From a Living Room in Nairobi to the World: Vivo Turns 15

Fifteen years ago, Vivo was a few boxes of clothes in a Nairobi living room. Today, it has grown into one of East Africa’s leading fashion brands. But at its heart, the story has never really changed. It has always been about women. How they live, move, grow and show up in the world.

This is the story of how we got here.

Every great brand has a beginning that sounds almost too humble to be true. Ours started in a living room. A woman with a vision, a few boxes of clothes, and customers who kept coming back, so many of them that the living room could no longer hold what was growing.

Fifteen years later, we are still growing. And we are so grateful you’ve been part of the journey.

It started with a dream and a very full living room

In 2011, Wandia Gichuru and Anne Marie Burugu co-founded Vivo Fashion Group. What began as an online shop selling dance and fitness wear quickly became something much bigger. Customers wanted to try things on. They started showing up at Wandia’s home. Her living room slowly became a fitting room.

Soon, the living room was no longer enough.

Vivo opened its first store at The Junction Mall in Nairobi with a simple but powerful belief: African women deserved fashion designed for their bodies, their lifestyles and their stories.

The response was immediate. Women came, brought their friends, came back again and Vivo slowly became more than a store. It became part of women’s everyday lives.

Moments That Shaped Us

2011
Vivo opens its very first store at The Junction Mall, Nairobi. Founded by Wandia Gichuru and Anne Marie Burugu with a mission to design and manufacture fashion entirely on the African continent.

2015
Vivo reaches a major growth milestone and begins expanding across Kenya, proof that what started in a living room was becoming something much bigger.

2016–2017
Vivo is named Kenyan Fashion Brand of the Year at the Kenya Fashion Awards for two consecutive years. The brand also begins expanding beyond Kenya into Rwanda and Uganda.

2020
The pandemic changes everything. Vivo’s revenue drops significantly, but the team refuses to stand still. More than one million reusable face masks are produced, helping keep staff employed and the business moving forward. That same year, ShopZetu launches, opening a new chapter for African fashion e-commerce.

2021
Safari is born. A bold, adventure inspired label joins the Vivo family, bringing a new energy and a new customer into the fold.

2024
Zoya launches, introducing a fearless Gen Z fashion brand to the Vivo family. That same year, Vivo opens its first store in Atlanta, Georgia, bringing African fashion to the United States. President William Ruto attends the opening. From a living room in Nairobi to the world.

2026
Vivo turns 15.
30 stores.
450+ employees.
Three iconic brands.
One vision still driving everything forward: Africa dressing the world.

“Our vision is to see Africa dressing the world. Fifteen years in, we are well on our way.”

What 15 years looks like in numbers

30 stores across Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and the USA

450+ employees, the majority of whom are women

3 iconic brands: Vivo Woman, Safari and Zoya

100% designed and manufactured on the African continent

But the real story is you

Numbers tell part of the story. But the real story is the woman who walked into Vivo years ago looking for something to wear and found something that finally felt like her.

It is the woman who wore Vivo to her first interview, first promotion, first date or first day at a new beginning.

It is the mother grabbing a dress during her lunch break and wearing it from meetings to school pickup.

It is every customer who has tagged us, told a friend, walked into our stores, supported local fashion and kept coming back over the years.

You are why we continue to design and manufacture on this continent. You are why we continue to believe African fashion deserves to be seen on the world stage.

Every stitch, every collection and every new store we open has always been about you.

Fifteen years is a milestone. But for us, it still feels like the beginning.

Africa is dressing the world, and Vivo is proud to be part of that story.

Thank you for 15 years of showing up, showing out and choosing to wear African.

Here’s to the next chapter. 🖤

With love and gratitude,
The Vivo Woman Team