SHOPRITE OPENS BRANCH IN KANO STATE.

South African retailer Shoprite on Thursday opened
its first outlet in northern Nigeria, as part of an aggressive
expansion drive and defying wider concerns about security in the
region.
The store in Kano — the north’s largest city and main commercial
hub — is situated in the new $110-million (80-million-euro) Ado
Bayero Mall that has taken three years to construct and claims to
be Nigeria’s biggest.

Hundreds of upper and middle class Nigerians thronged the mall
as it opened its doors. Private security guards searched vehicles
for weapons and explosives and armed police kept watch on
shoppers.
The new venture, at a cost of $20 million, brings to eight the
number of Shoprite stores in Nigeria. A further four of the shops
which sell food, goods and clothes are slated to open before the
end of the year.
“We decided to expand our reach to Kano as part of our
commitment to widen our presence in the Nigerian mega cities,”
store manager Adulhakeem Abdulganiyu.
“Kano, as a commercial city with its huge population, provides
ample business opportunity which we want to exploit.”
Kano’s economy has suffered in recent decades, even before the
start of the Islamist insurgency, which has claimed thousands of
lives in a wave of deadly shootings and bomb attacks.
Hundreds of factories have closed because of power supply
problems and competition from cheaper Asian goods, putting many
people out of work and leaving them unable to provide for their
families.
Unemployment rates in Kano, which was famous for its textiles
and tanneries, are the highest in Nigeria, according to the
government.
In 2011, the National Bureau of Statistics said as many as two-
thirds of the population (67 percent) were out of work.
Businesses, including foreign firms, have also relocated or shut
because of the Boko Haram threat.
But Abdulganiyu said the unrest was not a reason not to set up in
the city.
“If we continue saying we will not come due to the prevailing
security situation we will not move forward. All we need to do is
make adequate provisions to overcome such challenges,” he
added.
Kano is already home to several shopping malls owned by
Nigerians and Lebanese as well as Indian nationals, but they are
now dwarfed by the new 24,000 square metre (258,000 sq ft)
centre.
Abdulganiyu insisted that “the market is big enough for all of us”
while others said the new venture would be good for competition.
“With a huge retailer of Shoprite’s status, other retailers will have
to sit up and compete in terms of prices, efficiency, customer
satisfaction, product guarantees, security of environment and other
customer-related needs,” said economist Badayi Sani.
“It is a good development for consumers and the Kano economy,”
said Sani, from Kano’s Bayero University.
Shoprite has 1,800 outlets worldwide and its expansion in Nigeria
is a sign of growing foreign interest in Africa’s second-biggest
economy.
“Nigeria is a big country with a great market, which is why South
Africa and other countries are investing here,” said Mohammed
Hayatudden, a former bank executive and one of the mall owners.