So Much More Than A Great Name
Like many entrepreneurs, Coleen Davis thought very carefully about the name of her business – she specifically wanted a name that was catchy and that incorporated her own name, but not in an obvious or hackneyed way.
Thus, Keera Organics incorporates the “two Es” from her name, and even more importantly, the second part of the name – Organics – reflects the founder’s need to assure customers that even more than a great brand, they are getting a line of product, soaps specifically (for now), that will not only be safe for them to use, but deliver significant benefits by virtue of their composition.
But first, to backtrack a bit; frustrated with a long line of products and “specialists” in seeking treatment for her own sensitive skin issues, she understandably decided to come up with her own – a relatively easy proposition, given her chemistry student background while studying at UTech. Indeed science and the beauty business had been pet obsessions for her since childhood.The samples she gave to her friends as well as colleagues on campus were enthusiastically received, with requests for more, but it was her decision to enter a business model competition at the Technology Innovation Centre (TIC) at Utech that set the business more fully on its way. From there, it was on to various outlets and convincing persons to take on the products. She recounts one such trip, to a supermarket, where the manager, having been introduced to the products, taking to them almost instantly, and also becoming an ardent champion of the brand.Even so, Keera Organics had its own evolution. Davis first used palm oil, but ran into challenges in sourcing the raw material. Recommendations and research subsequently led her to turn to turmeric, and from then on the Keera brand story has been steadily building through her dogged determination, ongoing growth of knowledge and experience.
Today, in addition to the turmeric soap, the other soaps in the Keera Organics line include; Neem, African Black soap with Charcoal, Moringa, Goat Milk, Castile, Liver Spot treatment, Sour sop and a product branded Femi-Cleanse, which is billed as a treatment for Yeast Infections but also deals with stretch marks. Testimonials, both from the company’s website (keeraorganics.com) as well as direct response speaks eloquently to the efficacy of the products, with a growing number of establishments carrying the line – Public Pharmacy – Manor Centre; Hi-Lo Manor Park, the Fontana chain and Mega Mart to name a few, as well as health stores across the island. And the aforementioned website is generating purchases from as far afield as the Polynesian islands, a locale known for having its own abundance of plants to supply the organic substances.
What’s the defining strategy for success? “Keep it simple,” she says. This means an emphasis on keeping their processes integral and ensuring that their products do no harm to users. This concern extends to considering those who, like her, have sensitive skin, and helping to educate folks in taking care in the application of the products (for instance, encouraging them to not leave the soaps on for long periods of time like a face mask in order to avoid dryness)
Having over the last five years or so established a firm footing with the soaps, the principals are actively seeking to expand into lotions, shampoos and other personal care products, essentially in pursuit of the vision of becoming the next great personal care brand – and there have been quite a number of those – and armed with the progress of the last five years, they have every confidence of achieving what might seem to others a tall order.
So, as skin blemishes improve and the positive feedback pours in, Coleen Davis can look back with a sense of accomplishment, and also forward with a sense of great optimism that the young girl from Clarendon, with the tremendous interest in both personal care and chemistry can be at the helm of an elegant and effective line of soaps garnering great notices from Jamaica and overseas.