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• Sat May 31 2025

In Kenya's competitive market, most of the giant supermarkets we see today started from humble beginnings

Peter Mukuha Kago founded Naivas Ltd as a family business before the retailer was acquired by foreign investors

Khetia's Supermarket, run by Ashok Khetia, began as a modest wholesale store in Kitale, Trans-Nzoia county

Japhet Ruto, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, brings over eight years of experience in reporting on finance, business, and technology, delivering insights into economic trends in Kenya and globally.

The days of Tuskys and the now-defunct Nakumatt controlling Kenya's retail market are long gone.

Naivas and Quickmart began from humble beginnings. Photos: Quickmart and Naivas.

Source: Facebook

Other local and foreign-owned supermarket chains have become dominant in Kenya's competitive business landscape.

In the domestic scene, most of the giant supermarkets we see today started from humble beginnings.

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Originally selling simple goods to the local community, the businesses have expanded into massive chains that now cater to a growing number of people living in remote towns and areas.

This shows how consumer tastes are changing and how convenience and diversity are in high demand.

Which are Kenya's top supermarkets?

1. Naivas

Peter Mukuha Kago founded Naivas Ltd as a family business on July 27, 1990.

It operated in Rongai, Nakuru county, and was first registered as Rongai Self-Service Stores Limited.

Naivas expanded to Nairobi and opened a branch on Ronald Ngala Street in Nairobi's central business district, the country's capital, in 2001.

The retailer now boasts over 100 branches countrywide.

Foreign investors have taken a majority share in the massive store, led by the French company Proparco.

Mukuha's children, Newton Kagira, David Kimani and Grace Wambu, are managing his estate after his death.

2. Quickmart Supermarket

In 2006, the late businessman John Kinuthia established Quickmart in Nakuru city as a family enterprise.

Quickmart Supermarket in Nairobi. Photo: Quickmart.

Source: Facebook

As rival businesses like Tuskys and Nakumatt failed, the Quickmart supermarket chain grew and endured.

With more than 60 stores nationwide, the retailer trails market leader Naivas.

When Kinuthia died in 2016, his family took over the supermarket's management.

Its gross yearly sales surpassed KSh 1 billion by 2017.

The company created the Quickmart brand in 2019 by merging with Tumaini Self-Service Limited.

Adenia Partners later became the new majority shareholder of the retailer under its local subsidiary, Sokoni Retail Kenya.

3. Chandarana Supermarket

Kenyan retailer Chandarana Supermarket competes with Naivas, Magunas, Quickmart, Khetia's, and Eastmatt.

The company, which is owned and operated by the Dukawallah family, entered the retail business in 1959, according to its website.

The supermarket was founded by the late businessman Shantilal Mulji Thakkar in a modest store in Nairobi's Highridge neighbourhood of Parklands.

The company is currently run by his sons, Anil Thakkar, Sanjay Thakkar, and Dipan Thakkar.

Nairobi, Kisumu, Eldoret, Nakuru, Naivasha, Nanyuki, and Nyali are just a few of the major Kenyan towns where it has more than 25 branches.

4. Khetia's Supermarket

In May 1982, the family business, run by Ashok Khetia, began as a modest wholesale store in Kitale, Trans-Nzoia county.

Khetia's humble store, which was located in Laini Moja, began with two workers utilising a pickup truck to sell things to consumers in the region.

Benard Andera, chief of operations, told TUKO.co.ke that the retailer currently has more than 20 locations and is still growing.

"We operate more than 20 branches in 13 major towns. We intend to spread to the other Kenyan counties as well as those on the other side of the border," he disclosed.

5. Carrefour Supermarket

Dubai-based firm Majid Al Futtaim owns Carrefour Supermarket.

The retailer operates more than 20 outlets in Kenya and more than five in Uganda.

Since opening its first branch in the nation in 2016, it has expanded to rival Naivas and other retailers.

6. Magunas Supermarket

Simon Wachira, a Kenyan entrepreneur who began his career as a rural hawker, is the owner of Magunas Supermarket.

Wachira began as a hustler and overcame all obstacles to achieve success in the business sector.

According to Who Owns Kenya, he was a vendor in the Mukuyu market in the 1980s, during the Moi era.

He took out a loan to supplement the money he saved from his hawking gig and started a retail store.

Wachira persevered in the face of numerous obstacles and currently operates a chain of stores in more than five counties.

Which supermarkets collapsed?

In related news, Tuskys Supermarket collapsed due to high debts, sibling rivalry and mismanagement.

Nakumatt's creditors dissolved the once giant retailer in 2020 after its liabilities surpassed KSh 30 billion.

Jack and Jill Supermarket was also another retailer that went under.

Source: TUKO.co.ke