Backwards integration

I was on an illegal stream watching football one day, it was an American channel. I noticed an immense flurry of ads for medicine. The side effects mentioned for them were also horrific for most of them. Taking those drugs is honestly a very serious gamble. But I figured it obviously was some sort of regulation for medical advertisements to disclose their ‘miracle drug’s’ side effects. I also figured it must have been as a lesson from a miracle drug that absolutely wrecked the public one time. Enter Arthur Sackler, the son of a grocer from New York. His father placed a huge emphasis on education and Arthur responded duly by studying hard and going to Medical school. There, in addition to studies he embarked on an editorial role in the Journal of the Medical Association.

Arthur Sackler founded Creedmore Institute of Physio-biological studies. Here he conducted research on psychology. He obviously learned very much from this role, seeing as he embarked on a rather successful weekly medical publication, The Medical Tribune. It  was recommended to physicians  and had 1 million readers in 20 countries. Arthur had served on the board of directors of an advertising agency and with this knowledge and experience he helped  Valium and librium the first drug to generate 100 million dollars in the 1960s. Arthur and his brothers also purchased a small medical patent company called Purdue Fredrick which was a medical marketing company. Arthur Sackler died in 1987  but his philosophy lived on with Richard, his brothers who own the patent for Oxycontin and Ms Contin which has made 35 billion since its release in 1996 and it generated 2 billion in 2004 at its peak.

Oxycontin began being overprescribed and in the late 90s and between 1999 and 2010 opioid deaths quadrupled. It was marketed as having a 1% chance of addiction at launch. Within four weeks of a longtime prescription you become physically addicted. Opioid withdrawals can cause cramps, diahrrea,vomiting, cold flashes… I’m sure you see where I’m getting with this. Oxycontin is also a gateway drug for Heroin and Fentanyl which at the peak of its crisis in August 2023 killed nearly 115,000 people. The Sackler family and their company had to pay 7.4 billion dollars and dissolve (their company). There’s a few lessons to be learned here: Always integrate backwards- Arthur began by writing medical journals, went on to own a hospital (  Creedmoor Psychiatric Center ) which later helped his family create a wonder drug. The bigger your stake in the supply chain the bigger the rewards are

The Young Entrepreneur's Genesis

 As of March 2026 Kenya's unemployment rate was recorded at 5.45% compared to 2.76% a decade ago. I find this number quite non-threatening especially in the grand scheme of things. It probably means a huge proportion of the population is working, correct? Well, technically it does but I'll paraphrase the author of 'Diary of An Economic Hitman.', numbers can make anything look good and numbers are surprisingly easy to cook up. Even so, there are still some not so nice numbers I came across while doing my research for this article, 67% of youth are currently unemployed. That's six in ten people aged between 18 and 35 that have no formal job. The informal sector is Kenya's biggest employer, absorbing about 83% of the current work force and serves as a primary means of earning for majority of Kenyans. This presents a problem to both the Kenyan Government and its citizens as the former is unable to broaden its tax base and the latter is subjected to sub-standard pay and working conditions. This disparity in income is reflected across most third world economies as the gap between the working class and the owning class.

The wealth gap, to most Kenyan youth, can now only be successfully breached by creativity and entrepreneurship. There is however an obstacle preventing most youth from becoming entrepreneurs and expressing their creativity, Initial Capital costs. That's the catch, you have to work to get capital unless you are able to access it through credit. Third party lenders have however pounced on the need for quick accessible credit loans and due to the deregulation have made a a killing with exploitive interest rates and contract terms. Employment is the route most people find feasible but in my personal opinion; there's a consumer trap we often  do not see when doing our math with the paycheck. First of all there's Caesar's 25-32% depending on your paygrade which can soar to nearly 40% with the new SHIF and other deductions. All this without VAT, transport costs, rent costs and personal saving requirements. Not to mention the personal expenses required when existing and fitting into the 'New Age Nairobi'. The 8-5 work week is also structured in a way that makes it very difficult to refine and gain vocational and financial skills necessary to start and maintain a business.

The solution? First, fierce belief in personal capabilities. Most young people are of the belief that they have no space in the 21st century's global market. It's easy to think so when you see how much wealth and resources Mega-Corporations and Oligarchies swallow up. I however find it a little absurd that you would be challenging a global financial power with your first business endeavor, in a third-world country. We have a tendency to try and be like the outliers, the Mark Zuckerbergs and Elon Musks, instead of the statistical norms like somebody who has put 2 children through college with a hardware or grocery shop. We have been deluded for years by the corporate ladder. Everybody in an entry level position dreams of upscaling to the CEO's office with dedication and industriousness. A valid dream but often we ignore variables right in front of us like corruption and fickle human relationships. I am not against anybody whose bets are hedged on the ladder, I am in fact trying to get in a similar position, but also there's a trade off I hope you acknowledge. If you place your belief in yourself and your business entity you could also win big or more realistically, make a comfortable living out of it.

There's a very competitive nature inculcated in us from a young age through an unspoken meritocracy. We're taught to compete amongst ourselves more than we're taught how to collaborate. Unity is by far the biggest strength of any pioneering venture. You do not need the most competent team, you need a team with a common goal and understanding of their roles. That's all it takes to get off the ground. Instead of trying to outshine our compatriots and take their spot we should be empowering each other to create more spots for even more people, that is how greatness is nurtured. This is easier said than done, human relationships especially in money-making ventures can be murky. Look all around you though, the top-dogs all collaborate to sell us the illusion of option and influence markets so it seems to be a worthy payoff to make a relationship work for the business.