Companies

Shoprite takes Nakumatt space at Westgate Mall

westgate

Westgate Mall in Westlands, Nairobi. South African retailer Shoprite has taken over space at the mall vacated by Nakumatt Supermarkets. FILE PHOTO | NMG

South African retailer Shoprite has taken over space which was vacated by Nakumatt supermarkets at Westgate Mall in Nairobi, becoming the anchor tenant at the shopping complex.

The Shoprite store located at the mall’s ground floor will be the retailer’s first outlet to be opened in Kenya.

The South African retailer, which currently operates in Tanzania and Uganda with a strong presence in Central, Southern and West Africa, also plans to open four outlets in the country next year.

They will be located at Garden City Mall in Nairobi, City Mall in Nyali, Mombasa, Waterfront Mall in Karen and at a new mall under construction off Nairobi’s city centre dubbed the Beacon.

“We are delighted that Shoprite has chosen to launch in Kenya with the premium Checkers level of fit-out at the Westgate Shopping Mall, and I believe shoppers will be impressed by the quality of this fantastic new store — a real first for Kenya,” said Knight Frank Kenya managing director Ben Woodhams in a statement yesterday.

The store, he said, will occupy 50,000-square-feet and is fitted out to the latest specifications of Shoprite’s premium “Checkers” brand.

It will stock packed foods, fresh vegetables, electronics, fast-moving goods, beverages and groceries.

The store will serve residents of Westlands, Peponi and parts of Lower Kabete area.

“The retailer has entered the country to strengthen its position in East Africa, with Kenya being the region’s strongest economy,” said Mr Woodhams.

The SA retailer is setting up in Kenya at a time when local supermarket chains such as Nakumatt and Uchumi continue to struggle with stock outs, rent arrears and delayed salaries for their staff.

The retail chain’s expansion however comes as a positive development in a sector that has in recent months seen a host of retail chains close shop due to mounting debt distress.

Nakumatt, until a few months ago the country’s biggest retailer, has been the worst hit.

The former retail giant in East Africa has been thrown out of its former spaces in Meru and Eldoret as well as Thika Road Mall, Junction, Garden City branches in Nairobi over non-payment of rent running into tens of millions of shillings.