About the Product

 

RETTI works to provide access to electricity for small businesses. Electricity is an important aspect of a productive business process. The lack of or limited electricity source has the potential to affect the profitability of a micro firm. Data shows that about 90 percent of companies registered in Nigeria are SMEs. “The Nigerian private sector consists of about 300,000 SMEs, which employ more than 80 percent of the workforce and contribute about half of the country’s GDP. The lack of electricity and constant power outages have crippled these small businesses as many of them closed down because they could no longer afford to continue fuelling and maintaining generators.

 

 

To solve the problem highlighted above, we have designed a product – A Smart SME KIT (or Solar Barbing System) – which is suitable for the electricity requirement of barbing salons. This product will provide a stable clean electricity of up to 16 – 18 hours at full battery charge. It is a 200W smart standalone Integrated Power System that incorporates solar electricity generation, energy storage to deliver reliable clean electricity. The product is also intended to serve as a full barbing shop for young people intending to start a barbing business. It comes with LED dimable light bulbs, clippers, a standing fan, a radio, a mirrow and a ten phone charging kit (with which they can sell electricity and make additional income). It is a full package that eliminates the need for a shop rental.

 

 

Owners can set up a barbing section where they live without spending any cash and make it even more easy for people to access a barbing service even during the lockdown or during the spread of a pandemic. It is a smart automated Pay as you go product requiring owners to pay a token of for product installation and afterwards pay a weekly fee and peradventure there is a default in payment of fee, the product will automatically turn off. The goal of the Solar Barbing system is to supply clean power at all times ensuring a steady supply delivered through solar panels, battery and a solar controlling unit to the barbing salon ensuring that they retain their profits instead of spending it to pay for electricity or purchase of diesel.

The Solar Barbing System will not only provide electricity for existing barbing salons but will directly curb unemployment by creating new jobs for new barbers as the product is an all in one solar barbing shop and includes all the necessities for the start of a barbing shop without needing to rent a shop. The Solar Barbing System is designed for small businesses and integrates a pay as you go model to remove the financial burden. With Diobu as pilot town and with its neck deep energy poverty affecting SMEs, the product will go a long way provide electricity, create jobs while offering an affordable rent to own payment scheme via the pay as you go model.

The solar barbing system provide a hands on opportunity for our trained alumni who have already been equipped with knowledge of the design, installation and the entrepreneurship aspects of solar home systems – to deploy our solution and train others. This provides direct engagement and employment for them and also ensures project sustainability.

 

 

Key Technical Features of the Solar Barbing System

• 200W solar panel
• 100 Ah Gel Carbon batteries (with life span of 7 years)

 

• A Solar Controller Unit

 

• Pay as You Go Integrated software; the automated software delivers a solution for PAYG ecosystems to run last-mile
• 4 LED Light bulbs

 

• 2 Clippers

 

• A radio
• A Standing fan

 

• A charging system (10 phones at once every 3 hours that is 80 phones per day).

 

 

Product Daily Power Production Capacity

 

The product will provide a stable clean electricity of 16 hours at full battery charge. When all 4 clippers + 4 lights +1 fan and charging kit will run continuously for 16 hours on a charged battery. Only 1 clipper + 1 fan will be able to run for more than 24 hours – or rather non-stop as during the day the battery would again fully charge.

The Big Opportunity

Constant Clean Electricity

 

This Solar Barbing System will produce stable clean power for a barbing salon and help them save more money. The four LED bulbs will provide bright light during night time. The system optimizes energy efficiency and management. The LED Bulbs are dimable giving the owner or operator ample opportunity to conserve and save more energy thereby make the system more long lasting. The fan and radio all come with options and buttons for power reduction or increase, again helping to conserve more energy.

Employment

 

With the additional two clippers that comes with the system, the barber can employ one more person which significantly increases revenue of the business. With the multiple phone charging kit, the owner of the system will operate an additional stream of income selling electricity for phone charging.

Job Creation

The product is additionally designed to serve as a full barbing shop for persons wanting to start a barbing salon business especially in last mile and low income areas. It comes with full package and all necessary needs of a barbing salon; LED dimable light bulbs (for use at night), clippers, a standing fan, a radio, a mirrow and a ten phone charging kit (with which they can sell electricity and make additional income). It is a full package that eliminates the need for a shop rental. Owners can set up a barbing section where they live without spending any cash for shop rental or for equipment purchase. The product is flexible and can be mobile and movable giving customers an additional choice to move it around from place to place and take the service to areas where it is needed.

This flexible feature will create jobs for young people without employment who can undergo a product training and can quickly start up their barbing business in the corner of their homes. The flexibility, ease of use and modularity of this product removes the gender barrier. Women too can now become barbers as they can be trained to deploy the solution.

CURRENTLY..

this time, the product has already emerged a finalist for an energy grant of 100, 000 USD for production and deployment of initial pilot 100 units in the first year creating up creating jobs for over 350 people and improving 1200 livelihoods. It will help more barbers save money. Additionally, it will provide employment for our trained alumni as installers, technicians, agents or distributors.