A first for Kenyan retail chain - 24-hour shopping

Commencing this evening, the branch will remain open on a 24-hour basis, and that is claimed to make history as the first supermarket store in the heart of a city to operate round the clock in Africa.

With the opening, it now becomes the fourth Nakumatt outlet to transform into a 24-hour service store after Nakumatt Ukay, Ngong Road Hyper and Eldoret branches.

Operations Director Thiagarajan Ramamurthy disclosed that plans are at an advanced stage to expand the round-the-clock shopping convenience concept to cover more outlets countrywide.

“Due to overwhelming customer requests, we are seriously exploring the possibility of extending this service to cover a few more branches countrywide in the coming months,” Ramamurthy said.

The new extended shopping hours concept has spawned a dynamic economy beyond the conventional eight hours shopping window which is impacting positively on the local retail economic sector.

Besides the 24-hour service, the company has also extended its opening hours at seven of its branches, which will now remain open until 10.00pm through the festive season.

The branches are Nakumatt Westgate, Mega, Junction, Karen and Thika road branches in Nairobi. In Mombasa, Nakumatt Nyali and Likoni will also remain open until late.

On the global retail front, the company's efforts are already eliciting attention with the world's retail research powerhouse Planet Retail describing Nakumatt's concept as a success. It is also in line with global practices, particularly in the European market, where recent legal and societal developments have provided an impetus for rethinking retail opening hours in many countries.