SO WHO EXACTLY IS THE TARGET MARKET FOR THE NEW ‘BOSSINI’ BRAND FROM DEACONS?

Deacons CEO, Mr Muchiri Wahome is bullish about their new fashion brand, Bossini. He was quoted as saying, “Deacons has invested approximately invested USD1 Million in the two Bossini stores at the Village Market and Yaya Center.”

These new stores will provide shopping convenience to the current customers who live around Nairobi while tapping into a new market with the local and international brands that Deacons has to offer.
The CEO explained that the drive to expand to Asia brand was informed by market needs globalization.
“The Bossini brand appeals to mass customers with colorful and contemporary designs. While Bossini has a large selection of styles in ladies, men’s and Kidswear, DKL is cognizant of local customer tastes, preferences, weather conditions etc in selecting the product to be sold in the local market. The expansion strategy is in line with the growing middle class as reflected by the growth of store footprint and the locations the growth is occurring especially, Thika Road Mall where we have experienced an increase in the recruitment of new customers within the middle class segment,” Muchiri said.

He further added, “It is also part of the Group’s strategy to diversify its supplier base to other geographic location around the world and also getting closer to source (manufacturing).”

Currently, the country does not have any industry statistics around retail market share. However, several dipstick surveys suggest that Deacons command a significant market share.

Commenting on pricing, Muchiri said, “Bossini is in the mid-tier of our pricing matrix across all our brands. The brand’s competitive advantage will be a differentiated casual offering at great value and will penetrate the middle income segment of the market.”

Deacons have a very successful track record of bringing fashion and lifestyle retail international brands into Kenya and the region. Working well with these global partners has allowed the company to extend its alliance base including a recent launch of the European brand Zara into its own 4U2 stores.

The Zara brand is part of the Inditex Group one of the world’s fastest growing fashion brands. These kinds of partnerships will strategically enable Deacons to bring global fashion in East Africa and continue to play a leadership role in this sector.

Deacons was established 54 years ago and have gone through a lot of transformation in the last few years. It is the umbrella company which owns and manages various internationally acclaimed retail brands in Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda. These brands comprise of Woolworths, Truworths, Identity, 4U2, Mr. Price, Mr. Price Home, Angelo, Adidas, Life Fitness and Babyshop through either full ownership, joint venture or the franchise model. The brands meet the needs of various customer segments due to their diverse product offering and unique brand proposition. In 2010, the retail shop went public to raise Sh700million capital for expansion.