Coffee is My Life.

Self-motivated, jovial and social Collins Adika is the face you meet as you walk into Café 748 on your typical day. Collins has been a barista at Café 748 for the last 2 years. He passionately prepares, decorates and serves hot and cold drinks such as coffee, tea, juices, lemonade and milkshake. Collins is the fourth born in a family of 5 siblings. He initially wanted to be a journalist when he grew up, as he really wanted to make use of his deep voice and be a news presenter in one of the leading media houses. Collins started his schooling life at Toi Primary School at Adam’s Arcade. He shares how he had to repeat class 7 due to insufficient school fees. He however never threw in the towel and due to his good primary school performance; he secured a scholarship at Life Spring Christian Academy in Langata for his high school education. After finishing high school, he immediately started making ends meet as a sales person. He later on joined the USAID College, where he studied retail and finance for 3 months. Due to his hard work, good performance, and consistency he was linked to jobs in the leading coffee shops and restaurants in the country. After a month of job hunting, he finally got his first interview as a steward. From his zeal to better himself, he used to train after his shift to be a Barista. After several months of training, he sat for an exam which he passed exemplary and was promoted to be a Barista Trainee. A year of dedication and commitment to his work saw him promoted to become the Barista in charge in another branch, where he had several staff working under him. Unfortunately, when Coronavirus hit the country, he was affected by a huge pay cut and work changes that had staff work in quarterly shifts, with some employees staying at home with no pay. To cope and get by, he resorted to starting a small business of his own, on his passion. He set up a small café where he used to cook and sell chapati, kebabs and coffee. Due to the inconsistency of going to work every quarterly, then out for another, he resorted to going back to his business full time and expanded it for another 6 months. It is at this moment that unfortunately, Collins lost his mother. He remembers how her mother stood by him when he was jobless and how her prayers strengthened him. However his passion for being a Barista came calling. His job search got him a job at a prestigious hotel in Nanyuki. One day as he was working, one of his supervisors at his previous work place, who knew his work ethic, recommended him for a job at Café 748 where he was invited for an interview as a Barista and luckily got the job. An elated Collins left Nanyuki and came back to Nairobi to be closer to his family and has been working at Café 748 ever since. Collins is currently furthering his studies as a Barista and learning Food and Beverage techniques at Utalii College and looks forward to graduating soon. He shares that some of his happiest moments in his life was when he was selected as the best Barista in a leading Coffee House in Kenya and as the 1st Runners Up, Employee of the year 2022 at Café 748. Collins says he really loves his job and feels at home. He describes the work environment at Café 748 as welcoming. He is very grateful for the opportunity he gets to interact with pilots, view aircrafts and catch a flight when working. Collins is blessed with a beautiful daughter who is his biggest motivation and his wife whom he loves a lot. He is happy to be married, which he says has shaped him into the man he is today. When Collins is free he enjoys playing football with his friends and rapping. He also enjoys going to church where he is a motivational speaker. Collins advises the youth that dreams are valid and the sky is not the limit. “Do not limit yourself. If you want something, pursue it. Everything is possible!” He also encourages people to treat others well and help when you can as you may never know what someone else is going through.