The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
From speakers to smart watches, the company is making a mark on the consumer market
Kampala, Uganda | IAN KATUSIIME | Tucked away in the busy suburb of Ntinda are the offices of Black, a Ugandan company offering gadgets like speakers, smartwatches, headsets, chargers, cables, and even apparel all themed black. From a black gate to a black dog as one enters the premises, the seven-month-old company has built its brand and appeal around the powerful colour of Black.
“Black is aspirational, Black is bold, Black is unique. Everything about black points to what we want to do as a brand,” says Mourice Aliganyira, Head of Marketing at Black.
The Black philosophy has been the company’s penetration strategy in what is already a saturated market.
“This is a Ugandan brand, trademarked here, we pay taxes here. Our products are designed in the US but we source from different parts of the world,” Mourice tells The Independent.
“We are Uganda’s first direct to consumer audio and wearable brand,” Mourice says. He describes them as lifestyle products since they are used day to day by consumers. Black’s cutting edge products have been designed for the style conscious Uganda who wants to look chic, trendy while utilizing all that technology has to offer.
Customers place orders on the company site, the support team picks it up and a delivery is made for which payment is made through either cash, mobile money or visa payments. Like most businesses, Black relies on riders to make deliveries since the warehouse in Ntinda is the only site.
“Our unique selling point is that we offer one year warranty,” he says. Black also has a seven day return policy meaning a consumer can return a product they are dissatisfied with after seven days and get a refund.
Black’s flagship product is a smart watch named BlackFit 2 which acts as a fitness tracker priced at Shs149,000. The other flagship product is a Bluetooth speaker called BlackBassBox2 going for Shs125,000.
Mourice says they hope to start assembling products in Uganda in the near future. Black does not identify as a typical start up but envisions itself as a community where all team members, influencers and customers play a part in building the brand.
Partnerships
Black as a lifestyle brand has tapped into the vibrant social scene in Uganda to position itself in a community that has always been known as consumer-driven. The company has partnered with established brands among rugby clubs, football teams; hired influencers in the media, music industry and elsewhere.
In the sports fraternity, Black has deals with teams like Black Pirates, KCCA FC, and IMPIS, all of whom are recongisable brands in the Ugandan community.
The company’s partnership with sports clubs and popular artistes and media personalities has enabled it tap into a large segment of the Ugandan population between the ages of 21 and 45 who are avid techies but also outgoing with passion for sports and music.
Black’s visibility has been boosted by the apparel which includes T-shirts and hoodies at events like music shows, football games or outings.
But it has not been smooth sailing for the company that launched last August. “Influencers want a brand that is already known. That was hard to navigate but now we are getting a lot of people who want to work with us,” Mourice says.
The second lesson has been about the vagaries of the market. “We have also realized that we have to align with how the market is. We are more accommodative to cash on deliveries. We rely a lot on customer feedback for product improvement.”
Black has also figured out a way to work alongside competitors for the purpose of growth. The firm is also working with e-commerce partners like Jumia to scale their operations.
