Nakumatt goes regional and opens Rwanda branch

Published on 25/08/2008 By Oscar Pilipili In Kigali

Supermarket chain Nakumatt Holdings has crystallised its East Africa expansion plan with the opening of a supermarket branch in the heart of Kigali, Rwanda.

The supermarket chain, which has announced plans to cover the Pan-African market in the coming years, has opened the doors to its first Sh204 million ($3 million) outlet at the Union Trade Centre.

The new outlet, covering a shopping floor space of more than 25,000 square feet, is the first operational Nakumatt outlet outside Kenya.

Speaking during the opening of the branch, Nakumatt Holdings Operations Director Thiagarajan Ramamurthy said the company would invest more than Sh1.3 billion in the East Africa expansion plan, which would see the chain open three branches in Uganda, two in Rwanda, four in Tanzania and raising its Kenyan network to 30 in the next two years.

world class standards

During the event officiated by Rwanda's Minister for Trade and Industry Monique Nsanzabaganwa, Ramamurthy pledged to maintain the firm's world class standards in the expansion drive.

"Through this supermarket, we shall also be focusing our energies on the transfer of global retail best practices to Rwanda." The supermarket's entry to Rwanda is a culmination of an investor programme spearheaded by the Rwanda Investment and Export Promotion Agency (Riepa).

Riepa Director-General Francis Gatare said the move would facilitate further development in the country's retail sector as envisioned in the Rwanda Vision 2020 development blueprint. He said Nakumatt's entry into Rwanda was a rich harvest.

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Jean-Louis Kayitenkore
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