By MARTIN MWITA
Growing up, Brendah Mwirichia’s dream was to become a pediatrician something she says had at that time been inspired by her doctor, whom till to date she describes as one of the best.
This would however change as she became older with her early teens being shaped by the first internet revolution that happened in the early 2000s.
“I got fascinated with everything that was happening around tech and the dot.com bubble and I decide I wanted to go a different direction,” Mwirichia recalls during an interview at her office along Muthithi Road, Westlands, Nairobi.
Born and brought up in Nairobi, Mwirichia who now prides herself as a techie witnessed first hand the birth of the internet which set the country on a path to becoming what it is today–one of Africa’s tech hubs, with Nairobi being among global centres where leading deep tech companies are developing.
Her journey into the tech world begun at the University of Nairobi, where she opted to study mathematics and specialised in operations research.
She would later pursue a Computer Science degree at the University of Sunderland, setting her ready for a deep dive into the tech world that was at the time male dominated.
She secured a job at a Kenyan-based company where she worked as a software developer, a field that very few women had ventured into at the time.The company would however go down a year later leaving her jobless.
It was at this point that she took a shot at entrepreneurship starting Peak and Dale, which is today a leading Integrated Tech, Marketing and Communications Agency which has helped build some of the most reputable and big brands in the country.
“I decided I did not want to be employed and instead let me try this thing and see if it will work,” the bubbly Mwirichia’s recalls.
Peak and Dale was born in 2009 inside her parent's house with the company starting as an IT entity offering solutions ongoing online including building websites and hosting services. Like many parents raising children during the dot.com era, her own did not under what she was doing.
“My dad was not very happy when I was going into business and I totally understand him because he had done so much. He had worked so hard to make sure we got a good education and expected that I would go get a job in a bank or some good employment somewhere,” she narrates with a smile on her face.
“My mother on the other hand was more of an entrepreneur and she just understood, offered me all the support. I started in her house then moved to Krishna Mansion, Opposite Jevanjee Garden,” she remembers.
Her first office was so small that she could not hold a meeting and would meet clients in coffee shops within Nairobi’s Central Business District.
“Of course early years it was very difficult, we started as a tech agency and it was difficult because at that time, it was a men’s field and there is this lady in a male-dominated field trying to make it work. I worked extremely hard doing everything it took to make it,” she narrates.
LOW MOMENTS
The excited founder of a start up who describes herself as a people’s person however faced one of her low moments in 2011, two years after starting, when her business almost collapsed.
“Business really went down... things were not working out and I had to let go my employees. I only remained with one or two. That was a painful moment. Some of them had families and here you are being let go from work, it was one of the lowest moment for me,” Mwirichia recollects as smile fades.
At this point, she decided to focus on offering clients value rather that compete on the lower level pricing prices, she says, a decision that saw the company expand offerings beyond technology and went into strategic marketing. This is a decision Mwirichia says she does not regret as it opened doors for bigger clients who were ready to spend, hence a turning point for the company.
Some of the big brands she closed deals with at the time were Sasisi and Tata, with one of the most successful marketing campaigns being Orchid Valley which the firm helped break into the market.
An outstanding entrepreneur and business leader in the digital, tech and marketing fields with 15 years of experience and a track record in helping businesses develope a strong footprint in the digital space, including digital strategy and brand growth, Mwirichia now leads one of the biggest agencies in Kenya.
ACQUISITION
In a strategic move that promises to reshape the African marketing landscape, Peak and Dale Group, acquired Bean Interactive, a renowned marketing powerhouse.
This newly found union of industry titans marked a pivotal moment, signalling a new era of integrated solutions and unparalleled client value, according to the young CEO.
“Peak and Dale’s deep-rooted expertise in tech and communications, coupled with Bean Interactive’s reputation for groundbreaking marketing campaigns, creates a synergy that is poised to redefine industry standards,” she noted.
The acquisition was inspired by her two-year stint at the Stanford Graduate School of Business (Stanford seed), where she did a transformation plan to grow the company and dominate the market.
One of the plans, she notes, was through acquisition.The group, which also has 78Technologies under its ambit, currently drives some of the biggest advertising, TV commercials, radio, print and digital campaigns in the country. Some of the biggest clients are in Fast-Moving Consumer Goods space, banking, insurance, government and NGOs.
Mwirichia is passionate about Africa and has a vision of driving the company to becoming a lead agency in the continent.
“We target partnerships. I want Peak and Dale to be the one giving affiliations across the African market because I believe we have the talent and expertise,” she affirmed. She is passionate about local brands which are perceived inferior.
“I want to turn that around and show people that local is actually superior because they understand the local markets and offer the right solutions,” she told the Star. Mwirichia also believes that with the right strategies, including marketing and riding on eCommerce, Kenyan companies can grow regionally and across the continent especially with the onset of the African Continental Free Trade area.
She is keen on introducing digital technology to SME’s that will help them scale and transform their businesses. “We try and infuse technology, brand strategies, marketing strategies, corporate communications and as well as going out and doing the actual marketing,” she noted.