Markets & Finance

Deacons goes down market with new store

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Customers shop at a Mr Price outlet in Nairobi. Deacons has been associated with the top-end to upper middle class with four South African brands — Woolworths, Truworths, Dentity and Mr Price

Low-cost South African home accessories firm, Sheet Street, is this morning set to open shop in Kenya, raising the stakes in the competitive household goods market.

The company, which is a household name among South African middle class, will gun for a slice of the lucrative Kenyan market through a franchise deal with Deacons Kenya.

It will open its first shop at Capital Centre, Mombasa road, according to a statement by Deacons Kenya, which is diversifying to the emerging lower-middle class from the high end market. In South Africa, Sheet Street targets the middle class market.

The low-middle class market is currently served by importers from Asia and second hands dealers.

Mr Wahome Muchiri, Deacons Kenya managing director, told the Business Daily that rather than erode its brand image and reputation, the move will enhance its presence across segments.

“We want to grow our customer base which is very necessary in a down turn. The strategy is to diversify our offering and to capture new markets,” said Mr Muchiri.

Previously, Deacons has been associated with the top-end to upper middle class with four South African brands — Woolworths, Truworths, iDentity and Mr Price — already part of its stable.

Other Deacons brands including Angelo and 4U2 are Kenyan brands.

But Kenya’s battered economy, which looks set to hurt the consumers disposable income, has forced Deacons to seek new markets to cushion itself from the expected fall in sales, especially in the luxury goods segment.

The new kid in the Deacon family will offer home accessories such as curtains, duvet covers and sofa upholstery.