Merali in deal with General Motors to open Mombasa hub
Cars in a showroom in Nakuru. Demand for new cars has risen to hit an all-time high of 19,996 units last year. PHOTO | FILE
Ryce East Africa, a company owned by businessman Naushad Merali, will Thursday open a new service centre in Mombasa for its Isuzu and Chevrolet brands which it sells on behalf of General Motors East Africa (GMEA).
The company, part of the Sameer Group, is one of GMEA’s major dealers with branches in major towns across the country.
“The new facility is expected to enhance customer experience by providing enhanced after sales support and also help fight the growing counterfeit menace in the country,” GMEA said in a statement.
The service centre marks yet another investment by a GMEA dealer. Unlike other firms that directly own and manage their showrooms, sales and service networks, GMEA relies on independent dealers.
These include Ryce, Kenya Coach Industries (KCI), Thika Motor Dealer, Pewin Motors and Central Farmers Garage.
KCI last year embarked on the construction of a Sh500 million showroom, service centre and body building facility in Nairobi on Mombasa Road.
Pewin Motors also opened a new sales and service facility in Nairobi last year, specialising in GMEA’s Chevrolet passenger cars. The GMEA also sells Isuzu commercial vehicles such as buses, pick-ups and trucks.
The new service facility by Ryce signals increased investments in the competitive new vehicles market where quality and wide dealership networks are critical in winning customers and confidence of vehicle manufacturers.
Other dealers that have also expanded their showrooms and service centres in various towns include Toyota Kenya and Crown Motors which is the local Nissan franchise holder.
The expansion has coincided with increased demand for new vehicles which hit a new peak of 19,966 units last year, having grown 13.3 per cent from 17,616 units in 2014.
Sales have, however, dropped by a third since the start of the year in what has partly been attributed to introduction of excise taxes on locally assembled units in the 12 months to July.
The tax, which was introduced at a flat rate of Sh150,000 per unit and later raised to 20 per cent of a vehicle’s value, was revoked in August in what is expected to revive sales going forward.
The capping of commercial bank interest rates, currently at a maximum of 14 per cent, could also boost sales if lenders continue financing vehicle purchases at the same pace as prior to interest regulation.
Besides Isuzu and Chevrolet brands, Ryce also deals in Hero motorcycles and SDMO generators. The company, which became a GMEA dealer in 1975, also leases motor vehicles to corporate clients.
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