My aunt Rahma Mukarukundo (Mama Soleil to me) has been running Bolus – a contemporary bakery in Kigali since 2012, after the passing of my uncle Omar Nzamwita. Bolus Ltd is a family run bakery that has been creating delicious breads and cakes for a number of years now. Based in Kicukiro – Kigali, the brand is revolutionising the baking industry while staying true to its origins – the love for delicious pastries. Bolus brings taste and quality to its customers through its own store, and through other grocery shops around the city of Kigali. The array of cakes and breads that are made on a daily basis are inspiring to say the least.
According to my cousin Nailla (Nana) Gasengayire, my uncle – her dad thought of the idea of starting a bakery after he couldn’t find decent pastries in Kigali. “His initial dream was to create a teaching school for pastry making and also run a cafe alongside it. The purpose for this vision was to have a school generate its own business. Unfortunately he passed away before all of that could be realised”, she tells me. To Nailla, Bolus is the last link to the relationship she had with her father, which is why she helps her mum out with the business, especially when it comes to dealing with clients and marketing. This is done in the midst of her trying to get her own business off the ground. “I admired him so much, and he is till my inspiration when it comes to doing business”, she adds. Asked how unique and different Bolus was to the many other bakeries in Kigali, Nailla says, “I would say it all comes down to product quality. We don’t compromise on taste and it also translates with relationships we have with our clients and our vendors. Since the launch of Bolus, we’ve never lost a client. And that’s something we are very proud of.”
You could easily say that a weekend in Kigali comprises of at least two dozen wedding related events. This makes the baking and catering business a lucrative market to tap into. Word of mouth is usually the ideal route to get recommendations. Priding themselves in never having lost a customer since the inception of the business, Bolus is aiming to get a good share of the lucrative wedding market too. It goes without saying that Bolus’s wedding cakes make for jaw dropping centrepieces for your big celebration, or can also be enjoyed by the slice, in the comfort of your own home.
“We are a small company and so our market share is small, but has steadily increased over the years. The bread business side of Bolus is booming, which gives us opportunity to tap into other exciting new ventures like the wedding cake market. That’s our biggest challenge at the moment, but hard work and dedication will lead us to have that slice of cake, so to speak.”
Asked where she sees the business in the next 5 years, Nailla commented, “it’s for Bolus Ltd to be the go to destination for bread, wedding cakes and also synonymous with all things pastry for all kinds of functions. Insha Allah”.
For more information and contact details, follow Bolus Ltd on Instagram.