Tuskys Supermarket pilots first franchise branch in Expansion drive

Local supermarket chain Tuskys is piloting its first franchise branch with an eye on expanding the model in the region as Kenya’s top retailer embarks on its latest strategy to dominate the sector.

While speaking to a local dailt, Chief executive officer Dan Githua, says the company has set out a plan that would see it execute several growth strategies that include franchising and consolidation with smaller retailers by 2024. The Pilot Franchise is located in Nairobi’s Buru Buru Estate . According to Mr. Githua, the firm’s deal with oil marketer Vivo Energy also enables it to open up more express outlets at Shell petrol stations across the region more aggressively.

The plan includes partnering with local investors who will use the Tuskys brand name as well as setting up smaller stores in Kenya and Uganda where it currently has seven outlets and merging with smaller outlets to accelerate growth.

“We will roll out a lot of stores, especially smaller format outlets on franchise model across the East African region and it is going to happen at the same time. We have two branches being tested locally and in this case, we are allowing our partners to use the Tuskys brand, IT, human resource and supplier management systems among our other resources,” said Mr Githua.

“The small retailers are also improving and we see a lot of opportunity for consolidation and aggregation in the retail industry. Data available shows that we still have an opportunity to have three times more the number of supermarkets in Kenya.”

Tuskys has also embarked on exploring the e-commerce space after recently unveiling an online portal to grow digital revenue streams.