This archive report was first published on 10 July 2020.
Media personality Betty Kyalo has made a bold move by relaunching her spa, Flair by Betty, in a new location at Rose Avenue, George Padmore Junction. The move comes after her departure from TV and in the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to Betty, she had been looking for a new location for her salon and spa, which she set up in 2018. She wanted a place with a home setting, a playground for kids, and no parking struggles. In February this year, she spotted the perfect place, a standalone house, but there were five others contesting for it.
Thanks to her good chemistry with the landlord, she was put on top of the list. The landlord agreed to give her a two weeks' window to look for the rent deposit. Betty enlisted her mother's help to raise the rent deposit, saying, 'One thing that running a business has taught me is that there's no shame in asking for assistance.'
Flair by Betty offers services such as hairdressing, barbering, pedicure, manicure, facials, and waxing. The salon has a unique feature, a children's play area with wall art, private rooms for women and men, and a normal polish manicure for Sh1,000 and gel manicure for Sh3,000.
For many years, Betty was a media personality with a huge social media following and was a news anchor at a local TV station. She resigned from her job, saying the environment was not right for her to thrive. She now spends most of her time at the salon, engaging with her clients and staff.
Betty's love with beauty goes way back, and she has been in the industry since 2016, when she entered a partnership to set up Posh Palace. However, she went solo in 2018 by setting up Flair by Betty, saying, 'Flair means elegance.'
She is quick to mention that her business would not be a reality today if not for the power of 'relations'. She advises, 'Invest in good relationships with people. They propel businesses. And this cuts across whether it's online or offline.'
Betty has also launched her YouTube channel, which has garnered over 100k subscribers in a month. She says, 'You read blogs, don't you? Do you see how many of them have maligned me? I started the YouTube channel because I wanted people to know who I was, tell my own story, and to connect with fans.'
