Naivas opens 66th branch at The Waterfront in Karen

Naivas Supermarkets Head of Human Resources Godrick Itur and Chief Commercial Officer Willy Kimani at the Naivas Food Market at The Waterfront in Karen, Nairobi, during its opening on October 12, 2020.

Photo credit: Evans Habil | Nation Media Group

What you need to know:

  • The food market at The Waterfront in Karen is the retailer’s 66th outlet in the country, and the second to be opened within two months.
  • The retailer is set to open other outlets in Rongai and Hazina Towers in the Nairobi central business district before the end of the year.

Naivas Supermarket on Monday opened a branch in Karen, Nairobi, as it continues an expansion that will see it have outlets across the country.

The food market at The Waterfront in Karen is the retailer’s 66th outlet in the country, and the second to be opened within two months.

Customers sampled the market soon after its doors were opened in the morning, with Naivas officials promising more outlets but noting that they will be cautious with the expansion in order not to suffer the negative consequences of explosive growth.

Chief Commercial Officer Willy Kimani said: “We have the right model but do we know our customers’ rights? Do we expand without tripping or expand out of the country before serving our market, which we fully understand?”

Mr Kimani added that a slow but sure growth will enable Naivas to monitor market response and take actions such as closing outlets that do not make money.

“If a store does not perform, it should be shut. We have not been shy [about this] in the past … we have shut down two stores in Makongeni and Githunguri. We shall not be shy,” he said.

At the 50-acre Waterfront, Naivas has occupied 3,500 square metres on the ground floor.

The retailer is set to open other outlets in Rongai and at Hazina Towers in the Nairobi central business district before the end of the year.