Rocket Internet’s Vaniday is trying to bring beauty professionals online

Market intelligence firm Euromonitor asserted last year that the beauty and personal care industry in the Middle East and North Africa was worth US$24 billion – the second fastest-growing market in the world. The report went on to say that consumers in the United Arab Emirates exhibit the highest per capita spend – clearly there’s a lot of disposable cash in the country.

The dizzying numbers haven’t gone unnoticed by tech startups. Rocket Internet-backed Vaniday, an online marketplace for beauty and wellness professionals, formally launched operations in the UAE last June, following entries into Brazil, France, and Italy. Without disclosing key metrics, Vera Futorjanski, co-founder of Vaniday Middle East tells Tech in Asia that the firm is doing “very, very well.”

She says, “Dubai is a big market. People here are constantly on their phones and want convenience, whether it’s restaurants, bars, or entertainment. The beauty industry is no different.”

Vaniday raised US$17 million as its first funding round, but the money isn’t earmarked for a specific country and will be used to scale operations wherever the startup is present. Vera says the firm is now formally operating in six countries – with Australia and Russia also in the mix. The UAE is unlikely to be the only country in the region where Vaniday sets up shop – Vera claims it has ambitious plans, and is “definitely going into other Middle Eastern markets.”

How does it work?

If you find yourself in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, or Sharjah, and have a pressing urge to get a massage, haircut, or manicure, then all you have to do is log on to Vaniday’s site, browse through the listings and choose whatever tickles your fancy. Currently, there are 400 salons and spas on the site. Users are prompted to select a date and time for the appointment. Vera stresses Vaniday is promoting convenience and trying to minimize time people spend talking to customer service reps.

Once you indicate your date and time preference, the startup will call the particular salon and send them an email notification about the booking. If the requested time slot is available, only then will the booking be confirmed. The customer receives a call confirming the booking, or asking for it to be rescheduled. There is a possibility that the salon is unable to meet your time preference, but Vera says such cases are few and far between. Furthermore, Vaniday is working with salons to integrate software systems so that the entire process is automated, but the team is still a few months away from reaching that goal.

The minimum lead time to book an appointment is three hours, which means people can’t make an instant appointment, casting doubt over the convenience claims.

The startup claims its service is popular among both men and women. 30 percent of its users are male – which Vera attributes to convenience and reliability.

TripAdvisor for beauty

As for operational challenges, the biggest problem Vera identifies is online payments. People are reluctant to use credit cards. Vaniday is trying to alter habits by incentivizing users to pay online. One of its marketing initiatives has been to provide discount vouchers which can only be redeemed if people use their cards to pre-pay. Nevertheless, an option of paying at the salon is also available.

For now, there’s no rating or review system on Vaniday, but Vera says that’s part of the grand plan and will be implemented in the future. People will be able to visit the site and see what services rank higher than others. This is particularly important for expats, she says, as they constitute a large part of Dubai’s population.

“People who move to the country and don’t know where to go, would be able to log on to Vaniday and book appointments,” she adds.