I left Nairobi on Saturday. The airport surprised me with several improvements since last year. It has better organized control posts to enter the airport area, a world-class extension to Terminal 1, more eating facilities, etc. Security controls are extensive: I went through 3 screenings! Clearly, they don’t want to take risks. Who knows if […]
Western Retailers Entering sub-Saharan African Markets
I love hanging around markets – although I try not to buy randomly: I always go with my shopping list. When you are in a new country, this is a great way to get a flavor for what life is like for local people. In Kenya, you get a variety of flavors from dusty farmers’ […]
Ease of Doing Business Rankings in sub-Saharan Africa
The Managing Director of a Kenyan company with operations across East Africa explained to me that “Rwanda is embracing investors. They have an organized, one-stop process. We were done with registration within a week.” Her experience doing business in Burundi was completely different. “The laws are not publicized and they change overnight”, she said. “Half […]
The Value of Age Diversity
I’m no one to comment on the Nigerian elections. But I do have one observation to make: the elected President is 72. How many people run for President (and win the election!) at this age? I bet not many. Africans have . Let’s compare a company to a forest. A forest contains trees and other living organisms, […]
Launching Consumer Brands in sub-Saharan Africa
“GDP is not the best way to determine whether or not to go into an African country“, the founder of a successful Nigerian company with operations across the continent told me. This wisdom also applies to launching a consumer brand in Africa. Nielsen’s recent report “Africa: How to navigate the retail distribution labyrinth” confirms this. […]
