By David Kezio-Musoke
EDITOR/INSPIRE RWANDA

Rwanda’s increasing taste for trendy households and crave for good service is attracting luxury brands to Kigali seeking to cash in on an expanding middle class with higher disposable incomes.

International brands positioning themselves to exploit the growing appetite for the finer things in life — from clothes to shoes and drinks — are also driving the development of shopping malls.

The same crave for good service and finer human resource, has left a couple of Rwandans jobless for the more formidable Kenyan business leader in some of Kigali’s corporate executive houses.

In Rwanda today you wouldn’t be surprised to find business leaders like Robert Mathu (Chief Executive Capital Markets Authority), Maurice Toroitich of KCB and Lawson Naibo (Chief Operations Officer of Banque de Kigali) pulling the strings, and the list goes on.

Today it wont be surprising to find a large number of Rwandan university students, tending to Mount Kenya University or Jommo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology or simply attending the Kenya Institute of Management being taught by Kenyan themselves.

Take another example the war between the beer manufacturers that has spectacularly spilled into the open with the profusion of colorful lawn umbrellas and matching chairs sprouting all over Kigali, donning the colours of the various brands.

The major player driving the competition for customer attention is Kenya’s East African Breweries Limited (EABL) which is pitting against local heavyweight Brasseries et Limonaderies du Rwanda (Bralirwa), and Brasseries des Mille Collines (BMC) which is fast asserting its market presence

According to research EABL’s uptake for its high-end whisky and spirits in Kigali is growing annually being quoted at 20 percent (in just over 6 months) in the run-in to December 2013.

EABL, whose majority shareholder is the British multinational alcoholic beverages company, Diageo PLC, distributes the popular Kenyan beer brands, Guinness, Tusker Lager and Malt, and the Ugandan Bell Lager which Rwandans will easily request for while quenching their thirst off an any evening after a day’s hustle.

Kenyan brands versus other brands

Kenyan brands have come out pretty strong taking the lion share of products being consumed and services being preferred by Rwandans. In the financial industry we have seen the strong emergence of KCB, Equity Bank and the buy into of BCR by Kenyan brand, ‘I&M’ Bank.

While ‘Fusion Capital’ a Kenyan investment firm is already funding the construction of Kigali Heights the insurance firms UAP and recently Britam have made a major presence that is already being bullish to local Rwandan insures. The number of Rwandans classified as the middle class, though extremely very small has doubled in the last decade to almost a fifth of the population according to the UN.

Our rudimental observation of a Rwandan consumer in her/his middle class — is based mainly on the status mostly defined by a tertiary educated persons holding salaried jobs or owning small businesses, urban residency and ownership of household goods such as refrigerators, phones, flat screen TVs and automobiles.

Most of theses are likely to be found in the urban areas and chances are very high they would listen to Kenyan owned Nation Media KFM radio station or even read The East African largely owned by the same Kenyan holding or frequent the Serena Hotel (another Kenyan brand) for hospitality.

While more than 1.2million Rwandans escaped poverty, between 2007 and 2012 – pushing the level down to less than 45 percent of the population, the government has established several social protection programs, which are giving direct cash to extreme poor Rwandans.

As a result of the quick drop in poverty levels in past five years, government has already reviewed the targeted personal income of Rwandan by 2020 to more than $1,200. The latest incomes stand at about $600 and from this share; Kenyan brands have been offered the bargain to reckon by Rwandan consumers.

Made in Kenya, living in Kigali City
Kigali is now running on the increased uptake of luxury brands from the region. This can be attributed to the growing culture the few major malls like the Union Trading Center and the Kigali City Towers (in down town side). These are offering more space and hype to make buyers feel that shopping experiences are the ideal thing.

Recently Deloitte & Touché noted that Africa’s cities are grooming a middle class, which is more recreational. Kigali is creating the demand for lifestyle products that range from fashion, jewelry, accessories and cosmetics and Rwandans have jumped on the fray.

In Kigali, marketers (mostly of Kenyan origin) are contending with a seismic shift to fit the rapid rise and distinctive demands of the city resident’s consumers, who are claiming the market space long denied to them.

Already, there is a stark difference between the shopping experiences offered 10 years ago and that being offered today. And the same goes with the brand feel offered by Kenyan brands. The consumer mannerism including partying has been greatly influenced by the Kenyan presence. As the old adage goes, “Kenyans will party till wee hours of the day and that is pretty evident at the popular resto bar called ‘Car Wash’ which is ran by a Kenyan patron.  

 

The Kenyan brands have also created their own style of shaking up the Rwandan market with new exciting ways attracting more passionate loyal shoppers. 

Today getting into shops is much less of an effort since Nakumatt started operations and even opened a second outlet on KCT. Uchumi another Kenyan brand ‘cross-listing on the Rwanda Stock Exchange has already announced plans of opening shop in Kigali, craving for the same clientele as Uchumi.

Rwandans aware of their own brands
Inspire Rwanda Magazine went to the street and our finding suggest that there are still lingering positive effects offered by some strong homemade brands like Inyange and the beverage products such as Primus. However chances are very high that a typical Rwandan will be utilizing one or two products with Kenyan brand labels without even being aware he or she is doing so. This might not be surprising because as our findings indicate other Rwandans will choose to prefer home brand to foreign ones for patriotic reasons which explains why more travellers would choose to fly Rwandair to flying Kenya Airways to destinations such Nairobi and Johannesburg.

From our downtown mini-survey, some revelers will tell you they wont care much about the origin of the brand and will most certainly add, “I don’t really care much about the brand of the foodstuff when I purchase from any super market.”

Though the number of upper-income households is growing in up-scale Kigali, in areas like Kimironko, Kiyovu and Nyarutarama, at more than 20 percent annually; chances are that within the next few years the same households will be dominated by at one or two Kenyan branded utilities. These will include toiletries, beverages, hardware and even small food items such as yoghurts and beef products.

Luckily enough some marketers have stopped assuming that because Rwandan consumers are entering higher income bands, their shopping preferences and habits should become more to the brands they are mostly used to.

Some of the Kenyan brands active in Rwanda

Financial Institutions
KCB Bank
Equity Bank
I&M Bank
Fusion Capital (funding Kigali Heights)

Insurance 
UAP
Britam           

Beverages 
Tusker Beer

Hospitality
Serena

Travel
Kenya Airways
Jet Link

Outlets
Nakumatt
Uchumi

Education
Mount Kenya University
Jommo Kenyatta University of Agric and Tech
KIM

Media
East African (Rwanda Today)
KFM