“In 10 Years, We Never Compromised on Quality” – Nkechi Obumneme, CEO CMHairByHills

Building a business could be taxing. Being consistent for 10 years is akin to passion, dedication, and pure grit. That is the journey of CMHairByHills. In this interview to commemorate the company’s one-decade anniversary, the CEO of CMHairByHills, Nkechi Obumneme, shared with journalists some principles that gave them an edge over the years.

How would you describe the journey so far?

When I first started in 2013, the ecosystem was completely different. People didn’t have a common preference for quality human hair. Any wig works. So it was a struggle to get one sale done at our price point. But I stuck to my vision. In 10 years, I never once compromised on quality. It took a while, but the testimonies started rolling in, and people started nodding in our direction.

How did you make sure you never compromise your hair quality?

A fish rots from the head. The CEO has to be personally vested in quality assurance, or else it doesn’t work. Initially, it’s easy because, as a founder, you’re doing almost everything yourself. As the team grows and you begin to delegate, oversight becomes very important. Even at our current scale, I touch and feel every wig we produce before it reaches our customers. As we expand even further, I will very likely set up a QA team to help with this.

What advice would you give budding young entrepreneurs yet to start?

Just start. Ignore entirely people who say you can’t. Take criticism, but filter from the lens of your vision. Right now, everyone is an expert on every topic because of social media, but the people putting in the work aren’t as much as you might think. So you have a high chance of succeeding if you keep improving yourself and your product or service. It might take a while, but so long as you commit to excellence, people will start to take notice.

What’s next for CMHairByHills?

We’ve dominated the quality hair industry for 10 years. We’re not stopping anytime soon. We’ll introduce new products this year as we branch out into lashes and the fashion industry. So watch this space.