The firm becomes the first leather footwear and accessories retailer to list on the bourse/FILE
NAIROBI, Kenya, Jun 21 – Nairobi Business Ventures a local shoe and leather accessories retail chain operating under the brand name KShoe, on Tuesday listed by Introduction on the Growth Enterprises Market Segment (GEMS) of the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE).
The firm becomes the first leather footwear and accessories retailer to list on the bourse
The shoe and leather accessories vendor has listed 23.6 million shares at a share price of Sh5, giving the company a valuation of Sh118 million.
The listing comes shortly after the company raised Sh28 million from 26 new shareholders through a private placement completed on June 10.
KShoe Chairman Alfred Nzomo Kithushi says the capital raising initiative will go a long way in supporting the company’s expansion drive and planned venture into manufacturing of leather footwear and accessories.
“NBV’s immediate focus is on expansion of retail outlets in Nairobi and other cities in Kenya,” noted the Chairman.
The founders, Vasu Abotula and Raj Srungarapu are the majority shareholders of the company.
Following the listing, the two current majority shareholders will hold a total of 69.4 percent equity stake while the remaining 30.6 percent will be held by the public.
The two majority shareholders and founder members, have agreed not to offload their shareholding initially for a period of two years after the listing.
Kenya’s leather sector is presently estimated to be worth about Sh10 billion, but government experts estimate that value addition has the potential to increase the country’s earnings from leather to 10 times more.
“I am confident that KShoe plans to venture into manufacturing will yield great returns, especially during this phase when the Government is keen to revive the tanning industry and make Kenya a big exporter of shoes, bags and other products,” said KShoe Co-Founder and Managing Director Raj Srungarapu.
On his part, NSE Chief Executive, Geoffrey Odundo says the listing is a clear indicator of the confidence that Small Medium Enterprises continue to have on the Capital Markets, as they seek to raise capital to facilitate their various strategic initiatives.
