Bakers cut bread prices on competition from supermarket bakeries
A customer shops for bread at a supermarket in Nairobi.
What you need to know:
- The price of bread in the in-store bakeries has been cheaper by an average Sh5 since April.
Bakers have sliced bread prices by Sh5 on the stiff competition by supermarket in-store bakeries, hurting their profit margins in the wake of the prevailing high global cost of wheat.
The price of bread in the in-store bakeries has been cheaper by an average Sh5 since April when rival bakers raised their prices in a fresh attempt to pass the additional cost in the price of wheat to consumers.
The in-store bakeries did not adjust their prices — titling the scale as price-sensitive consumers opted for the cheaper products. Spooked by the consumer shift, bakers have now lowered their prices to keep up with the competition.
A spot check by the Business Daily shows a 400-gramme loaf of Superloaf and Festive is now retailing at Sh50 from Sh55 previously with 800-gramme Festive brand selling at Sh92 from Sh100, depending on the point of purchase.
“It is evident that the public cannot pay a premium for the bread and this is what has forced bakers to cut their prices because of competition,” said Broadway Group of Companies managing director Bimal Shah.
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