With over 63 branches across Kenya, Naivas has gone over the bar to make ends meet during this pandemic. During this COVID-19 situation Kenyans who are observing social distancing by staying at home, regularly washing their hands with soap and water, and beating the dusk to dawn curfew, are slowly turning to the bottle to beat boredom and keep their habits going.
The other day South Africans were all over the internet searching on how to male homemade alcohol after President Ramaphosa imposed a lockdown to contain the virus. In Kenyan, Naivas has decided to create a solution to the problem by stocking its shelves across the country to meet the ever-growing demand during this crisis.
“The decision to set up an alcoholic beverages shop in our outlets was driven by customer demand. We are in a traditionally high-volume, low-margin sector and need to be cognizant of evolving consumer dynamics. Our research tracks different product categories and alcoholic beverages were confirmed to be a necessary one,” said Willy Kimani, the Naivas chief commercial officer.
Ever since the government through the Ministry of Healths interfered with the normal operations of drinking dens, pubs and bars, consumption of alcohol has spiked thanks to the drinking nature of Kenyans. Lately, a good number of Kenyans have found themselves at loggerheads with the police for flouting preventive measures put in place against COVID-1 due to alcohol addiction.
With more alcohol available on the stores, consumers will easily purchase their thousand of bottles and restock their small liquor stores at home. The temptation of sneaking out in the night to go get makali because the shops are devoid of booze will be a story of the past.
