A passion for nutrition
University is normally a time where students survive on and indulge in fast food without considering how this impacts their health. Rowan Franciscus, who noticed during his years at the University of Cape Town (UCT) how most people neglect proper nutrition, now runs a healthy meal prep business in Windhoek...
ESTER KAMATI
After completing high school at Delta Secondary School in Windhoek, Franciscus went on to study architecture at UCT. One year after graduating with a bachelor’s degree in architecture, he started his first business selling home-cooked meals to students living in and around the same campus.
“As you could imagine, jumping straight into the food business, fresh out of an architecture degree, I made a ton of mistakes,” he says.
He gave up the business after only nine months, but he says it was a valuable learning experience which gave him the insight he needed to start over in Namibia with a “fresh plan”.
“This time, I would speci?cally target the health-focused market. This made much more sense, as health and ?tness is something that I was passionate about,” says the 24-year-old whose hobbies include working out and running.
This time, he partnered with his cousin in a venture called FoodBox and according to him, they did much better than the first attempt, “but still made a few mistakes that needed ?xing.”
Noting where they were going wrong, FoodBox closed after about one year of operation. “I had to rethink my plan… Was this business for me? Should I call it quits, and get a job in architecture?”
Third time is a charm
Five months after closing FoodBox, Franciscus gave entrepreneurship one more shot and that was the birth of Power Nutrition, which kept him up and running again, this time as the sole owner.
The company cooks and delivers healthy meals daily from Monday to Friday.
“The timing was much better, and Windhoek was ready for a meal prep business. The support and interest has been amazing over the past seven months.”
The business, which opened in 2019, is on a quest to constantly grow and improve.
“We have made the most of amazing opportunities, including providing the Namibian world cup rugby squad with meals leading up to their departure for Japan.”
Franciscus has many other plans and he says Power Nutrition is just getting started.
More about the owner
A firm believer that much more can be achieved with collaboration rather than individual efforts, Franciscus has aligned his business goals for the year with this in mind.
“Our plan for 2020 is to focus on building smart partnerships with other companies in the health and ?tness space,” he says.
People have busy schedules lately and with all the hard work they are doing, their diet is normally the trade-off, according to Franciscus.
“Our time and attention is pulled in a thousand di?erent directions. We don’t have much time to focus on good, healthy nutrition.”
Power Nutrition aims to ensure that quality nutrition is simple and convenient and its customers are happy despite being challenged with an array of easily accessible, unhealthy fast-food options.
“We try to motivate customers to opt for a healthier option. Currently, I am all about salads,” Franciscus says when asked what his favourite meal is at the moment.
“I am starting a 90-day transformation, focusing on muscle gain and fat loss. I’ll start by cutting down some of the festive weight, so the low-carb approach is key!”
Franciscus fears regret and believes that he is most likely to regret the things he didn’t do rather than the things he did. Additionally, he believes in visualising his goals.
“Any time my mind goes idle, it shifts towards where I would like to be in the future.”
Franciscus advises others to do something that inspires them.
“You are more powerful than you give yourself credit for! Stop playing small and stop waiting for the perfect time; just do it!”
Power nutrition can be contacted at +264 81 775 6180.
After completing high school at Delta Secondary School in Windhoek, Franciscus went on to study architecture at UCT. One year after graduating with a bachelor’s degree in architecture, he started his first business selling home-cooked meals to students living in and around the same campus.
“As you could imagine, jumping straight into the food business, fresh out of an architecture degree, I made a ton of mistakes,” he says.
He gave up the business after only nine months, but he says it was a valuable learning experience which gave him the insight he needed to start over in Namibia with a “fresh plan”.
“This time, I would speci?cally target the health-focused market. This made much more sense, as health and ?tness is something that I was passionate about,” says the 24-year-old whose hobbies include working out and running.
This time, he partnered with his cousin in a venture called FoodBox and according to him, they did much better than the first attempt, “but still made a few mistakes that needed ?xing.”
Noting where they were going wrong, FoodBox closed after about one year of operation. “I had to rethink my plan… Was this business for me? Should I call it quits, and get a job in architecture?”
Third time is a charm
Five months after closing FoodBox, Franciscus gave entrepreneurship one more shot and that was the birth of Power Nutrition, which kept him up and running again, this time as the sole owner.
The company cooks and delivers healthy meals daily from Monday to Friday.
“The timing was much better, and Windhoek was ready for a meal prep business. The support and interest has been amazing over the past seven months.”
The business, which opened in 2019, is on a quest to constantly grow and improve.
“We have made the most of amazing opportunities, including providing the Namibian world cup rugby squad with meals leading up to their departure for Japan.”
Franciscus has many other plans and he says Power Nutrition is just getting started.
More about the owner
A firm believer that much more can be achieved with collaboration rather than individual efforts, Franciscus has aligned his business goals for the year with this in mind.
“Our plan for 2020 is to focus on building smart partnerships with other companies in the health and ?tness space,” he says.
People have busy schedules lately and with all the hard work they are doing, their diet is normally the trade-off, according to Franciscus.
“Our time and attention is pulled in a thousand di?erent directions. We don’t have much time to focus on good, healthy nutrition.”
Power Nutrition aims to ensure that quality nutrition is simple and convenient and its customers are happy despite being challenged with an array of easily accessible, unhealthy fast-food options.
“We try to motivate customers to opt for a healthier option. Currently, I am all about salads,” Franciscus says when asked what his favourite meal is at the moment.
“I am starting a 90-day transformation, focusing on muscle gain and fat loss. I’ll start by cutting down some of the festive weight, so the low-carb approach is key!”
Franciscus fears regret and believes that he is most likely to regret the things he didn’t do rather than the things he did. Additionally, he believes in visualising his goals.
“Any time my mind goes idle, it shifts towards where I would like to be in the future.”
Franciscus advises others to do something that inspires them.
“You are more powerful than you give yourself credit for! Stop playing small and stop waiting for the perfect time; just do it!”
Power nutrition can be contacted at +264 81 775 6180.
Comments
Namibian Sun
No comments have been left on this article