Leveraging technology to build wealth

Kletos Crafts solves the problem of exploitation of artisans in Kenya. These artisans include jewelry makers, makers of ornamental objects, soap stone workers and makers of other handicrafts. They are often uneducated with little knowledge of the dynamics of marketing or international markets that’re hungry for their wares.  According to the Kenya Bureau of Statistics, such artisans account for 32% of the total working force. This handicap is exploited by middle men in the form of wholesalers or international distributors who buy their products for the minimalist of margins only to resell them at over 300% profit. This leaves the artisans living in dilapidated conditions, unable to cater for the growing needs of their families. A jewelry maker dealing with brass, for example, may get slightly less than 3 dollars a day for wares that will be sold for over 500 dollars in the international market. It is this exploitation and inequality that Kletos seeks to solve. 

Kletos solves the problem of inequality and exploitation of Kenyan artisans by bringing the local and international markets closer to them. This is done by leveraging technology through the use of social media and the web to connect customers with the communities of 2,700 artisans, thus, enabling them to earn 68% more from their wares and build wealth. Our social media platforms and websites enable the artisans to access and sell their products directly to local and international markets as well as access loans at cheaper interests to build their capital. Kletos charges a minimal service fee for every transaction made.  We go further to educate these artisans on wealth building and money management so that they can manage the extra income well. Through Kletos, over 1,500 artisans have since been able to raise their wages above the Kenyan minimum wage of 180 dollars a month. They are now also able to access decent housing and cater for the needs of their families. We have also drastically reduced crime in Kenyan slums where most of these artisans are domiciled. More youth are taking up jobs as artisans because of the opportunities conferred to them by Kletos. Theft in Kibera- Africa’s largest slum, has reduced to a record low of 20% owing to the fact that more youth are taking up jobs in the artisan industry rather than resort to crime to fend for themselves. 

The 2,700 artisans domiciled in the 10 most populated slums in Nairobi are the target population of Kletos’ services. These artisans live from hand-to-mouth because of the exploitation and inequality in payment from distributors and wholesalers who take their illiteracy for granted. The artisans normally work in groups called “Juakali” where artisans that work in common craft work together to take advantage of the economies of scale conferred by bulk purchases of raw materials. These artisans have no way to access the international markets and the large local market that’re largely controlled by monopolistic distributors and wholesalers. This drastically lowers their earning potential. Kletos will solve this inequality and exploitation by directly linking the artisans to the global and local markets, thus, enabling them earn more for their wares and build sustainable wealth for themselves.

Kletos Crafts' staff are well versed with the online marketing space. Daniel Mutula- the team lead, has a vast experience in online marketing having studied entrepreneurship and successfully run several online brands including Laikos Afrique. The team lead has also been raised in Kibera for a part of his childhood life. He is, thus, conversant with the struggles that people generally go through to fend for themselves and make a decent living. With this background, the team lead gathered a team of like- minded people with experience in online marketing and some with managerial or technical prowess to come up with Kletos Crafts. Kletos  Crafts has set up offices in the ten communities within which the 2,700 artisans all across Nairobi work on their wares. These offices have representatives that help some of these artisans access digital devices such as mobile phones at subsidized prices to enable them access our online platforms. The representatives hold workshops that train the artisans on money management and cost- effective methods of production of their wares. Artificial intelligence is also incorporated in the production of the wares to enable the products meet international standards as well as sustainability thresholds that are set by the National Environment Management Authority. The online platforms Kletos Crafts uses are run by the most adept of developers with an emphasis on simplicity. The platforms are meant to be virtual markets where one can ‘walk in’ and get their favorite wares at the most competent prices. 

Kletos has been able to build a formidable presence across the major social media platforms including our website that receives 10,000+ visits monthly. We currently run sales of 25,200 dollars monthly and have enlisted 2,700 artisans into our community of suppliers. These artisans work in groups organized within ten slums in Nairobi. The largest workshop is located in Kibera- Africa’s largest slum with artisans working in a wide array of wares. Kletos has been able to upskill 1,200 artisans by equipping them with the latest state-of-the art technology, including artificial intelligence- which enables them produce the best quality products in the most efficient of processes. 955 of these artisans have moved from their slum dwellings to more decent housings and 355 of our artisan community’s children have been able to move to private schools were they can access better education. Scaling will enable us reach 10,000 more artisans in Mombasa, Kakamega, Machakos, Kisii, Kitui, Garissa and Malindi. The same model that has transformed lives in Nairobi will be used to alleviate the poverty that is evident among the lives of the artisans in these cities and towns. 

Kletos will profit from Solve's far-reaching network of professional who can aid the company in accessing more markets internationally. We are also applying for Solve in order to access more effective and efficient technology for the production of our artisans’ wares. This application also seeks to source talent in the form of board development for Kletos. The best financial practices in managing a large multinational enterprise will also be a key ingredient to the success of the company. Kletos makes this application with these needs at the core of its scaling hurdles. 

Kletos’ innovation is in linking the suppliers to local and international markets directly. We empower our artisans to produce the best quality internationally acclaimed products in the most cost effective ways. Through our online platforms, our artisans can also directly access their customers and sell their wares at internationally competitive prices. This removes the need for exploitative middlemen in the form of wholesalers and international distributors. This model can be replicated for other groups of skilled workers who are currently being exploited by wholesalers or other third parties.

Kletos will help 2,700 artisans directly access local and international markets, thus, curbing their exploitation and giving them access to greater revenues for their skills. This number can be scaled to 10,000 other artisans in the coming years.

Since the inception of Kletos Crafts, the organization has been systematically and progressively working on the following impact goals as the bedrock and motivator of all of its activities:

1. The alleviation of poverty for our artisans - This is at the heart of Kletos. We aim at ensuring that the 2,700 artisans that we are working with all live well above the poverty line and can sustain their families with an equitable and decent income for their expertise. The following are our indicators for this particular goal:

a)The monthly income for our artisans.

b)The number of artisans migrating away from slum dwellings to more decent housing.

c)The number of artisans involved in personal projects aimed at enhancing their income and building wealth. Such include building projects, poultry farming, chicken farming, and investment into stocks and bonds.

2.  The upgrade of skill and equipment for our artisan communities – Kletos believes that it takes the best to produce the best using the best of equipment. For this reason, we have invested heavily in the upgrade of the skill- set of our artisan communities as well as investing in more modern technology that integrates artificial intelligence in the production of artifacts and jewelry. The following are indicators of this goal:

a)The number of artisans annually incorporated into our internal skill- upgrade training.

b)The number of the latest and most adept artificial intelligence technologies adopted for the most efficient production of wares- this is checked on a quarterly basis as benchmarking is done quarterly to ensure our production practices are at per with international practices.

3.  The most equitable treatment and remuneration of our staff- We believe in and love our employees. It is, therefore, our aim to develop our staff and get the best out of them. At Kletos we do things a little differently. We believe that special treatment should be given to our employees because they are special people. We have adopted quite innovative indicators to ensure that our people feel special and remain special. These are as follows:

a)The number of employees we take to international conferences and conventions on fashion and design.

b)The number of birthdays and weddings celebrated – We are always there for our employees’ birthdays and weddings.

c)Number of employees funded to further their education in universities as well as credible certification institutions.

d)The number of employees driving cars – We try our best to ensure that all our employees not only go to driving school but also own cars. We have a special loan package given to employees to buy cars at 1% interest. We have only lost one employee over the years as testament to how special our people feel.

e)The number of employees embarking on housing projects – We believe that our employees should have their own houses. We have partnered with banks and other funding organizations to ensure that all our employees have access to mortgage and loans for building purposes at a reasonably lower rate than the market standards. 

Kletos’ core technology consists of artificial intelligence, behavioural technology and the internet of things. Artificial intelligence is employed in the manufacture of our jewelry – cutting, shaping and piecing of jewelry together. Behavioral technology and internet of things is employed in the deciphering and understanding of the tastes, preferences, trends and unique characteristics of our local and international markets so that we can target them appropriately using our social media platforms. 

All the three stated technologies underlying our offerings are integrated in a mobile application and website where orders are secured, payments  processed and shipment of the jewelry and artifacts purchases are tracked until they're delivered to customers.  

Kletos also plans to include virtual reality in the future to help customers try out the jewelry in a virtual environment before making purchase decisions. 

Full time - 13

Part time - 5

10 years

Kletos Crafts believes in people and invests in people as its core asset. People are invaluable at Kletos and are prized as the organization’s most critical asset. Kenya is a country of over 43 tribes. Diversity is, thus, a key consideration in our employee sourcing. Since the 2017 post- election violence, tribal differences have been more proliferated prompting a more concise and thorough focus on the formulation of a more diverse and inclusive workforce in organizations across the country. At Kletos, we have emphasized on the diversity of our teams having at least 13 tribes represented from the 15 part time and full time employees within the organization. We also happen to have two employees drawn from outside Kenya; one from Nigeria and another from South Africa. These work with us on a part time basis introducing a wealth of experience and Pan- African expertise on jewelry and artifacts making. Inclusivity in our workspaces and organization is upheld through the reinforcement of the most adept inclusivity practices in our organizational culture. Women and men are given equal rights and treatment at Kletos. We have adopted the following goals to ensure that the organization is more diverse, equitable and inclusive:

1. The adoption of a 2/3 gender rule in our employment- We believe in women and women comprise of 70% of our staff. 

2. International standards of payment for our staff- We ensure that our staff and artisans are equitably remunerated, adopting international standards of pay for the work they do.

3. An inclusive organization where all genders, races, tribes, nationalities can thrive and succeed while contributing meaningfully to the organization- This has been achieved through the sourcing of employees from 13 tribes in Kenya and across three countries in Africa. Our organization has also adopted the best practices from the top 20 organizations in Africa to formulate and reinforce a winning culture at Kletos with the most adept inclusive, equity and diversity practices. 

Kletos does not have a central factory. Instead, we’ve empowered local artisans working in communities called Juakalis where they receive orders and can quickly fulfill them directly through the Kletos Mobile app and Website. Our entire technology team is Kenyan and everything from manufacturing to fulfillment is all accomplished through local resources. 

Our decentralized manufacturing model has made everything possible from securing an order to shipping it to the customer. When an order comes in, it goes straight to the artisan who has the skillset and resources to supply the product. For example, if the product is focused on wood craftsmanship, it will go to an artisan that specializes in handcrafting wood-based products.

Our platform retains a commission of upto 25% and gives back 75% to the local artisan

Our strategy for achieving financial sustainability hinges on our innovative supply chain innovation which uses mobile phones to connect independent artisan entrepreneurs directly to our team and global customers, allowing artisans to receive orders and payments efficiently. This approach has proven successful as we have conducted market research with over 100 local artisans and received over 1500 pre-orders across Europe, USA, China, Asia, and the Middle East.

This model provides us with an e-commerce platform that offers commission rates of up to 25% on sold products, generating substantial revenue to sustain our operations. To further optimize our sales and distribution, we have plans to integrate with e-commerce platforms such as Shopify to reduce the costs associated with selling our products in new markets.

Our revenue projections for the first six months of 2025 are promising, translating to $60,000, which will enable us to operate efficiently and expand our reach. To cut down on logistic costs and streamline our distribution process, we plan to partner with global fashion houses that will buy in bulk from artisans through our platform and become local distributors in new markets.

Some of the potential partners we are considering include FashionTIY, Inc. from the USA, Stuller, Inc. also from the USA, Lady Charm Import & Wholesale from Europe, CC Wholesale Clothing from the USA, Rhinestone Jewelry Corporation from the USA, Alamode Fashion Jewelry Wholesaler from Asia, Kerusso from the USA, Judson & Company from the USA, Robert Bartholomew from Europe, Jewelry Wholesale from Asia, TraxNYC from the USA, Cynthia Rowley, Inc. from the USA, Bullet Designs® Inc. from Europe, and Ciner Mfg. Co., Inc. from the USA.

By leveraging these strategic partnerships and our innovative supply chain model, we are confident in our ability to achieve financial sustainability and drive long-term success for our business.