In our segment, Hustle Mtaani, Nairobi Leo sat down with Miriam Mwende, the proprietor behind Kaitú Kenya to understand the secret behind the fast growth of her business in the Kenyan market.
Kaitú Kenya deals with locally sourced and locally crafted handbags, kyondo/kiondo bags, jewellery and African-inspired t-shirts. Here is the full interview:
Describe Kaitú Kenya
“Kaitú” is a word in the Kamba dialect that means “ours”. Kaitú Kenya is a growing business enterprise dedicated to promoting everything that is truly ours, truly Kenyan.
At the moment, Kaitú is dealing in locally sourced and locally crafted handbags, kyondo/kiondo bags, jewellery, and African-inspired t-shirts.
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Miriam Mwende, the digital journalist behind Kaitú Kenya.
How did you start?
I am Miriam Mwende, a trained Public Relations officer currently working in media as a News and Politics digital journalist. I am also an entrepreneur having successfully ran a bakery business through my campus years to date.
Kaitú Kenya was born out of a deep love for authentic African designs. I am one of those people who are completely convinced that everything good comes out of Africa. I also believe in discovering, empowering, and promoting local producers.
At the beginning of 2020, I found myself in need of a laptop bag. I didn’t want the normal conventional ones because I commute and I didn’t want to become a target for thieves. When I looked at the mtumba market, the bags always had one defect or another. Looking at local tailors, the bags they produced were not hardy enough for the weight of a laptop so I decided to design a bag to suit my needs. It didn’t go well.
By July I still hadn’t found a tailor who could deliver my design but I stumbled upon a local organization that works with artisans from rural Kenya and the bags they produced were simply amazing. I injected an initial capital of Sh15,000 and that’s how I started.
What challenges have you faced?
The biggest challenge was finding a tailor. The first set of bags, though very minimal in production cost, were below the quality I wanted to be associated with my brand.
I still have these first bags in my house because I just wasn’t willing to sell them even for Sh1, I didn’t even feel like they were worth giving away.
The second challenge has been having to do everything myself. A business is demanding especially at the beginning. Managing stock, marketing, social media, customer service, logistics, bookkeeping, coming up with a strategy, and finances.
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What lessons have you learned?
A big part of success is consistency. Ensure you have a high-quality product or service, every single time.
Business owners cannot afford to be sloppy with any part of the process, from production to after-sale it has to be the same high-quality standard and for every single customer.
Every business needs partners. Engage with people within the industry you are venturing into and build a steady network. Keep your core business values with every new connection and always keep your eyes and ears open so that you learn.
Growth is up to you. Test your ideas within the market, take well-calculated risks, and keep innovating. These are the values that make a successful entrepreneur.
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What does the future hold?
The vision at Kaitú Kenya is a future where all of us wear and use locally made products. Also, to elevate the status of the local artisans.
I’m looking forward to having a Kaitú Kenya workshop and enlisting full-time, gifted Kenyan designers to produce even more beautiful accessories.
Allow me to invite all Nairobi Leo fans to follow our social media pages so that they can witness all the leaps Kaitú Kenya is making in the fashion world.
We are on Instagram and Facebook as @kaitu.kenya and on Twitter as @KaituKenya. Look out for our beautiful black and gold logo on the profile.
We are also reachable on mobile number +254757272655 or email me personally at [email protected]. Website coming soon.
