xetova – is a business that was borne from the desire of Founder and Managing Director, Bramuel Mwalo, to solve a kink in the procurement process. What started out as an idea grew into a full-fledged platform employing a team of over 20 people. Bramuel, not a stranger to business having started two other companies before xetova, was gracious enough to share with us his entrepreneurial journey and the lessons he has learned along the way.
On Getting Started
For about three years, Bramuel worked in contract financing for SMEs in the procurement space in Nairobi. During this time, there were certain issues he noticed in the ecosystem. Businesses would get good but poorly structured deals because there was always a key person missing in the conversation right from the start. Because of this, the deals constantly fell through.
This got Bramuel thinking and doing a lot of research on ways to solve this problem.
“My background is heavily in research. I have written papers on various subjects, especially on entrepreneurship in Africa. The last paper I wrote that led me to this solution was the effect of a network on African entrepreneurs— examining how they can leverage on networks to access resources.”
Because of his insatiable passion for entrepreneurship, Bramuel started a number of businesses prior to xetova. The largest of these was Kountable, a global trade and technology platform he helped build. Through his work with Kountable, he continued carrying out his research on the ways entrepreneurs can leverage networks to access resources, specifically in the procurement space.
“I eventually decided to create xetova, a holistic platform where all actors are able to leverage each other’s strengths to access the kind of resources they need to achieve their business goals,” Bramuel said, “The whole network is built around procurement.”
xetova is a digital marketplace that links all the key actors in the procurement space, enabling them to achieve their business goals concerning sourcing and delivery.
xetova – meaning “the next marketplace” – is a digital marketplace that connects people in the procurement space, providing a platform where they can network and connect with each other. This ensures that businesses can reach all the necessary players needed for sourcing and delivery for any given contract and therefore close more deals and achieve their business goals. The platform was launched in the market in November 2018 but actually became visible to people in March 2019.
On His Motivation for Starting Businesses
Everyone has their own motivations for starting a business. For some it is the revenue opportunity the venture offers. For Bramuel, it is a mix of things.
“One is the fulfilment of thinking up something and then actually seeing it come together,” He said, “The other is actually solving people’s problems. To be able to meet someone with a problem and have them walk away with a solution.”
Entrepreneurship provides the possibility to sustainably solve problems. To be able to create a revenue line that can sustain that solution in the market for a long time. This is his motivation for doing anything in business.
On the Most Challenging Part the Journey
According to Bramuel, the hardest part of any great idea is starting because it requires a lot of faith that your plans will work out according to plan. He also emphasizes the challenge to mobilize the right resources needed for your business. A business started with all the necessary resources probably won’t go anywhere because you won’t be pushed to innovate ideas and solutions for it to grow. However, a business started without resources will force you to figure out an efficient way to run and deploy the business on the market. You will need to mobilize the right team to support you because businesses are successful based on teams, not on how smart you are as an entrepreneur or how innovative your idea is.
The success of a business depends on the team you mobilize, not on how smart you are as an entrepreneur or how innovative your idea is.
“It is the capabilities of the team you mobilize around your idea: how they manage risk, growth, customer experience etc. that determines how successful your business will be.”
On Successfully Launching a Business
You need to build the right team to launch a successful business. You also need to be very self-aware of your strengths, the strengths of your team, the needs of the business to achieve its objectives and the discipline required to achieve success.
Business processes remain the same, regardless of the business idea. You might invent a rocket, but you have to build a whole business organization to manage the existence of this rocket in the market. It is the same in all businesses.
“The process might change slightly depending on the type of objectives or the goals you might want to achieve. However, it is generally the same cycle – innovate, produce, test, launch, sell, make profit then start again.”
On Raising Capital
Bramuel thinks the notion to raise initial capital from “Friends, Family and Fools” isn’t always realistic in Africa because chances are, you are the bread-winner or the most successful person in your network.
“Bootstrapping is hard, but accessing capital is even harder. There are lots of pre-seed or early stage investors, even very-early stage investors. But many times they ask if you’ve made any revenue or pulled any traction. But that’s not really early stage then, is it?”
Because of this, Bramuel self-funded xetova until the point where they were earning revenue, before he could approach investors. However, businesses at this stage are usually considered too expensive for most early-stage investors. In addition, the terms offered to such an entrepreneur might not be favorable because he/she will have invested too much into the business at this point.
“For those with networks in places like San Francisco, I’ve seen a trend where a lot of start-ups include foreigners as co-founders to make it easier to fundraise there.”
However, local capital is not easy to access either. According to Bramuel, money generally has its own network. If you aren’t a part of it, then you need to familiarize yourself with who is. There’s also very little money that floats around middle income earners and younger people between the ages of 25 to 40.
Money has its own network. If you aren’t a part of it, then you need to familiarize yourself with who is.
“There needs to be more people willing to invest in alternative investment vehicles. Local money is very traditional – brick and mortar businesses, real estate, bonds etc. These investors don’t want to trust a young ambitious person with non-tangible ideas like technology.”
This might sound like a handicap for young entrepreneurs that need capital for their businesses but have limited local and international networks. However, Bramuel very sternly warns them against allowing this to be an excuse. The excuse of being young doesn’t hold in business because you made the decision to start your business after assessing the risk and possibility of being rejected.
“I don’t know where people get money from, but many have had to work for it. Everybody starts from somewhere.”
Being young is not an excuse for you to bypass the difficult learning process. He says, however, that this difficulty squeezes out innovation.
“If you can’t sell with your first story, try looking for a second and third story until you find the one that gets people to invest in you,” He said, “You have to keep going back and finding out why they aren’t investing in you and what would make them change their minds. If it’s something you can do, then do it, if it isn’t, keep looking for the person who can connect with your idea out why they aren’t investing in you and what would make them change their minds. If it’s something you can do, then do it, if it isn’t, keep looking for the person who can connect with your idea.
“Find out why Investors aren’t investing in you and what would make them change their minds. If it’s something you can do, then do it, if it isn’t, keep looking for the person who can connect with your idea.”
Fundraising ultimately comes down to building value for your business. Find people that positively contribute to your decision- making, the culture you want to build and the people you want to involve in it. In other words, look for more than capital.
“If all you are looking for is capital, then if investors aren’t buying into your idea, you will get angry with the world. Because this can take a toll on you and can mess up your confidence as an entrepreneur.”
On Building Teams
“My approach to building teams is to make the what and the why clear. The team will figure out the how.”
Bramuel believes in hiring people who are specialists in their areas of work. As the leader, it is his responsibility to give direction on where the business should go. However, the team should be the specialists on getting it there. Build a team you can trust to deliver and train them on how to get you where you need to go.
“You need people who believe in the mission and vision – not as a narrative, but have actual faith in it. They like the challenge and are invested in it. This would mean that you have multiplied yourself and your ideology in your people.”
If you don’t have a team that understands your goal, vision and mission and they are there for the pay check alone, then there will be no alignment or common direction. But if you align the team based on what they like doing, you get them to appreciate your thinking around the product, company, and what you want to achieve.
“I sell the vision from day one through the story of why we are here, what we are trying to solve and what success looks like. I then find out how the story makes the person feel,” he said. “If it isn’t making you feel like you want to act or be a part of the journey, then you probably aren’t the right fit.”
When it comes to mistakes in building teams, Bramuel says he has made a few. They once had high staff turnover mainly because some employees weren’t aligned. This happened because he hadn’t done proper due diligence.
“I also didn’t resolve issues in the team fast enough and ended up losing 4 members from a team of 11 at the time and we had to rebuild again.”
On Team Culture
“You own your process and your story. What story do you want to come out of your work?”
They form different teams depending on the goal and story they want to tell with each project. It is a very flat hierarchy organization and the most qualified person will be lead the different projects.
“Because of the stage of the company, you have to do everything.”
They are intentional about enjoying their work and constantly learning. Ultimately though, Bramuel wants to make sure everyone feels safe about their careers and growth.
On Winning Strategy
Bramuel is glad he believed in people and vice versa, right from the start.
“You shouldn’t do things alone. It doesn’t matter how complicated the idea is, try to get people to commit to support you.”
He believes in the power of Communities to mobilize resources. They are your best source of information even when carrying out due diligence on potential employees or partnerships.
“As some say, the best due diligence is from gossip in town. Even a lot of financing decisions will be partly based on what people say about you.”
Mobilize the right people, get them to buy into your vision and then allow them to walk with you.
Mobilize the right people, get them to buy into your vision and then allow them to walk with you.
“If you want to go fast, go alone, if you want to go further go together. This isn’t a cliché, it’s actually the truth. But you have to be careful about who you surround yourself with because the same people can still mess you up.”
On Lessons Learned on Entrepreneurship
People don’t tell you what entrepreneurship will cost you. It can be painful and frustrating — plagued with sleepless nights. However, according to Bramuel, the rewards make these things look petty. Hard work will put you where luck finds you.
The best advantage African entrepreneurs can have is a willingness and ability to move quickly through difficulty. As an entrepreneur, you should be able to adjust strategically based on how your product is being treated in the market or how people are reacting to it. You should be willing to take feedback and iterate. Accept failure as many times as you can and just keep moving.
“Fail, stand, keep moving. Fail, stand, keep moving. Constantly find the will to keep moving and to forgive yourself.”
“Constantly find the will to keep moving and to forgive yourself.”
On the Biggest Mistake he Made
He puts this simply. Pride.
“At no given point should you think you are self-sufficient. You are constantly learning and growing. The moment you feel self-sufficient, that’s the beginning of insufficiency. Constantly ask questions, take feedback and process what is useful.”
On Leadership
Throughout his entrepreneurial journey, Bramuel has learned that leadership means actually taking the lead and being able to get buy-in from people. It also means being able to mobilize the right solution to the problem.
“You won’t always be the smartest person or the one who has all the solutions. But are you providing an environment where solutions can arise? One where people feel safe to be their best? Where people can hold you accountable so that you can also hold others accountable? Are you providing an environment within which growth is happening?”
“You won’t always be the smartest person or the one who has all the solutions. But are you providing an environment where solutions can arise?”
Being a leader also means being willing to disappoint and to be disappointed. How quickly can you grow and help people grow from challenges? Can you get people to plan not to fail, but also be okay with failing?
When asked what his leadership influences were, Bramuel’s response surprised and pleased us at the same time.
“Optimus Prime from the Transformers. I am inspired by his ability to motivate his team to stand their ground even when it doesn’t seem possible, to figure out a way out of whatever situation they are in and to give credit to whom it’s due. I also like his dependency on the team to save his life regardless how small they are.”
On a Life Philosophy
“Take life as it comes. My goal is to have enough strength to move my current weight, enough wisdom to make my current decisions and enough resources to resource my current needs. I don’t need to know about tomorrow, all I need to know is how to deal with what I have now. Then pray that I will get enough for tomorrow and the days after that.”
Any Recommended Resources?
“I have done a lot with Strategic Coach. They have a series in their strategic leadership coaching program where they give you mental maps to deal with issues. If you want to plan, they have a tool for that. How to deal with conflict in the team. This helps with developing strategy or problem solving. They have really good resources.”
He also recommends the book Unique Ability by Catherine Nomura and Julia Waller with Shannon Waller.
“A lot of people try to do everything, but there are certain things you are good at and those are your unique signatures. Chances are what you are actually unique at is what you undermine because it happens so naturally that you don’t value it. But that’s your greatest asset!”
On what’s next for xetova
After completing their proof of concept for revenue last year, they have moved on to the actual business ie. mobilizing, fundraising and making more money. They also want to expand further in Kenya and test out the idea in about 3 or 4 other markets.
Would you do it again?
“Yeah! I’d be smarter but I would do it again.”
*Sugar, Spice and Everything Nice for Bramuel for all the wisdom shared in this article!