By Michael Karemi 
A hairdresser who started behind a salon chair in 2008 now offers clinical hair loss treatment in Eldoret as the first certified trichologist practicing in Western Kenya and the North Rift. Clients come to his Zion Mall base from as far as Mombasa, Lodwar, Tanzania, and South Africa.
Kagai John is known in the beauty and health industry simply as KJ. He says the decision to leave ordinary hairdressing behind came down to one client he could not help.
“I had a client I had attended to for over a decade. When she started losing hair, I could do nothing,” he said. “So I decided to study further, only to realize she had a thyroid issue.”
Subsequently, he pursued a formal clinical study in scalp pathology and hair anatomy, qualifying as a certified trichologist. He then founded Dr. Face Kenya, which he runs alongside KJ Salon & Barbershop at Zion Mall. Dr. Face Kenya handles the treatment. The salon next door handles the hair.
KJ is clear about where a trichologist fits between the salon and the hospital.
“For hair loss issues, you can also get a dermatologist to help,” he said. “The importance of a trichologist is to bridge the gap between the hairdresser and the dermatologist.”
Much of what walks through his door, he says, was avoidable.
“The most common type of hair loss is self-inflicted. We call it traction alopecia, caused by tight hairstyles,” he said.
Traction alopecia is not the only kind he sees. Some clients lose hair in patches after a stressful stretch. That one is called alopecia areata. Others have inflammation attacking the follicle itself and scarring it, so the hair does not come back. Two forms of that, lichen planopilaris and CCCA, turn up often in his chair. Men usually arrive with the familiar receding pattern. That is androgenetic alopecia, and it comes down to hormones and family history.
The practice uses high-magnification digital trichoscopy. It is a scalp imaging method that magnifies the follicles and surrounding skin, allowing a practitioner to identify the cause of hair loss before any treatment begins.
According to KJ, no consultation starts with a product. It starts with a look at the scalp. Whatever the scan finds is what the treatment is built around.
The clinic and the salon share a building for a reason. Clients on restoration protocols still want to look presentable. So the salon side handles their hair using damage-free techniques while treatment continues underneath.
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The bookings are not just local ones. KJ says clients have traveled in from Mombasa and Lodwar, as well as from Tanzania and South Africa. Kenyans living abroad book consultations when they are home for the summer.
Beyond the practice, he serves as an association chairman in the industry. He also works as a consultant and educator, pushing for safer salon practices and higher standards among stylists in the region. His message to them is short.
“The main thing stylists can do is to seek the help of an expert when they see anything strange on a client’s scalp or hair,” he said.
He would like more people to do this job. By his own count, there are not many.
“I hope we could have more trichologists in Kenya,” he said. “We have less than five well-established trichologists in Kenya who are also hairstylists, and less than 10 in Africa.”
Consultations at Dr. Face Kenya are by appointment. Call, text or DM 0710472946 to book. The practice is on the 1st Floor, Zion Mall, Eldoret.
Robert Mutasi