She Wanted a Natural and Healthy Lifestyle

By Nilpa Shah

Posted on June 24, 2016

9 min read

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Michelle Ntalami, a young vibrant entrepreneur ventured into natural hair products in search of a healthy lifestyle seven years ago. She is the brains behind the brand name “Marini Naturals” that many African women are now opting for. Her passion for the business, her ambitious team and vibrant orange brand colour, all play a huge role in Michelle’s journey to success.

She talked to Nilpa Shah about her journey.

My name is Michelle Ntalami. I’m the last born in a family of 4 children. I love my parents deeply even though one of them is not with me anymore. I am naturally a creative and artistic person; my background is in creative design, interior design and marketing. I’ve worked for leading multinationals such as Safaricom, Coca-Cola, ScanGroup and others. I also have my own marketing and branding agency called Brandvine Group, where we do lots of creative design, branding and interiors for clients.

Marini Naturals is greatly inspired by my dad. He passed on in 2014 due to sickness. His illness made me want to live a more natural and healthy life, and in turn share this with others. When I cut my hair and went natural, there were no natural hair products in the market at the time. This got me to thinking that I could start my own product line. And I did.

A strong brand, a good presence on social media and a lot of mall activation have taken our brand to the next level. I also do a lot of PR and interviews on TV on behalf of the company.I began with my personal savings and a little help from my mother and big brother. I took everything one step at a time, e.g. I first formulated my product, then I bought my bottles, then got my labels done. The time between my first product formulation and its release was almost a year.

Capital is always the biggest challenge for any start-up. At the start it was really difficult. However, we have since managed to work this out by getting a good financial facility with one of the best SME lenders.

We are a team of 10 people. We’ve got various departments including Business Development & Strategy, Finance, Marketing & Sales, Production, Human Resources and Operations & Logistics. The senior management is comprised of myself and my two co-managers who help me manage the above departments and the staff. I love working with my team as they are young, energetic and always up for a challenge. We also have lots of good times and laughs with my team, its not all work and no play. But when its time to work…no jokes!

The fact that I steer the ship and guide the vision and direction of where I want it to go gives me a lot of satisfaction. The possibilities are endless.

To keep motivated through difficult times I have a photo of my dad and I next to my work station, as well as a sample of his business card when he was the CEO of Capital Markets Authority. Every time I am feeling low, demoralized or demotivated, I look at these two things and I know he’s secretly telling me “No time for pity at work! Go big or go home!”

The fact that you can never have everything figured out in the beginning is the biggest lesson I’ve learned. My journey has unfolded so differently from how I thought. The best thing is just to trust your gut, pray to God for guidance and START.

Getting into entrepreneurship has changed me. I am more decisive and “no-nonsense” as a person, and less tolerant to negativity. I used to have a problem saying NO to people, but I’ve come to realise that you can’t make everyone happy. These days I am very comfortable saying no.

I am also more jealous with my time. I avoid “time-wasting” activities. I have come to learn that the most precious commodity in entrepreneurship is time, not money. I’ve come to see the relationships that are meaningful and I invest more in those on a personal level. I like to keep healthy and spend quality time with my close friends and family. I am even closer to Mom who is my biggest cheerleader and also my co-director in Marini Naturals. We bounce a lot of business and personal ideas off each other. I also have a greater and deeper respect for all entrepreneurs and business moguls, both in Kenya and internationally who’ve made it. It’s not easy!

If you could go back in time, I wouldn’t change anything honestly. I do not have any regrets.

I am building my brand to be an International standard brand. Short-term, I would like it to go Africa-wide, on every black woman’s bathroom shelf, loved by all…young, old, men, women and children!

My advice to other entrepreneurs? All you need is the fire in your belly, that’s all the capital you need to start with. VISUALIZE, PRAY, GO!