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Kenyan Startup, Uncover Skincare Launches “One Stop Shop”

May 1, 2021

Kenyan based startup; Uncover Skincare has launched a “one stop shop for skincare” in Nairobi, Kenya. The cosmetics startup was founded by Catherine Lee and Sneha Mehta as part of the Nairobi-based Antler accelerator which later funded Uncover Skincare with 100,000 investment. The startup educates its users by providing users with a skin quiz and videos to solve what appears to be the biggest challenge in the skincare world.

According to Sneha Mehta the co-founder, “Catherine and I bonded over our passion to empower women with confidence and we are starting with solving a problem in skincare,” adding that skincare is difficult in Kenya and other African continents thus users or consumers are limited by challenges of information constraints.

Uncover Skincare also creates its own line of products in collaboration with a top Korean Original Design Manufacturer to sell skincare products via its B2B collaborators and e-commerce website. Metha also noted that their approach is data-driven and a survey was launched with up to 1,000 respondents.

This survey according to the founders is the largest skincare study carried out in the region. She noted that the startup’s product is a direct response to consumers’ challenges in the skincare industry. The startup has onboarded some retailers to sell its products. With an initial focus on Kenya, Uncover skincare plans expansion into the rest of East Africa and other parts of the continent after 2021.

Uncover skincare targets “anyone who cleanses their face”, with specific 4.2 million Kenyan females within the ages of 15 to 44. Metha however, confirmed that the startup initially had a marketing focus on 25 to 34 years, Kenyan women. The skincare market value across Kenya, Nigeria, Africa, Uganda and Tanzania amounts to $2.9 billion. From this figure, Kenya alone amounts to $250 million.

“The Kenyan skincare market is growing at 100 percent. Kenya’s largest e-commerce site, Jumia, saw 400 percent growth in skincare between 2018 and 19.” Metha concluded.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Kenyan Startup, Uncover Skincare Launches “One Stop Shop for Skincare”

January 10, 2021

Uncover Skincare, the Kenyan startup which was discovered during the Antler’s Nairobi incubator, has launched what it says is a “one stop shop for skincare”, availing knowledge and products from Korea to revolutionise the skincare experience in Africa. Uncover Skincare was founded by Sneha Mehta and Catherine Lee after they took part in the Nairobi-based Antler accelerator, which also subsequently provided the startup with a US$100,000 investment.

Speaking about the new launching, Sneha Mehta said that “Catherine and I bonded over our passion to empower women with confidence and we are starting with solving a problem in skincare.” The Uncover Skincare platform educates consumers by providing a skin quiz and short “skintertainment” videos to solve what it believes is the biggest customer pain point in the past few regions for skincare – knowledge.

“Skincare is hard in Kenya, and beyond. Consumers are constrained by hard-to-find information and limited products,” said Mehta. The startup is also developing its own line of products in partnership with top Korean ODMs to sell skincare products through its Uncover’s e-commerce website and B2B partnerships.

“Our approach is data-driven and we launched a survey earlier this year and received nearly 1,000 respondents, making it probably the largest skincare survey in the region. Our products are directly responding to the pain points of the consumer to provide a solution that is catered to the local market,” Mehta said.

Uncover has signed on a number of retailers to sell its products, and have secured a number of B2B partnerships. The startup’s initial focus is on Kenya, but it will expand after 2021 into East Africa and the rest of the continent. Mehta said its target customer is “anyone who cleanses their face”.

“Our primary target is 4.2 million urban Kenyan women between the ages of 15 and 44, with marketing focused on 25-34 year olds initially,” she said.

“The total addressable market is US$2.9 billion in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, South Africa and Nigeria alone, out of which our immediate market of Kenya is US$250 million. The Kenyan skincare market is growing at 100 per cent. Kenya’s largest e-commerce site, Jumia, saw 400 per cent growth in skincare between 2018 and 19.”