Nywele Nyumbani cofounders, from left Mercy Kiptui the CEO, Victor Mungai the CTO, and Yvonne Elabonga. PHOTO | POOL
Three graduates have teamed up to help customers connect with hairdressers at the touch of a button.
Mercy Kiptui, Yvonne Elabonga and Victor Mungai, say they came up with the idea to address the hassle of looking for an hairstylist, especially in Nairobi.
The app is called Nywele Nyumbani app.
“I’m an avid entrepreneur keen on using technology to solve problems,” says Ms Kiptui, an electronic engineering graduate from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (Jkuat).
She says they conceived the idea in 2019, but they started implementing it last year.
“We are three co-founders of the application. Each of us took time and put in effort to bring Nywele Nyumbani to life,” Ms Kiptui says.
She says the idea was born after having a conversation around technology with a friend.“I’m the overseer of various departments. Additionally, I’m in charge of partnerships and strategy. Elabonga is the head of operations, while Mungai is in charge of technical development,” she says.
“A friend told me she was interested in solving problems using technology. We began the conversation and I floated the idea of the hairdresser app. The rest as they say is history,” Ms Kiptui says.
After downloading the app from Google Play store, you can just log in and start browsing. Users are able to see different hair styles on offer, and they then get connected with a beautician who can deliver the precise style they have chosen.
“We’ve had over 100 downloads. We get to connect clients to the best-suited service providers and earn a small fee in the process,” she says.
“Clients get to buy the services from our platform. Besides that, browsing is free and we currently offer complementary beauty consultation by our in-house team.”
She adds: “The great thing about the application is the transparency; clients are able to see the time taken to complete a look and the labour cost that will be needed to do it.”
The cost of their services starts from Sh300.
Hairdressers have their own portal, from which they are able to upload their work and styles. Ms Kiptui says their stylists go through a thorough vetting, training and onboarding process to assure standards are met.
The innovator says their platform is increasingly getting traction because of the convenience it brings.
“We offer comfort and convenience. Home services allow you to experience the little things that matter as you get pampered. You get served in an environment that is familiar to you,” explains Ms Kiptui.
Initially, they experienced some challenges.
“Initially, fitting the app and platform to suit a client was an uphill task, but with the constant cycles of iteration that we have done, following human-centred design, we have been able to create something that users really want,” she says.
“We’re basically a virtual salon and wherever you need our services, as long as we are in your region, we’ll come to you,” says Ms Kiptui, noting that most of their clients are in urban areas.
“As we grow, we intend to bring quality beauty services to rural areas. We plan to expand to the entire of Kenya and beyond. We look forward to growing in Africa in the next couple of years, as we scale to meet the beauty demands of the modern woman of today,” she adds.
peter.changtoek@gmail.com
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