The verdict in three sentences
For a Nairobi interior design studio, the website is the portfolio, so a redesign is due as soon as project pages load slowly on mobile data, look dated next to your recent Westlands or Karen work, or bury the enquiry form. Expect a 2026 budget of about USD 2,300 to 6,900 with a local agency and up to USD 15,400 with a top-tier Nairobi agency, against Kolonell's fixed USD 2,900, USD 4,900 or USD 8,900. The main risks are specific to your trade: image weight, project URLs that carry your search visibility, and client consent to show private homes and offices.
What tells you the studio's site needs a redesign?
Interior design clients judge in seconds. A homeowner in Runda or a hotel operator planning a refurbishment opens your site on a phone, swipes through two projects and decides whether to call. If the gallery stalls, they move on.
Typical signs in 2026:
- Project galleries load full-resolution photos, so a single page weighs 15 MB or more.
- Your best recent fit-outs, hospitality or office, are not on the site because adding them is painful.
- Project pages have no text, so search engines cannot tell that you work on residential interiors in Kilimani or office fit-outs in Westlands.
- The enquiry form is a plain email link with no fields for project type, location or timing.
- Instagram does the selling and the website no longer reflects the studio's level.
How much does a redesign cost in Nairobi in 2026?
These are 2026 ballpark ranges from typical agency quotes in Nairobi, converted at about KSh 130 to the US dollar. They cover a portfolio site of 15 to 40 pages with project galleries and enquiry forms.
| Option | KES range | Approx. USD | Portfolio handling |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freelance web designer | KSh 80,000 to 250,000 | USD 600 to 1,900 | Template gallery, images often uploaded unoptimised |
| Local Nairobi agency | KSh 300,000 to 900,000 | USD 2,300 to 6,900 | Custom layouts, basic image compression |
| Top-tier Nairobi agency | KSh 900,000 to 2,000,000 | USD 6,900 to 15,400 | Art direction, motion, brand work |
| Kolonell Starter | Fixed | USD 2,900 | Small studio, a focused set of projects |
| Kolonell Growth | Fixed | USD 4,900 | Full project library, filters by type, journal |
| Kolonell Premium | Fixed | USD 8,900 | The multilingual tier, languages set in the quote |
All Kolonell tiers include a project manager reachable in your time zone, native English copywriting, delivery in 3 to 4 weeks once content is ready and 3 months of support. Hosting and maintenance after that period are on quote. Compare tiers on the international websites page.
On quote: client portals for mood boards and approvals, booking for design consultations, e-commerce for furniture or décor pieces, and integrations with project management or accounting tools.
Why does image weight decide the success of the redesign?
Many visitors browse on mobile networks, and a gallery that loads well on office fibre can feel broken on a phone in traffic on Waiyaki Way. The redesign should set performance targets before design starts.
| Metric | Typical old portfolio site | Target after redesign |
|---|---|---|
| Weight of a project page | 12 to 25 MB | Under 2.5 MB |
| Size of one gallery image | 2 to 5 MB | 150 to 300 KB in WebP or AVIF |
| Home page load on mobile data | 6 to 12 seconds | Under 3 seconds |
| Images loaded before scrolling | All of them | Only the first 2 or 3 |
| Text per project page | None | 120 to 250 words: brief, location area, scope |
These targets are working goals for the project, not guarantees: real speed depends on hosting, the network and the device.
Which risks need a plan, and who owns them?
| Risk | Owner | Mitigation |
|---|---|---|
| Losing search traffic on project and service pages | Kolonell | Inventory of indexed URLs, 301 map from old project URLs to new ones, Search Console check after launch |
| Showing private homes without permission | Studio | Written client consent per project, no house numbers or identifiable exteriors |
| Old galleries lost in migration | Kolonell | Export of all original images, mapped project by project |
| Enquiry forms collecting too much | Both | Fields for project type, area and timing; retention period; privacy notice |
| Wording that implies architectural services | Studio | Describe interior design, space planning and fit-out coordination; avoid presenting the studio as an architecture practice |
| Downtime during the switch | Kolonell | Staging site, DNS change at night, rollback plan |
On personal data, the Kenya Data Protection Act 2019, overseen by the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC), applies to how enquiry details and client information are collected and kept. Architecture is a regulated profession in Kenya, so the copy should describe what an interior design studio does without borrowing a protected title. A marketing content review before go-live covers both points. This is not legal advice.
When is a local agency the better choice?
Need a professional website?
Kolonell builds websites that attract clients, optimized for the Sénégalese market. Free quote in 2 minutes.
A Nairobi agency makes more sense if you want a full rebrand with on-site art direction, if you plan a professional shoot of several projects managed by the agency, or if you want an online shop for furniture with local delivery integrations from day one. A remote studio fits when your photos exist, the scope is a portfolio redesign and you want a fixed price and a 4-week schedule.
Questions to ask:
- What image formats and size limits will you apply to the gallery?
- Will old project URLs be redirected one by one?
- Who owns the domain, hosting and site files after delivery?
- Can we add new projects ourselves in under 30 minutes?
- What does support cover in the first 3 months?
Mini case study
Illustrative example: Wanjiru runs a fictional six-person interior design studio in Kilimani doing homes in Karen and Runda and office fit-outs in Westlands. Her current site holds 40 projects with about 25 photos each.
- Images: 40 times 25 equals 1,000 photos. At 3.5 MB each that is 3,500 MB of originals; optimised to about 250 KB each, the library drops to 250 MB.
- Budget: Kolonell Growth at USD 4,900, plus a third-party local photographer for four new projects at about KSh 120,000 (around USD 920). Total: USD 5,820.
- Comparison: her local agency quote was KSh 850,000, about USD 6,540, a gap of about USD 720.
She asks clients for written consent on 12 residential projects, drops 6 she cannot publish, and launches with 34 projects in week four.
FAQ
What is a realistic redesign budget for a Nairobi interior design studio?
Local agencies typically quote KSh 300,000 to 900,000, about USD 2,300 to 6,900. Kolonell's fixed grid is USD 2,900, USD 4,900 or USD 8,900.
How fast should our project pages load?
Aim for under 3 seconds on mobile data and under 2.5 MB per page. Converting gallery images to WebP or AVIF often cuts weight by 80 to 90 percent.
Do we need Swahili pages?
Most residential and corporate clients in Westlands and Karen browse in English. If you add Swahili, Premium is the multilingual tier, with languages set in the quote.
Can we publish photos of a client's home?
Only with the client's permission, ideally written, and without details that identify the property. Plan this check for every residential project before launch.
How long does the redesign take?
Kolonell delivers in 3 to 4 weeks once photos and texts are ready. Selecting and captioning 30 to 40 projects usually takes the studio 1 to 3 weeks.
Let's scope your project. Tell us how many projects you want to show, which languages and your target launch date, and we will confirm the tier and a 4-week plan. See the international offer or request a free quote: detailed reply within 48 hours.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
