The success of African trade should not be measured only by agreements signed, but also by how easily an African business can deliver its products to another African market.
Almost Twenty Years of the Same Conversation
Over the years, I have sat in many rooms where discussions have centered on doing business in Africa, by Africans, for African markets.
The conversations have been important.
The opportunities have been recognized.
The challenges have been identified repeatedly.
Yet many of the barriers we encountered in 2006 continue to affect businesses today.
For me, this is about more than the movement of flowers.
It is about the opportunities lost when an African customer cannot easily access a premium African product.
It is about small businesses whose growth is limited by logistics rather than demand.
It is about producers who can compete internationally but struggle to reach customers within their own continent.
And it is about the potential of African businesses to grow together when the right systems and partnerships are in place.
The Journey Continues
Flower Bliss began with one client, one opportunity and a belief that beautiful Kenyan flowers deserved to be enjoyed within and beyond our borders.
That journey taught us lessons we could never have learned from a business plan alone.
We learned to communicate across language barriers, navigate uncertainty, build relationships and keep going when things didn't work as expected.
Most importantly, we learned that quality matters, but so do the systems that make quality accessible.
Our vision has continued to grow, but one belief remains unchanged:
Africa should not only be a source of premium products for the rest of the world. Africans should be able to enjoy those products too.
Because when African businesses can trade more easily with one another, we create opportunities not only for individual companies, but for communities, industries and economies across the continent.
And perhaps that is one of the most important lessons from the Flower Bliss journey.