Danny Manu is changing the game of technology with his Black-owned headphones that can translate more than 40 languages.
The Ghanaian-British self-made Black entrepreneur told Keep The Faith that he was originally inspired by his daughter who threw her phone into the bathtub. It was the inconveniences that sparked imagination to create Mymanu Click wireless headphones.
Manu is an engineer by trade. He studied at Oxford Brookes University and before launching his company, worked as an aerospace engineer.
“I realized that my passions lay elsewhere. I decided then that I wanted to help people lead easier and more connected lives, and I knew I had what it takes,” the Black-owned headphones business owner stated.
But success didn’t come overnight for Manu. Like many Black start-ups in London, he had to rely on self-funding his ambitious plan.
“Like all the other ethnic minority-run businesses within the UK, I had a hard time getting the funding and financial support from banks and government-funded programs that I needed.”
One of the most recent studies from Extend Ventures found that between 2009 and 2019, minorities groups received an average of just 1.7% of venture capital investments over the decade.
Meanwhile, the U.K.’s Black and multi-ethnic communities make up 14% of the U.K. population. That’s why Manu had to get creative with obtaining funding.
“Most of my funding was through either personal savings, own sales, or money I had raised on crowdfunding sites. If you truly believe in your product and ideas, you shouldn’t have too much trouble convincing other people to believe in them, too,” he says.
He managed to raise more than $5,000,000 on sites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo for his headphones.
The wireless Bluetooth earbuds sync with smartphones, allowing the earbuds to learn the language being spoken and provide instant translations to the person listening.
“It’s been a long and stressful road to get where I am today, but I never expected this,” he says.
For more information or to purchase the headphones, click here.