Village market's Managing Director, Hamed Ehsani. PHOTO | FILE
On what was once a coffee farm now stands a high-end shopping centre in Nairobi.
Armed
with Sh90 million in 1992, the Ehsami brothers, bought land and started
setting up shops. Their dream was to build an African market centre,
where people would meet and shop.
Twenty
years down the line, however, the brothers’ idea of setting up between
10 and 30 shops as well as a supermarket has turned out to host over 200
shops and the Tribe Hotel.
Money met
with one of the brothers Hamed Ehsani, who said the growing business
has been sustained by the primary focus of simply creating a ‘village
market.’
“We were just driving around
when my brothers and I saw this place and thought we could set up a few
shops and create a shopping centre that captures the concept of an
African village, a market that brings people together and creates a
setting for socioeconomic interrelations. We bought the seven-acre piece
of land that was full of coffee bushes. My elder brother designed it
and three years later, we had 60 shops,” said Mr Ehsani.
And
for the three brothers — Abbas, the eldest, Mehraz an architect, and
Hamed, the youngest — unity has seen them weather the storm in steering
the enterprise.
The Sh12 billion
worth of shopping complex is now expanding. It is developing 75 new
shops, a supermarket, and a hotel with a capacity of 215 rooms as well
as a conference centre. The plan also includes 1,000 new parking spaces
set to be completed next year.
DIPLOMATIC RESIDENCES
The brothers strategised well to get customers back in the day when Gigiri was considered far away from the city.
A 12-lane bowling alley, a Nu-Metro cinema hall, nine hi-tide
waterslides among other recreational facilities made the entertainment
aspect of Village Market attractive.
Gigiri,
as a location, turned to be a favour as well. Many diplomatic
residences and the United Nations offices around it made the mall a
preferred shopping centre for foreign dignitaries, whose taste is
premium. Mr Hamed says they have kept abreast with changing shopping
trends as another investor, the Shah family, joined them as partners.
“Trends in shopping have changed because Kenyans travel and are exposed
to modern shopping concepts. We had to keep up with the expectations of
our customers, which played an important role in creating our expansion
from the original 60 to over 200 shops we have today,” says the Village
Market boss.
Surprisingly, he says, ongoing tourism slump has not affected the hotel business since Tribe attracts business travellers.
Mr
Ehsami is, however, concerned that insecurity has the potential of
affecting mall business. According to him, the government has a lot to
do to protect investments.
“We have
invested heavily in securing the Village Market. The market is very
rumour sensitive though. An SMS or a social media post is enough to
scare away shoppers and reduce traffic. I hope the government will find a
long lasting solution to these threats,” he told Money.
Asked
whether they have achieved the vision to create a village market, the
youngest of the Ehsani trio says the village has lived to its true
spirit of providing a one-stop-shop that brings different people to
exchange ideas; just like in an African market set up.
He
is not worried by many malls coming up in the neighbourhood to
challenge the Village Market’s position, saying that is just a sign that
Kenya will soon become a shopping destination.
“We
have responded to the needs of the city residents and developed what is
modern and all inclusive. Our Sh5.6 billion expansion plan will double
the size of Village Market to over 500,000-square-feet of shopping
space. Demand is high and we undertake due diligence before we accept
applicants for business premises,” the soft spoken trader said.
ATTRACTIVE DESTINATION
The
entrepreneur believes that Kenya has the potential to take advantage of
the current global and regional market trends to take off.
“There
are some very easy ways for Kenya to get a lot of investments. Europe
is still depressed. Russia has issues with Ukraine. South Africa, with
its Xenophobia attacks, has scared people. North Africa is yet to
recover from the Arab spring while West Africa is yet to fully recover
from the Ebola scare. This leaves East Africa as the destination of
choice and Kenya is the best place,” he said.
He
believes the government should also ensure that there are easier steps
in enabling one to start a new business as well as strengthen integrity
of records, especially on land with a view to making it fool proof. This
would see investors feel secure.
His
greatest joy, he says, is seeing shoppers, who were introduced to the
Village Market as teenagers come to visit with their children. He says
the longer the business stays; the longer it attracts customers, who
pass loyalty to their children.
His take on wrangles that characterise family businesses in Kenya today?
“The
most important thing, in my opinion is respect that you must show to
your family members and partners. The other thing is to put the interest
of the business ahead of the interest of the individuals. And finally
to consult on all matters to make sure everyone supports the ideas and
the actions. That way, everything will work smoothly,’’ advised Mr
Ehsani.
The Village Market, which
hosts over 300 events each year usually has its busiest days being the
religious holidays of both for the Muslims and Christians. The centre
has also played scene to documentaries on business, recreation and
entertainment.
No comments :
Post a Comment