List of all articles filed under “kenya-industry” category.
In this conversation with the Marcopolis team, Alpesh Patel, CEO of Silafrica Tanzania, shares deep insights into the success story and strategic approach behind SIMTANK, …
In this interview, Peter Schokker shares his vision and strategic direction for Kibo Africa, a motorcycle manufacturer based in Kenya. He emphasizes quality, customer focus, rugged utility bikes built for African terrain, and growing partnerships to enhance customer value. Kibo has expanded its dealer and service network across Kenya and East Africa and is collaborating with financing partners to make its motorcycles more accessible to SMEs and Boda-Boda riders.
A key part of Kibo’s roadmap includes the phased introduction of electric motorcycles, with a strong focus on preserving the brand’s values of reliability, endurance, and suitability for difficult terrain. Schokker also outlines regional expansion plans, including Uganda, Tanzania, South Sudan, DRC, and Ghana. Efforts are underway to strengthen local manufacturing, improve operational efficiency, and develop new service models to enhance customer experience.
Kibo’s motorcycles are used for a variety of purposes: by government agencies, SMEs, adventure riders, farmers, and logistics companies. The interview concludes with Schokker’s personal motivation—building a business that empowers people economically and working as a team to create impact.
In this in-depth interview, Manish Shah, Chairman of Kingsway Tyres, discusses how the company is adapting its market leadership strategy in Kenya’s rapidly evolving and highly price-sensitive tyre market. Amid increasing pressure from low-cost Chinese tyre imports and global trade shifts, Kingsway has pivoted from a purely product-focused business model to a service-oriented approach, prioritizing tyre safety, driver security, and customer experience.
To stay ahead in the Kenya tyre industry, Kingsway has taken proactive steps in tyre recycling. The company pioneered green tyre disposal in Kenya, establishing a plant that converts used tyres into oil for industrial furnaces. With a second recycling facility opening in Eldorado, Kingsway strengthens its position as a leader in sustainable tyre solutions in East Africa.
Beyond the automotive sector, the Kingsway Group is expanding into real estate development near diplomatic zones in Nairobi, especially in response to the expected influx of staff to the UN headquarters and foreign embassies. They are also active in Kenya’s hospitality sector, investing in Masai Mara eco-camps, Mount Kenya resorts, and coastal hotels, along with launching restaurant brands in Nairobi to support their hospitality and tourism strategy.
Shah also highlights the group’s commitment to developing infrastructure for foreign direct investment (FDI) within Kenya’s Special Economic Zones (SEZs). The SEZ projects include logistics centres, manufacturing hubs, and facilities to support international companies entering the East and Central African markets. These developments offer attractive features such as 10-year tax incentives, currency flexibility, and access to regional markets of over 500 million people.
The SEZ initiative is also fostering ICT sector growth in Kenya, particularly in call centre development, postgraduate education in computing, and the export of tech talent across Africa and the Middle East. Kingsway’s long-standing track record in commercial real estate development in Kenya, including industrial buildings, shopping malls, and hotels, provides a strong foundation for these efforts.
Manish Shah ends with a clear message to international investors: Kenya offers political stability, economic resilience, and a unique gateway to scale across sub-Saharan Africa, making it an ideal base for regional logistics, manufacturing, and ICT operations.
In this section of the interview, Alfred Kandarah, CEO of Typotech Kenya Limited, delves into the company’s strategic evolution following its rebranding from Imaging Solutions …
Typotech Kenya Limited, formerly known as Imaging Solutions, has repositioned itself as a complete printing and packaging solutions provider in East Africa. Under the leadership of CEO Alfred Kandarah, the company has expanded beyond its original focus on pre-press solutions to offer end-to-end services including pre-press, press, and finishing equipment, along with workflow software, consumables, and training.
Now serving key sectors such as newspaper printing, commercial printing, book printing, and most importantly, packaging printing (including paper, board, metal, and textile packaging), Typotech aims to become the first point of contact for high-end printing and packaging solutions in Eastern Africa. The company is particularly targeting the fast-growing packaging industry in Kenya, Uganda, and Ethiopia, and plans to expand across the East African Community and later into Central and West Africa.
Kandarah highlights that the commercial printing industry in Africa is slowing, while packaging printing solutions — including metal packaging, corrugated packaging, and textile printing — continue to see sustained growth. This shift is driven by increased demand for labeling and product packaging across sectors, from home-based manufacturers to multinational FMCG brands.
Typotech also places a strong emphasis on sustainability in printing and packaging, ensuring all imported printing consumables meet environmental standards, especially for food-grade packaging. They supply eco-friendly inks, non-toxic print chemicals, and sustainable substrates tailored to local market regulations.
With ambitions to dominate the East African packaging market, Typotech partners with globally recognized equipment manufacturers to deliver state-of-the-art solutions. From computer-to-plate systems, digital workflow automation, to press and finishing machinery, the company supports the region’s shift toward modern, scalable, and sustainable packaging solutions.
In this section of the interview, Storage Central’s CEO, Gerardo Segura and COO, Nicholas Sadron, offer a clear and detailed update on the company’s current …
Storage Central is a modern self-storage company in Nairobi focused on delivering secure, affordable, and flexible storage solutions to Kenya’s growing urban population and SME sector. In this in-depth interview, CEO Gerardo Segura and COO Nicholas Sadron shares the company’s vision, expansion strategy, and the unique advantages that make Storage Central Nairobi’s preferred provider of self-storage solutions.
Since its last funding round, the company has raised $700,000 to expand its Nairobi storage facility, adding 1,800 square meters and 180 new storage rooms. With occupancy averaging 75 percent, demand for secure storage units in Nairobi remains strong. This modern self-storage facility now offers nearly 7,900 sqm of leasable space with 860 individual storage units, reflecting Nairobi’s growing need for dedicated storage solutions tailored to both residential and SME storage needs.
Nicholas Sadron highlights that self-storage in Nairobi is not only about warehouse alternatives but about enabling flexible storage options that support Kenya’s micro-SMEs, NGOs, and entrepreneurs. Affordable and secure self-storage Nairobi solutions allow businesses to scale up during busy seasons and downsize in slow periods without long-term commitments, supporting economic resilience and sustainable growth. Examples include Matumba dealers in Nairobi who use pay-as-you-use storage units for sorting and distributing secondhand clothing, and medical supply companies like Field Technologies, which grew from 20 to 325 square meters within Storage Central’s facility.
Storage Central’s strategic expansion plan aims to develop 15 to 20 new storage facilities in East Africa, including key markets such as Kampala, Dar es Salaam, and Mauritius, over the next decade. The company is currently looking to raise $20 million to build five additional storage facilities in Nairobi, emphasizing the investment opportunity in East Africa’s self-storage industry. The CEO notes that self-storage investment East Africa represents a rare, untapped market, given the region’s urban density, growing SME sector, and lack of modern self-storage facilities.
Gerardo Segura explains their financing strategy, preferring debt over equity to reduce shareholder dilution while balancing foreign exchange risk with a currency buying program. He describes Storage Central’s lean business model as inherently resilient, with low operational costs, month-to-month rental flexibility, and highly atomized customer base that diversifies risk and ensures financial stability.
Beyond offering secure rental storage units, Storage Central provides value-added services such as insurance-included storage units (with standard coverage of KES 50,000), locks, and transport assistance. Its digital experience includes an online space calculator and reservation system, with plans to scale CRM systems and localize services in Swahili and English to support expansion across East African markets. However, the CEO emphasizes that despite AI and automation trends in global self-storage markets, human-centered customer service remains a competitive advantage in Africa, where face-to-face engagement and trust-building are essential for converting customers.
Gerardo Segura’s message to investors is clear: Storage Central is unlocking opportunity in Africa’s overlooked markets by offering modern, accessible, and flexible storage solutions. It’s not about creating a new need but improving an existing one with purpose-built self-storage facilities that are safe, convenient, and tailored to local realities.
In this part of the interview with James Odongo, CEO of KEPRO, he outlines how the organization is helping Kenya’s producers adapt to the country’s …
In this interview with James Odongo, CEO of KEPRO (Kenya Extended Producer Responsibility Organisation), he outlines how the organisation is spearheading Kenya’s transition to a circular economy through regulatory alignment, recycling innovation, and strategic public engagement.
Founded in response to the 2017 plastic bag ban in Kenya, KEPRO was established as a special purpose vehicle to help producers take full environmental responsibility for the post-consumption lifecycle of their products. With over 1,000 member companies and close collaboration with the Kenya Association of Manufacturers, KEPRO plays a central role in the implementation of the Sustainable Waste Management Act and EPR regulations introduced in 2024.
Odongo explains that KEPRO’s primary mission is to future-proof business models by encouraging adoption of circular business practices and ensuring compliance with evolving environmental laws. The organization addresses major hurdles such as the cost of compliance, helping members manage financial contributions through a technology-enabled EPR platform that ensures real-time data access and transparency.
With a clear focus on digital transformation, KEPRO has moved beyond manual filing to an interactive compliance system that supports self-declaration, helping reduce administrative burden and increase data confidentiality, especially among competitor-member companies.
Looking ahead to 2025, KEPRO expects growth in collection subsidies, technology investment, and waste compliance support. These budgets are directly tied to partnerships with waste management operators and recyclers, as KEPRO strengthens recycling ecosystems and champions recyclable packaging design. Odongo highlighted the shift by brands like Sprite from green to clear plastic bottles as a positive example of end-of-life product management aligned with recycling goals.
To drive consumer behavior change, KEPRO deploys a mixed communication strategy using digital campaigns, grassroots engagement, social dialogues, and community influencers to reinforce its message: “My waste is my responsibility.” This call to action urges all Kenyans to embrace waste segregation, proper bin use, and active citizenship in building a clean and healthy environment.
KEPRO’s three-year vision is to cement its leadership as Kenya’s premier producer responsibility organization, outpacing competition while scaling its partnerships and environmental impact. At the heart of its strategy lies a commitment to ESG, public-private collaboration, and ensuring that Kenyan businesses remain sustainable, competitive, and compliant in a rapidly evolving regulatory landscape.
In this exclusive interview, Akshay Shah, Group Executive Director of Silafrica, explores how the company is leading the way in sustainable packaging in Kenya and across Africa. As a founding member of KEPRO (Kenya Extended Producer Responsibility Organization), Silafrica champions circular economy packaging, using post-consumer (PCR) and post-industrial recycled materials (PIR) in over 36% of its output. The company partners with multinationals like Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Heineken, and Unilever to deliver rigid plastic packaging, recyclable beverage crates, and IoT-enabled production systems (ThinkTracks). Shah also highlights the critical role of MSMEs in Africa’s packaging supply chain, outlining strategies to aggregate demand and finance packaging solutions for small-scale producers. From custom yogurt cup printing to cross-border reusable crate systems, Silafrica is redefining what it means to build a scalable, circular, and inclusive packaging industry in Africa.
