Edgar Kitur enters the cafe in Nairobi’s Riverside Square, proffers a large, warm hand and sets down his gym bag for our interview. He is from the gym, but he is also juggling work and guests at the office, a busy man. There is something grounding about his effortless energy—like if you sat next to him at brunch, you would leave with a new playlist, a restaurant recommendation and maybe an injection of energy that you didn’t know you needed.
Edgar studied at St Andrew’s Turi. At 17, he went to the University of Manchester. At 32, he was appointed the General Manager of Bolt Food Kenya.
Did going to St Andrew’s Turi give him an advantage, an edge on the ledge where he flew when others would have plummeted, I ask.
Do you think going to St Andrew’s Turi set you up to be who you are today?
I think education is essential to anybody and the foundations you get there. Also, the relationships you have in school transcend to real life. Besides, boarding schools are better than day schools because they allow you as a child to focus and finally do sports, play and watch.
Does going to Turi keep coming up in your conversations?
Not really. I think it only comes up when I mention it or someone discovers it. We have a strong alumnus, but only if I told you or you saw my bio.
What’s the one thing you took from Turi that has made you the man you are today?
Discipline and humanity. You are by yourself in boarding school, but I also went to university at quite a young age, which would have been more challenging if I went to a day school. You are surrounded by different people and cultures, so you absorb a lot.
Were these your dreams growing up?
I have bigger dreams. This is a step. Each is a building block, and sometimes you can go up the stairs, sometimes down the stairs. There is more to come.
When you get to where you are going, where will you be?
Making sure I feel comfortable in my roles in society. I want to be remembered as a top business leader who gave shareholders, my team, and myself value. But also, the good things: my team should be able to transcend above me as leader. That is the ultimate goal—to leave something that transcends you as a person.
What did you know about yourself then that has helped you now?
I have always been self-assured. Regarding my ability and confidence, I had quite senior C-level positions when I was younger in my career, and that allows me to walk in the room and be very comfortable. As a leader, I was essentially leading veterans in the British Army who were much older and more experienced than me…
You were in the British Army?
I was. I worked with people in the British Army. It’s a different type of discipline that you have to master to get the most out of different people.
How was that experience for you?
Very eye-opening. I was doing B2G—Business to Government. You are pitching to the government, inviting them to different places and showing them how you can help them in different areas. You don’t see results immediately but in two to three years.
Would you consider yourself a patient person?
I would think so [chuckles]. I am patient when I need to be and vice versa.
What’s the most powerful memory you associate with food that drives you?
That’s a great question. Memories with food are always with my family, a way to gather and discuss things at the table. When I think about food in Nairobi, it’s more about a need to eat rather than to fulfil your palate. From a sports point of view, it is eating for eating’s sake, rather than pleasure, which is quite a new one. I have boring meals; hence, when I go to dinner, I enjoy myself.
What’s your go-to signature meal?
The thing with Turi is that you learn to cook quickly. I love cooking steaks. I have learned to age my meat and know how to cleaver it up. But I also like my traditional food, which I enjoy once in a while back home.
What’s a particular flavour that takes you back home?
Mursik, sakyaat, our traditional vegetable, and brown ugali, that is a staple in our house.
Where did you grow up?
Nairobi, but I frequent Kericho quite a lot.
What comes to mind about your childhood in Kericho?
It is very beautiful. You have tea estates that are expanding, so quite big. I also grew up playing a lot of golf, so Kericho Golf Club is a place I would spend five days of the week playing golf. I have a big family—my mom has 13 siblings; my father has 10. I have so many cousins.
Did your parents continue the tradition of big families?
No. I have three sisters—two twins and a lastborn.
Are you planning for a large family?
Maybe not a large family but a family for sure haha!
Edgar Kitur, the General Manager of Bolt Food Kenya.
Photo credit: Lucy Wanjiru | Nation Media Group
What could your parents learn from you about parenting based on how they raised you?
Give your children time. You have these expectations that your child has to be this or that, but generally, they choose their path.
This is a gotcha question. You didn’t grow up in want, so where does your ambition come from?
If I am doing something, I want to be the best at it. That is one of my key virtues, and I am always chasing one thing in life—the perfection of myself, be it in career, family, or sports. The drive has always been in our family, even for my parents, because school fees for four children is not easy haha!
Who in your life do you think of when you are about to have a meal?
The first thing I do is pray [chuckles]. When I sit down, the person I am sharing my meal with is who I am thinking about. When I am by myself, I think about the work and tasks that I have for the rest of the day.
You said you grew up playing golf. What is your handicap now?
I wouldn’t say it publicly, but I think it is improving. It’s a work in progress but over time other sports have taken over.
What have your employees taught you about yourself?
I can be very direct. We are a small team of 12—comparatively to the size of the business. I try to instil as much confidence and freedom to execute because they are quite good in the background. I have a hands-off approach, I only step in when I am needed.
What do you secretly envy in others?
I would use the word “admire.” I admire people who can stay calm under pressure and when people can challenge and give feedback. It is something that progresses over time, you learn how to get and then give feedback.
What are you not willing to change even though it’s holding you back?
Okay. Good question. I wouldn’t want to change my expectations of what good looks like. You always want to raise the quality bar on everything you do, but quality can hold you back if people don’t see the same vision of quality as you do.
When you look at your life one year from now, what do you hope you will regret the least?
Relationships. I don’t want to regret not having conversations with people who I wish I had conversations with. As you grow older, you think about the memories you’ve had in life. I want to build memories with people I care about.
How do you show yourself love?
I like to read, spend time with family, cook and play sports. I am a deep Arsenal fan. You saw the game on Tuesday, right? I also like to travel a bit, for work or personal.
What is the one book that has shifted the way you think?
48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene especially when it comes to dealing with people. I also love The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli. I like strategy books, which open up my mind, apart from reading Bloomberg, Wall Street Journal, and Financial Times.
What is the one book you keep recommending to people?
For work colleagues, Deep Work by Cal Newport. In terms of new managers, Turning the Ship Around by L. David Marquet is quite a good book. And also 48 Laws of Power, which has a way of blending history, and the context of history, and the applications in your life.
What’s the one place you’ve gone to that has your heart?
Manchester because I studied there. Actually, I grew up there. I went to university at the age of 17. I had a job at Old Trafford for a week as a student. Manchester United was very good then!
What matters less than you thought it would?
What you studied in the university. What matters most is who you are now, not who you were yesterday.
What do you do in your me-time?
Overthink about tomorrow. Always thinking about the next steps, either for myself or my team.
What’s your insecurity now, as a man?
I would hate to lose my hairline haha! I am keeping guard. In my 30s, I want to be quite healthy.
When you think of the weekend, what comes to mind?
To be honest, I first look at what day Arsenal is playing. I play football sometimes on Sundays, or play paddle on one of the days. I go to see my parents and sisters or go for dinner with my partner or for a drive. Some weekends, I just want to chill with Netflix. It depends.
What’s the soundtrack of your life?
I recently got a vinyl player and took a bunch of them from my mom. I like playing The Black Album by Jay Z, but my Spotify has a lot more different music.
What do you need more of in your life?
Interesting one. I would say I need more diverse experiences. I learn from people. Meeting more people gives me an avenue to learn more. Thus, I do a lot of lunch and learn.
How has your definition of success changed over the years, if at all?
It has not. Success is how you feel when you do something from A to B and you are happy with the results. It could be in different ways: monetary or non-monetary value.
What part of your identity do you protect the most and why?
My childhood because those are memories that are quite close to me. As you grow up, it’s hard to share about the things you went through and things you experienced as a child. I also protect some of my dreams and aspirations, I don’t tell everybody what I want to be until I have done it.
What do you wish people understood about you more?
I am very self-critical. I overthink certain conversations. I think I am quite demanding of myself.
What is one question people hardly ask you but you wish they would?
To be asked what the future looks like. What are the long-term goals: personal to relationship to the organisation?
What did success not fix that you thought it would?
You think that success is about acquiring something, but there is a numbness around the acquisition. I have these and then what? You look for the next thing. Success is a never-ending story.
Who do you know that I should know?
My mom. She is quite different from me in how she answers these questions and she has the maturity of life, so she will give you a different perspective.
What would she say about you now?
She’d say she expects more [chuckles]!
What’s a question you want me to ask the next CEO?
What motivates you now, and what legacy or impact do you want to create?
