About Design Yangu
Africa's first premium print-on-demand design studio. We empower Kenyan creators to design custom products, build their brands, and sell to the world — all from one powerful platform.
What We Believe
Design Yangu — Your design, your way.
Kenya has extraordinary creative talent. Artists who see the world differently. Designers who build beauty from nothing. Illustrators who tell Kenyan stories in ways no foreign brand ever could.
Most of them are creating on hard drives and Instagram grids, getting 🔥 in the comments and nothing in their account.
We built Design Yangu because that's wrong.
For buyers: You deserve a custom tee without the WhatsApp negotiation, the cash deposit, and the prayer that something vaguely resembling your design arrives three weeks later. You deserve transparent pricing, M-Pesa checkout, and production you can actually track.
For designers: You deserve a platform that turns your existing art into income — automatically, passively, without you having to pitch anyone. Upload your design. Earn a commission every time someone buys it. Sleep well.
For Kenya: We believe Kenyan creativity is world-class. Not “world-class for Africa” — world-class. The Nairobi creative scene is producing work that holds its own globally. It deserves a platform that holds its own globally too.
We're Design Yangu. We're building that platform.
We're early. We're honest about that. And we're not stopping.
Our Story
Design Yangu started with a frustration familiar to every Kenyan creative: you have the talent, the ideas, and the hustle — but accessing quality custom print services meant expensive in-person visits, long lead times, and minimum order quantities that killed the idea before it could breathe.
Founded by Yami Designs in Nairobi, Design Yangu was built to tear down those barriers. We asked a simple question: what if any Kenyan — a JKUAT student designing hoodies for their class, a Gikomba trader building a brand, or a Nairobi artist monetising their illustrations — could access world-class custom print production with a few taps on their phone?
The answer is Design Yangu. Our platform combines a powerful in-browser canvas editor, a creator marketplace, and a local print fulfillment network — all wired to M-Pesa and built to work on the devices Kenyans actually use. No inventory risk, no minimum orders, no trips to Industrial Area. Just design, click, and wear your story.
We are still young — launched in 2026 — but we are growing fast, and we are just getting started. The dream is not just Kenya. It is all of East Africa, and eventually, the continent.
Our Mission
“Wear your story.”
We exist to democratise design and manufacturing in Africa — so that any creator, anywhere on this continent, can turn their unique vision into a product they are proud of, and earn a living doing what they love.
Our Values
Creativity First
Every Kenyan has a story worth wearing. Our studio tools make it easy to turn your creative vision into a real, tangible product — no design school required.
Community Driven
We are building a movement of African designers, artists, and entrepreneurs who uplift each other. When one creator wins, the whole community wins.
Made in Africa
Proudly built in Nairobi, Kenya. We partner with local print manufacturers to deliver premium quality while keeping money and jobs circulating in our own economy.
Quality Without Compromise
From premium GSM fabrics to vibrant, wash-resistant DTG prints, every product that leaves our facility meets the same standard we would accept for ourselves.
Designers Earn Fair
Designers keep 70% of every sale. We believe the people creating the value should capture most of it. No platform fees, no hidden deductions — just transparent payouts via M-Pesa.
Built for Kenya
M-Pesa payments, KES pricing, same-day dispatch in Nairobi, and a platform that works beautifully on 4G mobile. We were designed for the Kenyan reality, not adapted from a Western template.
Yami Designs
Design Yangu is the flagship product of Yami Designs, a Nairobi-based design and technology company. Yami Designs was founded with a conviction that Africa does not need to wait for Silicon Valley to solve African problems. We build premium digital products rooted in local context — local payments, local logistics, local languages, local needs.
The name “Yangu” is Swahili for “mine” or “my own.” Because this platform belongs to the creators who use it. Your designs, your brand, your income — all yours.
What We Offer
Design Studio
A powerful in-browser canvas editor — add text, upload artwork, pick from clipart libraries, draw freehand, and apply your design to any product in seconds. No Photoshop subscription needed.
Creator Marketplace
Designers earn a 70% commission on every product sold through their storefront. List your artwork, set your price, and let us handle printing and delivery while you focus on creating.
Local Commerce
Pay with M-Pesa or card. Prices in Kenyan Shillings. Delivery in 3–5 business days within Nairobi, 5–7 days for the rest of Kenya. We are real — based here, fulfilling here.
Get in Touch
Have a question, a partnership idea, or just want to say karibu? We would love to hear from you.
info@designyangu.com|Nairobi, Kenya