KIGALI – A few years ago, Johana Cosmetics was primarily a Made-in-Rwanda beauty brand competing for attention in its home market. Today, its products have crossed Rwanda’s borders and are available in Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The company is using this year’s Rwanda International Trade Fair in Gikondo to build on that journey, returning to an exhibition that has already played a notable role in its story.
Last year, Johana was named Best Exhibitor at the International Trade Fair, a recognition that Sales and Marketing Manager Musa Mutebi says brought the company visibility among consumers and businesses.
“Expo gives you visibility that you may not easily get elsewhere. You meet customers, you meet businesses and people get to understand your products better,” Mutebi said.
For Johana, however, the significance of the trade fair is not measured only by what happens while the exhibition is open. “Some of those relationships can continue long after the exhibition is over,” Mutebi said.
The Expo Effect
That idea has become central to how Johana views its presence at Rwanda’s major annual trade exhibition.
The company’s experience shows how an exhibition can put a local brand in front of people beyond its immediate customer base, creating opportunities for conversations with both consumers and businesses.
Mutebi said the value of participating goes beyond making sales during the event.
“Being at Expo is not only about what you sell during those weeks. It is also about the people you meet, the conversations you have and the confidence that comes from putting your products in front of a wider market,” he said.
For a brand that carries a Made-in-Rwanda identity, those conversations have increasingly extended beyond Rwanda itself. Johana’s products are now available in four neighboring and regional markets.
The expansion gives a different meaning to the company’s presence at the Gikondo exhibition. What began as an opportunity to put a Rwandan beauty brand before local consumers has become part of a wider journey into regional markets.
A Local Brand, A Wider Market
Johana’s story is ultimately about how far a Made-in-Rwanda brand can travel. Its participation in the International Trade Fair keeps the company connected to the market where its journey is rooted, even as its products reach consumers in other countries.
For the company and its products’ consumers, the value of that journey lies partly in the relationships built along the way.
At the Johana tent, Gladys Wanjiru, a Kenyan national, who had come to the Expo with her six-year-old daughter, was among the customers taking advantage of the beauty services on offer.
She brought her daughter to have her hair styled, turning what could have been an ordinary visit to the trade fair into a shared experience for the two.
“I came with my daughter because I wanted her to have a nice hairstyle, and we are very happy with the result. She looks beautiful, and I also like the way we were welcomed and treated,” Wanjiru said.
