Step into the modern bathroom: A look at AXOR and Philippe…Nigel-born entrepreneur Zano Mnguni is expanding his 100% black-owned haircare business after striking a deal to supply selected Checkers and Checkers Hyper stores in Gauteng. In less than a year,Mnguni has been able to employ eight people and foresees more jobs being created as the business grows.
He left the corporate world in 2013 to pursue entrepreneurship and the idea to start a haircare brand came from Mnguni’s experience assisting friends who owned a salon in Duduza in Nigel, east of Johannesburg. This is where he also learnt more about the ingredients in haircare products. Initially Mnguni sold his products through social media, salons and word-of-mouth. In 2020 he sought the help of biochemists to put his products through rigorous testing – including stability, enzyme and quality testing – with a vision to approach mainstream retail.
After knocking on many doors, Mnguni signed a deal with Checkers in 2022. “I had seen an article about how they assist small businesses. I needed to get my foot in the door. Even one store would have been great. Checkers gave me more than that and accelerated our growth as a business. Now more customers have access to our products.