The rise of text messaging

With the rise of Short Message Service (SMS) technology, Tom Murphy saw an exciting opportunity to create a business.
With the help of Todd’s friend Richard, a coding expert, they built a SMS engine using a cheap $2,000 PC.

How Kitomba got its name

Tom read somewhere that words beginning with K were more memorable. The name needed a .com website domain to be available, and bonus points if it had his name within it. When he searched for “Kitomba,” nothing came up on Google, and thatʼs how Kitomba got its name.

Innovative new features

Tom and Todd introduced an innovative appointment book feature designed to enhance the functionality of Kitomba’s SMS engine by creating a system to trigger message sending. This development not only improved the SMS capability but also helped set Kitomba on the path it follows today.

Team changes

Todd and Richard decided to step away from the business. However, Tom remained confident in the potential of the idea and was determined to move forward.

Needing a developer to bring the vision to life, Tom connected with Al Quinn through mutual friends. Although Al didn’t have experience in Java at the time, he was really impressed by the potential of Kitomba, so he quickly learned it over a weekend by studying a library book, and left his stable job to join the team.

Setbacks

A significant setback occurred when a power outage destroyed the disk containing Kitombaʼs entire software code. With bits of code written down on multiple pieces of paper, Tom and Al managed to piece together the messaging functionality in a week and slowly built Kitomba back up again.

Thankfully, they learned from their mistakes and more robust protocols were created…

Specialising in the hair and beauty industry

Initially uncertain about which industry Kitomba would serve, Tom and the team began with just 10 clients, mostly hair and beauty salons. As they noticed how well the product resonated with these businesses and how much the salons loved it, it became clear that the hair and beauty industry was where Kitomba should focus its efforts and continue to grow.

Tom and Al worked with salon owners to design a solution that could provide salons with all the features they need to effectively manage and grow their businesses.

Company culture

As the Kitomba team expanded, including hiring its first-ever real employee Dean, they moved from Tom’s bedroom to a compact 19-square-meter office in 2005. Then, an admin assistant was hired and found herself with the only private office—a converted cupboard.

To foster a fun and cohesive company culture, they introduced “Suit Fridays,ˮ where everyone dressed up in suits and enjoyed cocktails at the end of the day, pretending to be a larger, more established company.

Even now Kitomba employees will gather on a Friday after work to have drinks, chips and dip, and play a board game or two.

The hidden game in Kitomba

When Kitombaʼs first-ever employee Dean left Kitomba in 2004 he wanted to leave a legacy, so he built a hidden game in Kitomba that you can still play today. It turns your appointment book into a game of Frogger.

Recognised for impressive growth

In 2007 Kitomba was recognised by Deloitte as the 24th Fastest Growing New Zealand Company!

Entering the UK

By now we serviced many of New Zealand’s salons and spas so we decided it was time to expand internationally. It was an exciting moment when our first UK customer came on board.

Entering Australia

When Kitomba expanded into Australia in 2009, it was a bold move that many had attempted and failed. What set Kitomba apart was that Australian businesses had already noticed their success and were reaching out, eager to adopt the software. This unexpected demand gave the team the confidence to fully commit to the expansion, leading to the strong presence Kitomba has in Australia today.

Celebrating the industry

Kitomba has always been a big supporter of the industry. In New Zealand, Kitomba partnered with Hair and Barber New Zealand (previously known as NZARH, the New Zealand Association of Registered Hairdressers), to create the Business Awards. There were only creative awards at the time, so hairdressers, beauticians, and other people in the industry loved the idea of us focusing on the business side of their industry as well.

In 2010, Kitomba helped form The Industry Awards in partnership with Hair and Barber New Zealand and the Hair Industry Training Organisation (HITO). The Industry Awards recognised the best training, business and creative talent in New Zealandʼs hair, beauty and barbering industries.

Kitomba 1 launched in the cloud

In 2011 we had lots of milestones: our support team grew to 15 people, we launched Kitomba 1 into the cloud, and we drank our forty-thousandth cup of coffee!

Joining the Jonas family

Our customers, people, products and growth caught the attention of Jonas Software (ranked in the top 100 software companies in the world) and in September 2014 we decided to join their group.

Tom and Alʼs legacy

Tom retired from his post as CEO in 2017 to pursue other projects, and Al took the reins as the new CEO, eventually departing in 2021 to pursue his love of bikes.

Mike Henton who was already part of the Jonas family was appointed CEO after Al departed, and at the end of 2022, Alyssa Dowsett, who had worked at the company since 2015, became Kitombaʼs General Manager. While leadership has evolved over the years, Kitomba’s core purpose and passion has remained the same.

Our new home

In November 2022 we moved into a brand new office on Wakefield Street in Wellington, complete with table tennis, a pool table, library, snack station for when the team is feeling peckish, free car parks, floor-to-ceiling windows and a barista-quality coffee to keep the creative juices flowing.