Client Success Story

Swimma: Making a Splash in the Global Market

Swimma Caps sells products that fit over any hairstyle – with a specific aim for high volume hair. Traditional headwear, like swim caps and shower caps, often didn’t accommodate diverse hairstyles, such as afros, dreadlocks, weaves, and braids. Swimma addresses this issue by offering a range of sizes to fit various hair types and styles.

Learn how the founder, Nomvuyo Treffers, identified a niche business opportunity that caters to diverse needs not only in South Africa, but abroad as well.

What inspired the creation of Swimma?

My two daughters inspired the creation of Swimma. I wanted to be able to spend quality time with them in the water, they loved swimming from a very young age and I would make excuses because of the frustration of not having swim caps that fit over my long dreadlocks. The frustration had been brewing for years. I realised that I wasn’t the only one who was faced with this issue. Traditional headwear, like swim caps and shower caps, often didn’t accommodate diverse hairstyles, such as afros, dreadlocks, weaves, and braids. Swimma addresses this issue by offering a range of sizes to fit various hair types and styles.

In South Africa my hair is not unique, there are many others like me that must be struggling to find swim caps that fit. At the gym, where we have a membership, wearing a swim cap is compulsory. But the ‘one size fits all’ caps were too small, which meant I wasn’t using the gym facilities as I
would have liked.

What were some of the key milestones in Swimma’s journey to become a successful South African brand?

The launch of Swimma itself was a milestone and the nod I immediately received when we launched was validation that Swimma was needed. And while my aim had not been supplying people worldwide, we received comments and enquiries from around the globe from the moment we started. Those are the first 2 milestones. Setting up distribution in the USA was another one, as was our first attendance of the annual Essence Festival in New Orleans. This is the biggest black orientated festival in the USA and we have proudly been part of it since 2019. The next step was supplying schools to ensure learners thrive in swimming without being discouraged by ill-fitting swimming caps that were previously standard. Lastly – we were listed at Totalsports retail stores 2 years ago – a sign that Swimma Caps was taken seriously and recognised for filling a void.

What advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs in South Africa?

A great idea is a start – but it takes a lot of hard, unrewarding work to make it happen. And even then there is no guarantee you will succeed. Be prepared to work for little to no financial reward, sometimes for years. Listen to customers along the way – they are the key to refining and improving your service or your product. You need to be self motivated – there is nobody to tell you what to do, how to do it, and give you a peptalk when you need one!

Swimma is now distributed in various countries around the world including the USA, Canada, the UK, Germany, Kenya, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Trinidad & Tobago, Botswana, Martinique, Nigeria, Mozambique and Antigua. How did you identify a demand for your products in these countries, and what factors helped you achieve success in these new markets?

We didn’t actively identify the demand – it came to us automatically. From the 1st day of launching we have received interest from around the globe, and continue to do so. In many territories we have partnered with a local reseller so that customers can purchase the caps locally.

What advice do you have for new importers and exporters?

Do not underestimate the red tape involved in importing and exporting goods. SARS and the Reserve bank do not make it easy. Exchange controls are complex. For companies who have a whole department dealing with this it is less of an issue but for a small business it is time consuming, and costly, to navigate this. Make sure that you get the correct advice and familiarise yourself with the regulations.