Interview with Vanessa Fernandes, Founder of NAYA London

We caught up with Vanessa Fernandes, founder of Naya London, to talk all things from supporting women in developing countries to the difficulty of finding good quality hair products as a black woman in the UK…
 

Tell us about NAYA London

 
NAYA London is a hair cosmetics distributor and retailer. Catering to all hair types to salons across the UK and their customers as well as to the public via our e-commerce store. At NAYA we use beauty as a medium to empower women across the world. We source and supply our clients with top quality products from across the Globe. Ensuring that only the best quality ingredients are used.

We are committed to supporting women in business and in life and our global partnerships are helping women from Ghana to the Amazon forest in Brazil and Suriname to sustain their communities and earn a living beyond aid.

As a company providing a great customer experience is at the forefront of everything we do. We are always striving to exceed expectations and to stay up to date with current market trends by looking into the industry to identify new innovative products that can help our clients achieve their desired looks and discover they are naturally beautiful.
 

How did you come up with the idea for NAYA London?

 
14 years ago as a black woman living in the UK I experienced first hand how inconvenient and difficult shopping and finding good quality hair cosmetics were. Often salons lack the right products to cater for my hair. I decided to start a company to supply salons with good quality products to cater to all hair types. With the boom of online retailing we decided to expand into online retailing.

What advice do you have for other female entrepreneurs looking to start a business?

 
Collaboration over competition. Women face a lot more obstacles when stepping into the world of business, therefore it is crucial we support and empower each other to help pave the way for the next generation of female entrepreneurs, also technology is your friend, any business wanting to scale up and become successful needs to use technology and automation to create systems to support growth.
 

What can we hope to see from NAYA London in the future?

 
We are actively working to expand the company by investing in increasing sales, our team and the brands we work with. We are constantly seeking to improve the customer experience within our platform and aim to become a sustainable and recognised name in the hair cosmetics industry.