Abiuth Maronga had long dreamt of helping his primary school friends get a decent living. The actualisation of his goal seemed evasive until early 2020, when the Covid-19 pandemic hit. Locked from the world, and alone in his home in Arizona, he formed a company, Teecanva.
"The Covid-19 lockdown gave me a lot of free time. While doing my PhD research, I also started working on this dream, and I realised it was workable," he said.
Maronga is a PhD student in technology management and cybersecurity at North Central University in the US. He left Kenya for US more than a decade ago. However, most of his primary school friends are leading destitute lives, a thing that disturbs him.
"Some of those friends were so talented and skilled in the art and otherwise," he said.
"That's why I thought that Teecanva company would help them achieve their goals and lead more productive lives. As we speak, some of them have died and others are there, very poor."
Teecanva is an international fashion industry, which has integrated several software and technology ecosystems to design, print and ship clothes to various parts of the world. It's in this industry that Abiuth aims to give his friends a chance to put their skills to use and benefit. However, he is concerned about their technical training, which is the nerve centre in Teecanva.
"They are so good in designing and drawing, but only on paper. They have little to no tech know-how," Maronga said.
That notwithstanding, Maronga is determined to see his initial goal of birthing the company see light. He has plans underway of bridging the technology gap among his old-time friends.
"I am currently working with a team of brilliant minds from Kenya and abroad, and we have realised great success. Now we are planning to set up a research and innovation centre in Nairobi, where Kenyans like my friends can get training and come up with designs that will be a game-changer in the fashion industry," he said.
a good number of Kenyan youth wear T-shirts of Man-U, Arsenal and the rest, but we hardly have those of Turkana, Kisumu or Mount Kenya
MARKET DYNAMICS
Teecanva makes and sells clothes and other wears, which have a Kenyan image. Maronga said Kenya is a huge market for locally made and Kenyan-designed clothes.
"If you walk around Nairobi or elsewhere in Kenya, you will realise most people wear clothes that bear names and brands of external places or institutions," he said.
"For example, a good number of Kenyan youth wear T-shirts of Man-U, Arsenal and the rest, but we hardly have those of Turkana, Kisumu or Mount Kenya."
Currently, the team of designers and developers from Kenya is working on creating T-shirts and hoodies and bags with identities of Kenya's top tourist attraction places. Maronga said besides his company creating jobs for Kenyans, it will also promote Kenya as a tourist attraction destination.
The company carried out a pilot test from August to December 2021. During that period, Teecanva shipped products to India, Europe, Kenya and 10 states in the US.
"We realised that most youngsters here in the US are so much interested in the products, and we are planning to offer them more," he said.
The company is using the online payment model of buy now, pay later, which allows one to purchase a product without paying at once. An item purchased on Teecanva e-commerce is delivered within a week, anywhere in the world. Also, one can track their item.
In the US, Maronga is mentored by Prof Jacob Ongaki, who lectures business and finance at Colorado Mesa University. Prof Ongaki is also the founding member of the Grand Granite Sacco, a financial institution whose aim is to help the Kenyans living in the diaspora achieve their financial goals.
The professor feels that most people in Kenya are going outside the country to look for jobs while they leave many opportunities behind.
"Kenya and Africa is a ready market for so many technology-led startups," he said.
"In addition, Kenya has talented young people, who can exploit their technology expertise to create opportunities for themselves and others. Nowadays people are investing in technology businesses than in real estate because that's where the world is going."
CULTURAL EXPORT
He said Teecanva is a golden opportunity for Kenyans to enjoy their culture and also to export it to the world.
"I would say the biggest selling point of Teecanva is the customisation of its fashion brands. It also instils a sense of patriotism and national pride among Kenyans. Teecanva will also integrate both physical and online business models in Africa, as it has done here in the US," Ongaki said.
He regretted that that the love of foreign products by Kenyans has led to the growth of the second-hand products industry, such as mitumba, whose quality is always a subject of discussion.
"There are many more vibrant investment opportunities in Kenya than elsewhere, even more than in America," he said.
"It's upon the government of Kenya to remove the many bottlenecks and grey areas which hinder otherwise great businesses and startups from starting, leave alone growing."
Bitange Ndemo, a professor of entrepreneurship at the University of Nairobi, termed the birth of Teecanva "very timely and perfect".
"The company comes at a time when Covid-19 has disrupted the status quo in matters business and shopping," he said.
"Today, most people are doing their shopping online and get the items delivered to their doorstep. This model, which has been embraced by Teecanva, has proven successful already."
Ndemo added that the use of big data to narrow down to various demographics' tastes will add an air of identity and specificity to Teecanva products and its customers.
Maronga plans to present shirts to the national Kenyan leaders ahead of the official launch of its products on January 20, 2022.
