The world is continuously becoming urbanized. Towns and municipalities, particularly in Africa, are expanding and driving the global urbanization agenda. In Kenya, towns like Eldoret are following in the footsteps of Nairobi, Mombasa, Kisumu and Nakuru which have attained the city status. The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT) also estimates that more than half of the country’s population will live in urban areas by 2030.
The growth in urbanization, coupled with the rise of the Kenyan middle class, has caused an increased demand for certain necessities and commodities from consumers. One such commodity is curtain rods, which have become a characteristic of modern houses and property in the country. Thanks to the rising Kenyan middle class, homeowners and property developers are finding the need to add the aura that comes with curtain rods.
However, most curtain rods in Kenya are imported from foreign markets, denying the local population the much-needed employment opportunities and revenue for economic development. To address this problem, Humphrey Matiru and Kenneth Karuri, two mechanical and manufacturing engineers who first met as students at the University of Nairobi (UoN), teamed up in 2014 to start Seven Twenty Holdings Ltd. Together, they have built the business from its humble beginnings of fabricating metals for beds and furniture, to specializing in curtain rods and high-quality paint. Today, Seven Twenty Holdings Ltd has two major brands, one dealing in powder-coated curtain rods and accessories (Executive Curtain Rods), and the other dealing in high-quality architectural paint (Set Paints).
To further expand the operations of Seven Twenty Holdings Ltd , Kua Ventures has invested Ksh. 7.5 million in the business to go towards automating the manufacturing processes and boost production to meet the growing demand from the Kenyan market. The investment will also help the business in the sourcing of raw materials, in addition to creating more jobs for the locals.
Photo: Seven Twenty Holdings Ltd Co-Founder Kenneth Karuri and Operations Manager Ayusa Ondieki
Kenneth Karuri, Co-Founder and CEO of Seven Twenty Holdings Ltd, said the new investment by Kua Ventures has further rubber-stamped the company’s business idea in its growth stage.
“The journey was exciting for us. We were open to having the Kua Ventures team engage us as it rubber-stamped our business idea even more. For me, continuous engagements and open communication was the best part of the process. There were multiple factory visits and discussions which affirmed the possibility of us getting the investment,” he said.
Photo: Kenneth Karuri, Co-Founder and CEO of Seven Twenty Holdings Ltd posing with the company’s finished products
With the new investment, Seven Twenty Holdings Ltd becomes the 24th Kenyan SME to join the growing Kua Ventures community, reaffirming our commitment to supporting local faith-driven businesses to realizing their growth potential and impact their communities through creation of jobs.
Learn more about Seven Twenty Holdings: www.seventwentyholdings.co.ke