The NapCap story
Travelling to far-flung destinations is all in a day’s work for NapCap founder Stuart Page. With years of experience staying in uncomfortable and stressful locations, in 2014 he decided to design a modular accommodation product that was comfortable, secure, easy to transport and of the highest quality. Oh, and did we say comfortable? Here, he shares the NapCap story.
‘I believe that even in the most challenging of locations, it is still possible to have a comfortable living experience without compromising on security standards and quality.’
How did it start
‘I spent almost 30 years roughing it either with the army, the Special Forces or as head of security for the Australian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. I had a lot of time to experience accommodation in hostile environments, from a blanket on the ground to container-type accommodation. Out of these experiences the idea of NapCap was born. I really believe that even in the most challenging of locations, it is still possible to have a comfortable living experience without compromising on security standards and quality.’
How did the name NapCap come about?
‘I had the idea of creating the NapCap units after years spent in similar but very uncomfortable accommodation in some of the world’s more un-inviting places. I did some research and liked the idea of the Sleep Pod, which I paraphrased for NapCap (cap=capsule). The choice of the word “capsule” came from the desire of something akin to a space capsule: a safe space in a hostile environment.’
What is your vision for NapCap?
‘To provide those who are operating in hostile or challenging environments with somewhere safe and comfortable to live or recharge batteries. It was really important to me that it was somewhere that I would enjoy staying in myself. If you’re working in a hostile environment, I cannot stress how essential it is to have somewhere comfortable to regroup in order to be able to perform in the field. A sort of haven in a tempestuous world.’
How did you turn the idea into a reality?
‘When the idea of Chelsea Village (our group’s accommodation camp in Mogadishu) came about, no ready-made solutions existed that satisfied my quality and safety requirements. So with the design in mind, I started looking for a manufacturer. I realised that the best organisation to build these units would be a shipyard. All the capabilities are available on the same spot: plumbing, welding, electrical work, woodwork, furniture, with the experience of working in small spaces. I visited shipyards all over Europe. It was very important to me that the quality of the workmanship was to European standards.’
What is the future for NapCap?
‘We are now on rollout three of our designs, and – thanks to feedback from our clients and the experience we’ve had ourselves of staying in NapCaps in Mogadishu – the NapCap units keep evolving. It really is an innovative and adaptable product. And it’s not just the product that we offer in isolation: through our sister companies we can provide solar power and water solutions, as well as planning, building and managing camps anywhere in the world. We offer the full package and I believe we can be the go-to brand for all of our clients’ remote-site needs.’
Stuart Page
CEO of Enigma Alliance and founder of NapCap
Working as a security expert in international affairs and engagement in the diplomatic service, security, intelligence, military and the United Nations Stuart’s job has taken him to places like Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Indonesia, China, Libya and North Africa. It was his years of staying in uncomfortable and risky places that made him determined to change the expected below-average accommodation so often found in field operations. And so NapCap was born. Like a true entrepreneur, he’s constantly expanding the brand with WaterCap providing water solutions on site. When he’s not pondering how to make every NapCap even better Stuart likes to plan new joint ventures, run and admits to being hooked on The Daily Mail.
Colin Laubscher,
Commercial Officer for Chelsea Group
Colin comes from a multi-national background of German/Swiss and Irish descent and is based in Cape Town and Mogadishu. An ex-serviceman of the South African military, Colin later moved into private security where he has over a decade of experience in various countries. He has helped to inject valuable EU-experienced security standards to the UN-compliant Chelsea Village in Somalia where he spends a great portion of his time. Colin oversees all of Enigma Alliance’s portfolio, including NapCap, WaterCap and GymCap as well as COG.
In his down time Colin’s hobbies involve the great outdoors; he enjoys safari/off-roading in the South African bushveld.
Chelsea Group is the parent company of Napcap and Enigma Alliance, offering a wide range of bespoke, end to end solutions spanning security, risk management, specialist humanitarian HR and more.
The Chelsea Group
NapCap is part of the Chelsea Group, a conglomerate of companies offering a diverse yet complementary range of best-in-class services around the world.
The Chelsea Group has developed a worldwide reach with offices from London to Dubai and an operational footprint in 48 countries. With almost two decades of presence, the group is well established to provide end-to-end solutions involving complex requirements.
The areas of expertise include risk management, aviation security, power production, specialist human resources, remote site management, and more.
NapCap is both innovative and versatile – if you can imagine it, we can build it for you.
