How your business can generate cash from each customer segment

A customer at a supermarket. FILE 

By Scott Bellows

In Summary

• It is easy to add new revenue streams by targeting many groups, you just need to know how to.

Fashion giant H&M looking to source clothes from Kenya

 

Shoppers walk past a branch of H&M in central London. The fashion retailer will open a manufacturing plant in Kenya to feed its global empire. Photo/AFP 

By VICTOR JUMA

In Summary

• The Swedish multinational says it has signed deals with local factories to make its fast-fashion clothing under its famous H&M brand.
• In Africa, H&M only has shops in Egypt, but has talked of plans to open stores in South Africa by next year. The bulk of its shops are in Europe.
• Sourcing of garments from local manufacturers by H&M will offer new demand for the sluggish textile industry whose earnings and production have dropped significantly from its peak in the 1980s.

Stockbrokers to raise more capital in new EAC rules

Stockbrokers at the floor of the Nairobi Securities Exchange. Draft rules are seeking to harmonise regulations for EAC capital market intermediaries. FILE 

By GEOFFREY IRUNGU, girungu@ke.nationmedia.com

In Summary

• Draft rules seeking to harmonise regulations for EAC capital market intermediaries have proposed minimum liquid capital or cash requirement of at least Sh258 million or $3 million for an investment bank, Sh21 million for a broker or broker dealer and Sh10 million for a fund manager.
• The new rules could put brokers under increasing financial pressure as they set aside some of their earnings ahead of launch of the EAC monetary union in 2024.

NSSF loses Sh500m to Chinese firm in inflated house costs

 

NSSF managing trustee Richard Langat responds to questions when he appeared before the National Assembly’s Public Investment Committee on Thursday. Photo/Anne Kamoni 

By EDWIN MUTAI, emutai@ke.nationmedia.com

In Summary

• Parliament finds that China Jiangxi varied bid prices by Sh100m in five multi-billion shilling tenders.
• MPs said the relationship between NSSF and China Jiangxi was suspect because documents before the committee showed that the Chinese firm rarely quoted the lowest prices in bid documents but had won 90 per cent of the contracts. 

Google's outsized ad growth offsets steep price decline

Google executives said the company benefited from strong demand from brand marketers and retailers in the fourth quarter, as well as healthy demand for online ads in international markets. Photo/FILE 

By Reuters

In Summary

• Google's advertising rates, like those of other Internet companies including Yahoo Inc, has been under pressure as more consumers access its online services on mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets, where advertising rates are lower than on PCs.

January inflation rises to 7.21 per cent

 

A woman sells groceries at Nyeri Municipal Market. Overall inflation rose slightly to 7.21 per cent in January from 7.15 per cent last December due to higher food prices. FILE 

By BD Reporter

Overall inflation rose slightly to 7.21 per cent in January from 7.15 per cent last December due to higher food prices.

Campaigns for new design and sharing of roads gathers pace to reduce deaths

 

The Nairobi CBD (left) and a section of the Western Ring Roads: The Unep is campaigning for redesign of roads to create space for all users. Photos/Sarah Ooko 

By SARAH OOKO

In Summary

• Contest between motorists and other road users usually culminate in road accidents that kill or seriously injure someone every six seconds.
• United Nations Environment Programme (Unep) is now promoting a global programme dubbed ‘Share the Road’ to address some of these challenges on the road

• Urban residents urged to cycle to work
• Campaigns for new design and sharing of roads gathers pace