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A Lagos subscription cleaning and fumigation service using recurring payments, verified cleaners and a simple booking platform.
over 60 homes served across Lagos · about 50% average margin · ₦30M revenue in 2019 and ₦20M in 2020 stated in the pitch
The technology is only the booking and payment layer; the business is the operational trust required to send a verified cleaner into a customer's home every week.
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Jim and Steph founded Fichaya after seeing a practical problem in their own busy working lives: people wanted homes cleaned but did not have three or four hours to do it themselves. The company sells monthly subscription fumigation and cleaning to homes and corporate customers, with organising services and training as additional offerings. Its booking flow asks for bedrooms, cleaning frequency, contact details, address and access instructions; a sample three-bedroom weekly plan is shown at ₦21,000 per month. The founders say Fichaya generates an average of ₦5 million per month, serves over 60 homes across Lagos and runs at about a 50% average margin. They say operations began toward the end of 2016, the first full year was 2019 with about ₦30 million in revenue, and 2020 produced ₦20 million. The business asked the Lions Den panel for ₦30 million for 5%, but accepted an offer structured as ₦15 million equity for 33% plus another ₦15 million as preference shares or a repayable instrument. The panel challenged the valuation and the founders' claim that this was a technology company. The useful distinction is clear: the software makes recurring booking and payment possible, but the real operating business is cleaning, verification, scheduling and quality control.
The first customers came from a relatable service problem: busy professionals who wanted their homes cleaned without spending hours arranging individual visits. Jim's own work in telecoms, fintech and startups gave him a direct view of that time pressure, while Steph brought cleaning and organising knowledge.
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Data credibility: Lions Den Nigeria pitch and interview. Jim and Steph state Fichaya's ₦5 million average monthly revenue, over 60 homes across Lagos, approximately 50% average margin, operations beginning toward the end of 2016, ₦30 million revenue in 2019 and ₦20 million in 2020. The panel also observes the business model and the founders accept a ₦30 million investment offer structured around 33% equity and a further ₦15 million instrument after initially asking for ₦30 million for 5%. The figures are founder-reported and unaudited; the transcript does not define the margin, disclose net profit, provide customer retention, or verify the historical revenue. The ₦21,000 monthly price is a demonstrated three-bedroom weekly-cleaning example, not an average ticket. Lagos is included because the transcript explicitly says the founders are Lagos-based and serve homes across Lagos.
The first dollar arrived as a recurring household-service payment. Fichaya uses a payment partner to process cards and auto-renew subscriptions, so the customer does not need to return each month to book again.
Fichaya's flywheel is recurring service density. A monthly subscription creates predictable demand; predictable demand lets the company schedule cleaners across a smaller area; denser routes improve utilisation and service reliability; reliable service increases renewals and referrals.
The founders started operations toward the end of 2016 and say they quit a job in 2019, describing 2019 as the first full year with about ₦30 million in revenue. That timeline shows a multi-year period in which the service had to be built before the current monthly run rate was visible.
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