Bata eyes military, police boots business

Bata president, Africa, Alberto Errico shows some of the locally sourced leather used at the factory in Limuru. PHOTO | FRANCIS NDERITU | NMG 

By ERIC WAINAINA

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Bata Shoe Company has invested Sh45 million ($450,000) in a boots manufacturing plant as it seeks to tap into new market created by President Uhuru Kenyatta's directive that all military gear should be bought from local manufacturers.

The plant, only a month old, has already produced samples of the “Combat Boot”, and according to Mr Alberto Errico, the company’s president, it has a capacity of producing between 300,000 and 400,000 pairs per year.

The factory, which is using locally sourced raw materials, is based at the Limuru shoe company that has in the past been manufacturing police boots, among other collections of footwear.

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Mr Errico said the investment, which has seen the firm hire more than 100 specialists, is part of their diversification plan as they seek to remain relevant in business despite growing competition from second-hand shoes.

“The investment is in support of the President’s Big Four Agenda because manufacturing is one of the agendas. At the same time, we (Bata) are seeking to tap into the new market which has been created by Head of State’s order that military boots be procured from local manufacturers,” Mr Errico said, adding that they are optimistic about the business prospects created.

In January, the president directed that all boots, leather products and textiles used by disciplined forces be procured from local manufacturers with effect from the current financial year, an opportunity which local manufacturers are eyeing.

This directive, however, is pegged on the requirement that the local manufacturers must meet high standards that will ensure provision of high quality goods and services.

But according to Mr Errico, Bata products are in conformity with the specifications that have been set by military, adding that it will cost a fraction of what tax payers have been coughing to ensure the members of the armed forces have befitting boots.

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The new products, not only targets local forces, but also in the region.

According to Mr Errico, they have already sent samples to South Africa and Uganda through their sister companies Bata South Africa and Bata Uganda as they seek to win business from the respective governments.

Mr Errico, who is in-charge of the company’s branches in eight countries in Africa, said to ensure that the 124-year-old multinational survives, they have been pumping an estimated Sh100 million ($1 million) annually in Africa to improve on innovation and technology.

Bata Kenya, he said, remains the major factory, producing a variety of about 30 million pairs of shoes per year.