It’s an unlikely collaboration – a baby skincare line founded by a rapper and backed by Premier League footballers – but you can’t argue with a multimillion-pound valuation.
Krept, one half of hip hop duo Krept & Konan, winner of four MOBO awards and host of his own TV show, is on a mission to turn Nala’s Baby into as much of a household name as he is.
Founded only four years ago, the company – whose name is inspired by his daughter – values itself at around £20m today. It landed in 400 Boots stores in 2022 and has since launched in Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Superdrug and Ocado to name a few.
It’s been a journey, Krept tells the Money blog.
Konan and Krept at the MTV EMAs earlier this month. Pic: Reuters
“It sounds crazy when I say it like that,” Krept, real name Casyo Johnson, laughs. “When I look back, I remember when we were sitting in a car, Konan was homeless, we didn’t have any money and we were arguing.
“Literally, having a fight about the last piece of chicken because we couldn’t afford any more… I just will never forget that. Fast-forward and I’m here selling baby products in nearly every retailer in the country.”
Nala’s Baby started as a project for Krept, 34, and his co-founder and ex-girlfriend Sasha Ellese while she was pregnant with their daughter. The pair still own 75% between them, while the other 25% has gone to investors, including footballers Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho.
During her pregnancy, Sasha became “really concerned” about what she was putting on her skin, Krept says: “We were getting loads of gifts from baby showers… but none of the products were fully clean.”
They used an ingredient rating app called Think Dirty, which ranks each product from 0, the cleanest, to 10, the dirtiest – but there wasn’t “a zero-rated clean natural product that existed”, Krept says.
“We saw that as an opportunity to say, why don’t we create our own? Clearly there was a gap for this.”
After two years perfecting the products, Nala’s Baby was born – becoming one of the first British-made baby skincare ranges to receive a zero rating on Think Dirty.
All its items are 99% natural, ethically sourced, vegan and made in the UK.
Pic: Nala’s Baby
‘Our strategy was just put our faith in people’
Products start at around £5.55 – with Krept keen to keep them affordable by lowering profit margins.
Unlike brands that “want the best margins and focus on profitability”, he says, Nala’s Baby chose to “take a hit on our margins because we genuinely feel like this is a product for the people”.
“We thought if we make the most natural product and the price point is lower than a lot of our competitors, we’re not giving people a reason not to buy it,” he says.
“That was our strategy… just put our faith in the people and trust they will see what we’re doing.”
He has plans to expand, saying there are toys, clothing and food still to look into: “We just want to be a brand that parents can trust, in whatever way.”
Lessons learned from a failed business
Krept’s journey hasn’t always been smooth sailing, and not all of his business ventures have been lucrative.
In 2018, he and Konan opened a restaurant in Croydon, south London, called Crepes & Cones, with celeb customers including TV presenter Maya Jama, rapper Stefflon Don, musician Dave and Top Boy star Noel Clarke.
Days before it launched, their business partner died and they were left without a mentor. Then it was forced to close its doors in 2020 as the pandemic hit, and never recovered.
“It’s a very difficult business, but what I learnt from that is that your team and who you hire is so important,” Krept says.
“I was in the restaurant serving everybody. People thought that we were doing it for PR purposes, but we weren’t, we had to be there.
“I was there doing the payroll, the accounts, sorting out the staff, and that really took a toll on the business because I’m not a professional in that field.
“As much as you can come up with a great idea, you always need great people to help you run it.”
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His fame hasn’t always been a business asset, either.
“Obviously, I’m a musician first and people know me for being a rapper, so when I say I have baby skincare products they ask me what do I know about that,” he says.
“The pro is that I can let the world know what I’m doing and put it out there for people to see how sincere and genuine I am about it.”
He can’t remember exactly how many businesses he’s been involved in now, but guesses it’s around 10, including an events’ management firm and a marketing agency.
“If you utilise your time, you’ll be surprised about what you can do in a day,” he says.
Balancing business and music
Krept has put the lessons he’s learnt in business into practice in his music career – which hasn’t slowed down. The duo are releasing a new album, Young Kingz II, next year, which he’s produced.
“This final piece of art that you put out into the world is the same thing as business, you need the right team, the right people to run it. You need the right staff, it goes hand in hand and I learnt all of that from doing my restaurant,” he says.
Asked what fans can expect from the new album, he says “deep songs” are a big feature.
“I’ve written a letter to my daughter as something she can play if I’m no longer here, but we will have the vibes,” he laughs.
“This is my passion, I love making music and the creative process, so it’s always just going to be something started from love.”
Krept and Konanat the 2017 MTV Europe Music Awards. Pic: Reuters
‘It’s just in my moral compass to give back’
Giving back to the community is another one of Krept’s missions.
“Having a tough upbringing and not having many opportunities in certain areas, I’ve always had support from the community, so the least I can do is give back to those very people,” he says.
He runs an organisation called the PD Foundation, which aims to take kids off the street by giving them opportunities in creative industries, and he has recently teamed up with Samsung as an ambassador for their Solve the Tomorrow competition.
The initiative is designed to give young people aged 16-25 across the UK the skills and confidence to create future tech solutions.
It comes as new research from the tech firm found 39% of 13ᆧ-year-olds believe there are too few resources for young people to make a change in society through technology.
“It’s just in my moral compass to always give back and there are so many people that you can help,” Krept says.
“These young people are going to be the future of the world, and if I can have any sort of input or say in that, then I love to.”
Entries to Solve For Tomorrow are open here until 12 January 2025.