Nairobi’s growing wealth attracts world’s food chains
Three international fast food chains have in the past week launched operations in Nairobi, sending the clearest signal yet that the past 10 years of steady economic growth and the accompanying expansion of Kenya’s middle class is beginning to get noticed.
American fast food chain Domino’s Pizza, ice cream seller Cold Stone Creamery and South Africa-based Ocean Basket – a sea food diner – opened outlets in the Kenyan capital in what is seen as the very first fruits of the larger GDP figures released in September that moved Kenya to the club of middle-income nations.
The three have followed in the footsteps of two well-known American chains, KFC and Subway, who set up shop in Nairobi 2011 and 2013
FAST FOOD CHAINS
The attractiveness of any location around the globe to fast food chains is often seen as an acknowledgement of the rise in the number of people with disposable incomes, a shift that investors in the outlets say has occurred in Kenya.
“This economy has a growing middle class with a higher spending power, and who just like their Nigerian counterparts, are highly adventurous and want to try out new things,” said Eric Andre, a director and co-founder of Om Nom Nom, the franchise holder of Cold Stone Creamery and Domino’s Pizza.
“Besides, the infrastructure in Kenya, although not perfect, stands out in the region and the same can be said about education standards.”