Nairobi — As the old adage goes, 'necessity is the mother of invention,' as Kombo Nyaga who hails from Embu came to resonate with even as he ventured into the business of manufacturing soap using goat milk.
His friend's child had developed Eczema, a condition that causes the skin to become dry, itchy and bumpy, weakens skin barrier function, which is responsible for helping it retain moisture and efforts to seek medication in different hospitals had proved futile as it got worse.
After doing some research, Nyaga realized that actually goat milk was the magic solution.
"This Child was really suffering, they had visited many hospitals and had cabinets full of drugs that weren't helping. We started asking ourselves what is this because the drugs are not working," he stated.
"We started doing research and realized actually Eczema is a condition that can be managed using natural products. One of the reasons why the condition exacerbates is due to chemicals."
At the initial stage, it was not a business venture, but word went out in their neighborhood that the goat milk soap was working for people with different health conditions.
It was then that he decided to take the samples of goat milk soap to different chemists and requested feedback from the customers who tried it before getting into the full gear of a business venture.
"We made a natural coconut soap which was our first natural product. We used it on the baby and it worked very well. We gave the samples to our friends and pharmacists to give to people with eczema as a case study," Nyaga stated.
Business Venture
It was then that he decided to start his own company, Katya Naturals, venturing in making goat milk not only to treat skin conditions but the organic minerals in goat milk and anti-aging elements which are good for all skins.
"We thought that we had made a soap and it has worked how about we make it better? We researched more about eczema and what really can help and that's how we realized goat milk is good as it helps remove dead skin and helps to encourage the skin to produce collagen," Nyaga narrated.
Goat milk has lactic acid which when applied on the skin helps remove dead skin cells, making the skin very smooth, and also moisturizes the skin.
Katya Naturals' business venture has helped locals rearing goats by sourcing milk from neighboring farmers in Embu County.
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"We were buying goat milk from local farmers then we realized most of the people we were buying from were mixing the soap with water. We normally source from farmers but we are very careful," Nyaga stated.
"We also have our diary goats but normally we promote farmers within our locality," he added.
Katya Naturals not only makes goat milk soap but has also ventured into other natural soaps and oil which include Neem soap, Coconut Soap, and Turmeric Soap as well as castor oil.
Access to Market
The reception in the market was fairly good at the start but it has not been devoid of challenges.
"In any Small and Medium Enterprise one of the biggest hurdles is taxes due to the license required as permits for business from the county level administration to license by KEBS and other agencies," Nyaga said.
With the first adaptation to the age of the internet, they are able to access markets locally and internationally which has enabled market penetration.
"It's very easy to reach many people through social media nowadays. We opened social media pages where we are able to advertise our products so that they can reach so many people. Our distribution channels are also robust," said Nyaga.
As it any small and medium enterprise, the lack of a good business environment which includes increased taxes and exorbitant business license have threatened to stifle the business.
Nyaga hopes to expand the business to churn more products beyond our borders.
