Naivas Supermarket has signed a lease agreement with the Greenspan Mall becoming the anchor tenant seven months after its rival Tuskys was kicked out over rent arrears.
The retailer’s chief commercial officer Willy Kimani said the hypermarket will sit on 57,000 square feet at the mall’s ground floor.
It will have a food market, focusing on fresh produce as well as electronics and general merchandise.
Naivas Supermarket has signed a lease agreement with the Greenspan Mall becoming the anchor tenant seven months after its rival Tuskys was kicked out over rent arrears.
The retailer’s chief commercial officer Willy Kimani said the hypermarket will sit on 57,000 square feet at the mall’s ground floor.
It will have a food market, focusing on fresh produce as well as electronics and general merchandise.
“We are delighted at the prospect of opening a food market in Greenspan Mall as it offers us an opportunity to provide Eastlands shoppers the Naivas food market experience,” said Mr Kimani in a statement yesterday.
“We have not had this store format in the greater area, which has been a long-standing request by our shoppers. We are finally able to fulfil this with the new development, ” he said.
The location of the mall at the heart of the populous Eastlands is strategic for Naivas potentially giving it a huge customer base.
The leading retailer has over the last few months been on an aggressive expansion spree, taking up prime space vacated by troubled rivals.
This has seen it increase its footprint across the country to 71 branches.
The retailer gained financial muscle to fire the growth after it last year signed an agreement with France-based private equity (PE) fund, Amethis Finance to sell 30 per cent stake.
Besides the Greenspan branch, it plans to open three more stores next month as it steps up its expansion drive and battle for market share growth against its closest rival QuickMart which increased its spending power after merger with Tumaini Supermarkets owner Sokoni Retail Kenya.
QuickMart now has 45 stores across the country and plans to open three more in the next few weeks.
The two retailers have been spending heavily to expand, seeking to fill voids left by collapsed and beleaguered supermarkets.
Tuskys, for instance, has been rapidly shutting stores over the past few months on the back of a heavy debt and insufficient working capital.
The collapse of former retail giant Nakumatt Holdings also left scores of prime locations that Naivas and Carrefour have moved into.
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