By Edna Mwende,
Turkish fashion retailer, LC Waikiki, has continued the push to establish itself as a player in the Kenyan market by setting up a new outlet at the Junction Mall on Ngong Road.
LC Waikiki had already set up four branches throughout the country, with the first one being opened at the Two Rivers Mall. The other branches are at the Hub Mall in Karen, City Mall in Nyali, Mombasa and Thika Road Mall (TRM).
The fashion retailer has been on a speedy expansion splurge ever since it penetrated the Kenyan Market in 2016. Initially, the retailer was aiming to open five outlets in Kenya by the end of 2018 but the plan was not to be realized until the recent unveiling of the Ngong Road branch.
“We have invested Ksh.100 million in every store and currently we have three branches, two in Nairobi and the one we have opened in Mombasa. We plan to open a few more outlets in Nairobi by 2018,” Kremena Pencheva the Country Manager of LC Waikiki said last year during the launch of the retailer’s Mombasa store.
The firm also revealed that it was drawn into the market by Kenya’s stable economy; low market saturation and fast growing retail oriented middle class.
In the past few years, Nairobi’s rising status as a promising regional hub has seen other international fashion retailers such as Foschini Group (TFG) and Hugo Boss set up shop in the country. Jewel dealerships have also turned to the Kenyan market to increase their market reach.
The Business Daily similarly reports that LC Waikiki is seeking to expand regionally by establishing another outlet in South Africa which is in line with its strategy of opening 1500 stores in Africa by the end of 2023.
LC Waikiki currently operates over 850 stores in 38 countries. The firm is one of the fastest-growing fashion retailers in Europe with a turnover of about Ksh.303 billion as of 2018.
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