Kenyan taking Shortcuts in Business,

There are many people in Kenya taking shortcuts in Business. The idea of using something cheap and of low quality is only very prevalent in Kenya. Even the KEBS sign no longer signifies basic quality.

For instance, take shampoos in Kenya. The most popular shampoo in the market is nice and lovely at the moment. Having a closer look at the shampoo it is just but a basic shampoo that dries your hair and has lather on it. There is the claim of proteins and oils in it, but if you don’t add oil by someone hasn’t come up with a better Kenyan made affordable shampoo. The reason may lie in the fact that most manufacturers will not sit and watch you bring something better in the market. They will do whatever it takes to get their products cheaper or make yours not stocked in the supermarket shelves.

The quality issue runs deep with clothes and shoes alike. Most of the Bata shoes nowadays are from China despite the fact they still claim to be a Kenyan manufacturer who employs local people. Well they do employ local people but with all the years they had of a shoe market monopoly they should be able to produce better quality shoes than the overpriced plastic ones they source cheaply from China.

This is the same for the so caller Vision 2030 Juakali ventures. I have blogged about Flamingo enterprises in Nakuru; they basically are a big shop stocked with Juakali stuff which in most cases costs more that the factory manufactured good which have been tested. They sell a 200 egg incubator for 156,000 shilling, the same is sold by China importers for around 140,000 shilling and a 240 egg incubator goes for 65,000 shillings by Eco chick. Whilst clearly information is power in making informed decisions, clearly the juakali pricing is irrational and there is no quality justification at all.