Uchumi Supermarkets

Uchumi Supermarkets, often referred to simply as Uchumi, is a Kenyan supermarket chain. The word uchumi means "economy" in Swahili.

Uchumi Supermarkets
TypePublic company
KN: UCHM
IndustryRetail trade
Founded1975 (1975)
HeadquartersNairobi, Kenya
Key people
John Karani
Chairperson
Mohamed Mohamed
Chief Executive Officer[1]
ProductsSupermarkets
RevenueNet Sales:US$165.4 million (KES:14.458 billion) (2014)
Increase Aftertax: US$4.398+ million (KES:384 million) (2014)[2]
Total assetsUS$78.8 million (KES:6.885 billion) (2014)
Number of employees
50 (2020)[1]
Websiteuchumi.com

Overview

Uchumi is headquartered in Kenya. As of April 2019, Uchumi is one of a number of Kenyan supermarket chains that serve Kenya, including market-leaders Naivas and Quick Mart and Carrefour. In June 2014, the company's assets were about US$78.8 million (KES:6.885 billion), with shareholder equity of approximately US$38.4 million (KES:3.357 billion).[3] By December 2020 there were only three stores in Kenya.

History

The company was founded in 1975, as a public limited liability company, by three Kenyan parastatal companies: Industrial and Commercial Development Corporation, Kenya Wine Agencies Limited (KWAL), and Kenya National Trading Corporation. The main objective at the time was to create outlets for the equitable distribution of commodities and to create retail outlets for Kenyan manufactures. In 1976, Uchumi's shareholders signed a management contract with Standa SPA, an Italian supermarket chain, to train Kenyans to run the new enterprise. The shares of the company stock were listed on the Nairobi Stock Exchange (NSE) in 1992.

Uchumi closed down, albeit temporarily, and was placed in receivership during June 2006 after 30 years of business.[4] It was simultaneously de-listed from the NSE. At the time, its closure was described as "one of the greatest corporate disasters in independent Kenya history".[5] A government-led rescue plan, however, was initiated and consequently five Uchumi outlets, all in Nairobi, were reopened on 15 July 2006 under interim management and a caretaker administrator.[6]

By January 2011, the retail chain had returned to profitability and applied to the Kenya Capital Markets Authority to re-list its shares on the NSE.[7] Approval to re-list on the NSE was granted in May 2011 and trading in the shares of Uchumi resumed on 31 May 2011.[8]

Ownership

As of July 2014, the shares of stock of the retail chain are listed on the NSE, where they trade under the symbol "UCHM". The shares are also cross-listed on the Rwanda Stock Exchange[9] and the Uganda Securities Exchange.[10] The company obtained regulatory approval to cross-list on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange, effective 15 August 2014.[11] The six largest shareholders in the company as of April 2015 were:[12]

Uchumi Supermarkets Stock Ownership
RankName of OwnerPercentage Ownership
1Jamii Bora Bank15.8
2Kenya's Ministry of Trade14.6
3Paul Wanderi Ndung’u5.4
4KWAL Holdings4.3
5Equity Nominees: Ac:001114.1
6Karim Jamal2.3
716th Internationalé de Háfs1.1
8Others via the Stock Exchanges in eastern Africa52.3
Total100.00

Branches

As of April 2019, the supermarket chain maintained Six outlets in Kenya:[13]

List of Branches in Kenya

List of Uchumi branches in Kenya:[14]

  1. Langata Branch – Nairobi
  2. Nairobi West Branch – Nairobi
  3. Ngong Road Branch (Adams) – Nairobi
  • In 2015 Uchumi had 37 stores. 34 stores have closed down.

Closure of non-Kenyan stores

In June 2015, Uchumi fired its chief executive officer and chief financial officer at the time, for "misconduct and gross negligence".[15] In July 2015, the company hired a Nairobi-based consulting firm to probe employee theft at the retail chain.[16] In August 2015, a new CEO was hired.[17] In October 2015, the store chain closed down all its stores in Uganda and Tanzania, citing unprofitability.[18] In the process, 900 former employees were laid off in both countries,[19][20] of whom 400 were in Uganda.[21][22]

See also

References
  1. Gachiri, John (26 August 2015). "Uchumi Poaches Julius Kipng'etich from Equity for Top Job". Business Daily Africa. Nairobi. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  2. Staff Reporter (8 September 2014). "Uchumi Posts KSh384 Million Profit, To Move Key Uganda Outlets". Business Daily Africa (Nairobi). Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  3. Uchumi (September 2014). "Audited 30 June 2014 Financial Statement" (PDF). Uchumi Supermarkets. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  4. "Kenyan Shop Chain Shuts Its Doors". BBC News. 2 June 2006. Retrieved 30 May 2014.
  5. "The man who tamed Kenya's 'greatest corporate disaster'". The Nairobian. 9 February 2014. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  6. "Company History". Uchumi Supermarkets. Archived from the original on 31 May 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  7. Wafula, David (26 January 2011). "Uchumi Plays Catch-Up in Battle for Shoppers". Business Daily Africa. Retrieved 30 May 2014.
  8. Wahome, Mwaniki (25 May 2011). "Uchumi Shares 'Expected' to Trade at Higher Value". Daily Nation. Retrieved 30 May 2014.
  9. Mugwe, David (14 October 2013). "Uchumi Supermarkets Becomes Third to Cross-List on Kigali Bourse". The EastAfrican. Retrieved 30 May 2014.
  10. Mugwe, David (13 November 2013). "Uchumi Shares Start Trading on Kampala Bourse". The EastAfrican. Retrieved 30 May 2014.
  11. Ciuri, Simon (5 August 2014). "Uchumi Gets Approval To Cross-List on Dar Bourse". Business Daily Africa (Nairobi). Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  12. Juma, Victor (5 April 2015). "Kidero Exits Uchumi Top Shareholders' List". Business Daily Africa (Nairobi). Retrieved 6 April 2015.
  13. Mutegi, Mugambi (25 November 2015). "Uchumi opens 24-hour outlet in Nairobi". Business Daily Africa. Nairobi.
  14. "List of Uchumi Branches in Kenya". Uchumi Supermarkets. Retrieved 30 May 2014.
  15. "Uchumi sacks Ciano, CFO for 'gross misconduct, negligence'". Business Daily Africa. Nairobi. 15 June 2015. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  16. Ciuri, Simon (28 July 2015). "Ailing Uchumi hires HR firm to probe theft by employees". Business Daily Africa. Nairobi. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  17. David Evans, Humphrey Malalo and Edmund Blair (25 August 2015). "Kenya's Uchumi Supermarkets picks new CEO after predecessor sacked". Nairobi. Reuters. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  18. Ngugi, Brian (14 October 2015). "Uchumi Supermarkets shuts down regional operations". Daily Nation. Nairobi. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  19. Ciuri, Simon (14 October 2015). "Uchumi sacks 900 Uganda, Tanzania staff". Business Daily Africa. Nairobi. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  20. Mutegi, Mugambi (15 October 2015). "Uchumi reveals KSh2.4bn drain by closed outlets". Business Daily Africa. Nairobi. Retrieved 15 October 2015.
  21. Semakula, Othman (14 October 2015). "400 Ugandans lose jobs as Uchumi exits Uganda". Daily Monitor. Kampala. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
  22. Mark Keith Muhumuza, and Othman Semakula (20 October 2015). "Why Uchumi painfully closed Uganda, Tanzania operations". Daily Monitor. Kampala. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
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