At Trianum Hospitality, the women who run the front desks, manage housekeeping teams, lead restaurants, and oversee entire properties are not just professionals — they are mothers. This is the story of eight of them: their journeys through pregnancy, maternity, and the daily balancing act of raising children while building careers. It is also a story of a company that was founded with mothers in mind, and has never stopped growing that way.
Irene Kiroko
Receptionist — Elsie Ridge by Trianum
Irene Kiroko is a first-time mum to a handsome six-month-old boy. She works the reception at Elsie Ridge, one of Trianum’s managed properties, greeting guests with the same warmth she carries home every evening.
The pregnancy itself was manageable — the early mornings were the hardest part, but her team rallied around her. She was not quick to disclose, but when she finally did, her General Manager, Irene Nyanumba, was gracious and made a point of checking in on her regularly.
Her maternity leave came and went smoothly. The baby arrived a few days past the due date and required an elective surgery, but her supervisor came to the hospital to meet the newborn and offer congratulations. Recovery was tough, but her husband and parents were by her side.
Returning to work was emotionally the hardest chapter. “I would often go to the mirror in the bathroom and talk to myself, trying to reassure myself that all will be well,” she recalls, her eyes welling up. “I kept calling my mom to check on the baby every few minutes. My husband would call to check on me because he knew I was having post-baby back problems.”
One afternoon, unable to reach her nanny by phone, she left her shift at noon and took a boda boda home at full speed, heart in her throat — only to find everything was perfectly fine. It is the kind of story every new working mum knows too well.
Gathoni Wathiga
HR Manager — Trianum
Gathoni is part of Trianum’s central HR team, overseeing people operations across all seven properties. She is also a mum to a seven-year-old son.
By law, a pregnant woman is not required to disclose her pregnancy at the interview stage — a protection designed to shield mothers-to-be from discrimination. Gathoni disclosed her own pregnancy at a previous employer out of personal conviction, and still got the job. But the experience that shaped her most came after: when she returned from maternity leave, her management let her leave at 2 or 3 pm each day. That quiet act of empathy changed how she leads.
In her current role, she interviewed a pregnant candidate who was simply the best person for the job. She and the management gave her the position without hesitation, and when the time came for her leave, they gave her the full 90 days — uninterrupted.
Gathoni believes the environment at Trianum is what it is because the company is led not just by women, but by mothers. “Things surely turn around,” she says, “when mothers support and raise fellow mothers at the workplace.”
Alice Wangari
Restaurant Captain — Ulwazi Place by Trianum
As the head of the waitstaff and kitchen at Ulwazi Place, Alice describes her workplace as a genuinely supportive environment for a working mum. When her son had a full-day sports event at school, she simply informed her GM, who arranged cover for her shift. Because she had already accumulated overtime hours on public holidays, she did not need to make up the time.
On Mother’s Day, the waitresses at Ulwazi Place cut cake and receive chocolates from management — a small gesture that carries real weight. The way the team is treated, Alice says, flows directly into how joyfully they serve the mothers who come through their doors on that day.
Alice Jerotich
Housekeeping Supervisor — Cozy Residences by Trianum
Alice Jerotich is one month pregnant and quietly thrilled. The first trimester is notoriously exhausting, and her team has leaned in with warmth and patience. Her GM, Mary Njoroge, checks in with her regularly — sometimes teasing her gently about how sleepy she looks in the mornings — making the experience feel human rather than clinical.
Alice has also been on the giving end of that support. When a junior member of her team fell pregnant with twins and tragically lost one baby, the grief caused her C-section wound to reopen, requiring a much longer recovery than anticipated. Having witnessed how her own superiors responded to difficulty with empathy, Alice was able to meet this moment the same way — quietly rearranging her team’s responsibilities to ensure nothing fell through while her colleague recovered and nursed her baby.
Mother’s Day at Cozy Residences is usually marked with a team lunch or dinner, the mothers gathering together to encourage one another.
Aurelia Wambua
General Manager — Ulwazi Place by Trianum
Aurelia is a mother of twins and has been with Trianum for more than a decade. She came to the company after starting her career in a five-star hotel, taking a break to raise her newborns, and then looking carefully for a workplace that would fit her life as a mother. Trianum was the answer.
In her years of leadership, she has supported colleagues through some of the most difficult moments a working mum can face: hospital admissions for children, nanny crises that upend schedules, the invisible weight of a mother’s divided attention. She has met each situation with the understanding she herself was shown early on.
When Mother’s Day comes around, Aurelia goes all out — flowers, chocolates, cake-cutting, and on occasion, team buildings where staff are welcome to bring their children along. “It is always a day of celebration and joy,” she says, and the staff know she means it.
Irene Nyanumba
General Manager — Fedha Residences & Elsie Ridge by Trianum
Irene Nyanumba leads two properties and is a mother to a twenty-year-old daughter. When she looks at the younger women on her team, she sees her daughter’s peers — and she leads accordingly, balancing professional mentorship with genuine personal care. Her staff feel it, and they show up for it.
She was recently on a long-planned date with her daughter when a work emergency called her away. The date ended abruptly, and finding another time was not simple. It is precisely those moments, she says, that deepen her understanding of what her staff navigate every day — and why creating space for them to thrive, both at home and at work, is not a policy but a conviction.
Mary Njoroge
General Manager — Cozy Residences by Trianum
Mary is a mother of two boys and runs Cozy Residences with a combination of empathy, structure, and — notably — humour. She knows how to read a room, and her staff feel comfortable around her in a way that is rare in hospitality management.
She has seen it all: nanny crises, health emergencies, infant loss, complicated deliveries. She visits new mothers in hospital when she can. When one staff member developed serious post-delivery complications and needed an extra month of leave, Mary moved quickly — bringing in an external service provider to fill the gap without pressure on the employee to return before she was ready.
She also makes a point of ensuring that on Mother’s Day, every mother on her team receives a personal note from the company. “I know how easy it is for mums to be forgotten,” she says. “I want them to know they are seen.”
Samantha Muna
CEO & Co-Founder — Trianum Hospitality
Trianum was not built in spite of motherhood. It was built because of it.
“My two sisters and I started this company when we were all young, first-time mums,” says Samantha. “It was difficult to find a job in the hospitality industry that enabled us to be with our children to any reasonable extent. We therefore set out to start a company that would hold space for us as mothers.”
That founding intention is now embedded in the company’s ESG strategy — Environmental, Social and Governance commitments that formally recognise the welfare of mothers as a business priority. Most of Trianum’s workforce and leadership are mothers, many of them single mothers. Samantha herself is a single mother and a thriving business leader.
One story she tells with particular pride is that of Anne Jazzi, who joined Trianum as a housekeeper. Recognising that her skills were in high demand, Anne eventually launched her own housekeeping business. Today, Trianum is her longest-standing client.
“That,” says Samantha, “is exactly what we set out to do.”
