If you own a lorry in Kenya and want to turn that parked asset into steady income, this guide lays out the best, practical money making ideas for lorry owners in Kenya.
The car business ideas below are written for Kenyan realities – city traffic, county waste rules, e-commerce growth and real buyer networks – so you can pick one or two paths and scale them.
Throughout the guide, we explore various money making ideas for lorry owners in Kenya, how to find clients, what upgrades or permits you’ll need, and the main pros and cons so you can choose what fits your lorry and budget.
Quick Summary Table – Lorry Business Ideas
| Service | Ideal clients | Startup effort / upgrades | Quick win? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moving & Relocation Services | Households, offices, estate agents | Secure straps, blankets, ramp or tail-lift, basic insurance | High (local demand every week) |
| Last-mile delivery / Retail partnerships | E-commerce marketplaces, wholesalers (Wasoko, Jumia, Sendy, retailers) | Reliable scheduling, contact with platforms, electronic proof-of-delivery (POD) | High (steady B2B volumes) |
| Furniture & Electronics Delivery | Furniture stores, appliance shops, online sellers | Tail-lift or ramp; two-person crew for heavy items; careful packaging | High (repeat orders from shops) |
| Construction material transport (haulage) | Builders, hardware stores, contractors | Heavy-duty bed, tarpaulins, securement gear, NTSA commercial licence | Medium–High (seasonal + steady projects) |
| Agro-produce transport | Farmer groups, markets, brokers | If perishable: insulated or refrigerated unit; otherwise clean bed & tarpaulins | Seasonal spikes (harvest). Contracts possible. |
| Garbage & waste collection | Estates, businesses, county governments | Permits (environmental / waste), skip or tipper configuration, PPE for crew | Medium (contracts but bureaucratic) |
| Cold-chain / Refrigerated transport | Fishers, dairy cooperatives, supermarkets | Fridge unit install, temperature monitoring, hygiene certification | High startup; high margin and growth potential. |
| Courier & parcel transport (line haul and last-mile) | Courier platforms, marketplaces, SMEs | Good tracking/POD system, flexible vehicle use, quick pickup turnaround | Fast scaling if you join a platform like Sendy / local couriers. |
| Advertising on the lorry | Brands, local businesses, agencies | Vinyl wrap or panel ads, neat branding, compliance with county sign bylaws | Very low effort; passive income stream |
Ways to Make Money with your Lorry in Kenya
Let’s now explore top money making ideas for lorry owners in Kenya and learn how to turn your idle truck into a steady income stream.
Movers & Relocation Services
Movers in Kenya are one of the simplest high-frequency uses for a lorry because households and offices always relocate.
To start, register as a credible “truck for hire in Kenya” operator on places like Facebook marketplace and WhatsApp business channels used by estate agents.
How to win work:
Form partnerships with estate agents, real estate agents, and packing businesses who can feed you clients. Renting out your lorry for movers jobs is part of the wider “rent lorry Kenya” market, and you can undercut competitors by offering better service windows (evening/weekend slots).
Pros: predictable local demand, easy to start. Cons: damage liability and physically heavy work — factor crew costs into your quotes.
Delivery for Wholesalers
The massive opportunity for many lorry owners in Kenya is last-mile delivery for ecommerce and retail supply chains.
Kenyan and pan-African players such as Wasoko (formerly Sokowatch) and marketplace logistics arms like Jumia’s logistics initiatives actively invest in last-mile networks.
They work with local warehouses and delivery partners to reach thousands of retailers and customers, which creates partner opportunities for independent lorry owners.
Signing up as a delivery partner or sub-contractor lets your lorry handle frequent, scheduled retail runs and store restocks.
How to get started
Approach local distribution managers like Wasoko and offer regular routes (for example: warehouse to their cluster of retail shops).
If you can offer reliable same-day or next-day service in a geographic pocket, your lorry will become a preferred vendor. For brand owners and wholesalers, pitch “dedicated route” contracts to guarantee weekly volume.
Pros: steady business, repeat contracts;
Cons: tight delivery windows and penalties for missed deliveries; you must be able to provide proof of deliveries and basic insurance.
Furniture Delivery
Many furniture shops in Kenya don’t have their own delivery trucks, and will often hire reliable lorries to deliveries for their customers. Furniture deliveries can earn you anywhere from Ksh.2000 to Ksh.10000 within the city and its environs.
Partner directly with furniture showrooms in your area and offer “white-glove” options (carry inside, assemble if trained).
How to win clients: create a simple service menu (flat-rate per km plus handling) and show photos of safe deliveries. Building consistent relationships with local shops will give you repeat work and referrals.
Construction Materials Transport
Supplying sand, ballast, timber, steel, cement and precast building stones to busy construction sites in Kenya is classic lorry work and is one of the most popular money making ideas for lorry owners in Kenya.
To operate legally as a commercial hauler you’ll need to ensure compliance with NTSA commercial vehicle licensing and the Traffic (Operation of Commercial Vehicles) rules; these set out requirements for vehicle roadworthiness, commercial licences and annual renewals for commercial vehicles in Kenya.
How to win clients:
Contact local contractors and hardware wholesalers and offer good daily rates or per-trip pricing. Consider time-based models (per hour at site) when traffic delays are common.
Pros: high volumes and predictable construction project schedules.
Cons: rough loading/unloading conditions, wear on suspension and tyres, and seasonal demand tied to construction booms.
Agro-produce Transport
With the booming of agribusiness in Kenya, transporting produce from rural farms to city markets has become one of the best money making ideas for lorry owners.
And the best part? Food is always in demand in the city, so with every season, lorry owners can win recurring delivery contracts.
For higher value produce (dairy, fish, cut flowers) consider investing in a refrigerated conversion or partnering with cold-chain providers.
The FAO and global cold-chain reports show that temperature-controlled logistics significantly reduce post-harvest loss and are growing investment priorities in Africa — a clue that refrigerated delivery services will command better margins.
Operational tip: build ties with farmer cooperatives and broker contracts during harvest windows. Offer consolidated pickup (smallholders to one collection point) to increase truck fill factor and profitability.
Garbage & Waste Collection
County governments in Kenya and gated estates hire private contractors to collect municipal solid waste and recyclable materials, making it one of the top money making ideas for lorry owners.
Kenya’s Sustainable Waste Management framework empowers counties to issue collection contracts and require proper disposal and licensing.
To operate in garbage collection business, register for the appropriate environmental permits, comply with waste handling rules, and be prepared for skip/tipper conversions and scheduled routes.
NEMA and the Sustainable Waste Management Act set the framework counties use when outsourcing collection services.
How to start:
Bid for small estate contracts or offer commercial waste runs to offices and hotels. Provide a clear service calendar, recycling separation options and proof of legal disposal to win bigger contracts.
Cold-chain / Refrigerated Transport
If you can afford a fridge unit, refrigerated trucking (refrigerated lorry Kenya) opens premium markets: dairy, fish, meat, high-value produce and pharmaceuticals.
The cold-chain market in Africa is expanding fast and investors are increasingly funding temperature-controlled logistics because it dramatically reduces food loss; that makes refrigerated haulage a high-growth niche.
Install a reliable refrigeration unit on your lorry, add temperature logging devices and build written hygiene and cleaning SOPs to satisfy buyers.
How to reach customers:
Contact dairy co-ops, fish processors, supermarkets and pharmaceutical distributors. Offer short-run chilled deliveries (city distribution) or longer inter-town refrigerated line-haul depending on unit range.
Pros: higher per-km rates, less competition
Cons: capital costs, energy/fuel for fridge unit and stricter hygiene/legal requirements.
Courier & Parcel Transport
Courier platforms and marketplaces need reliable line-haul and large-parcel capacity. Companies like Sendy and local courier firms frequently subcontract trucks for bulk pickups and line-haul between hubs.
Lorry owners in Kenya can sign up as B2B partners to service bulky parcel flows (furniture, appliances, palletised goods) or manage last-mile drops that require a larger vehicle.
Local courier networks already provide integration options for independent carriers to get assignments and settle payments quickly.
Operational Tips:
Implement a real-time tracking and POD system (even a simple WhatsApp photo + customer name works initially), keep standard pallets and suitable tarpaulins, and price per kilogram or per pallet for transparency.
Advertising on your Vehicle
Finally, if you’d rather not do extra trips, you can rent the side panels of your lorry to brands and local businesses.
Advertising on your car in Kenya provides passive income and can be combined with any other money making ideas for lorry owners above.
Make sure wraps comply with county sign and billboard bylaws (Nairobi and other counties have regulations on roadside advertising), and state clearly whether the advertiser gets exclusive or shared space.
Practical Compliance & Startup Checklist
| Requirement | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| NTSA commercial vehicle licence & road-worthiness checks | Legal to operate as a commercial carrier. Renew annually. |
| Insurance: goods-in-transit + third-party liability | Protects you from costly claims |
| Environmental / waste permits (if collecting waste) | Counties / NEMA require licences for waste handling. |
| Basic equipment: straps, tarps, tail-lift or ramp | Reduces damage claims and speeds loading/unloading |
| POD system (phone + photos + receipt) | Cuts disputes and speeds payments |
| Temperature logger + fridge unit (for cold chain) | Required for refrigerated deliveries and trust with buyers. |
Profit Margins and What to Expect)
Exact rates for your lorry business in Kenya depend on route, load and region. Most lorry owners in Kenya start by charging either per trip (flat rate for a standard route) or per cubic metre/kilogram for irregular cargoes.
Movers jobs and furniture deliveries usually command higher per-job margins because handling is part of the service.
Last-mile retail routes and haulage often work as daily or weekly contracts that stabilise cashflow. For refrigerated runs expect higher per-km rates due to energy and maintenance costs.
