Christmas this year made in China

With only days to go until Christmas, many retailers in Nairobi have stocked up for the last minute rush that characterizes Kenyan holiday shopping.

A spot check in several well-known retail shops finds that floor space dedicated to Christmas ornaments, gifts and cards has widened as retailers look forward to an increase in business compared with last year.

More products lining the shelves come from China. Many colors and sizes of round ornaments, lights, crystal stars and assorted clear glass items are arranged to capture the attention of shoppers.

Previously, many buyers were sourcing from India and Britain. "Even when sourced from other markets, we still see they are manufactured in China. So it is easier to directly source them from that market as you get variety at competitive prices," says Sarah Odoyo, the owner of a gift shop along Ngong Road, about 6 kilometers from downtown Nairobi.

She was among the businesspeople who visited Guangzhou in October during the 118th session of the Canton Fair. She was among a group of about 60 small-scale entrepreneurs. Although the shop is new, she is optimistic about sales.

"The Chinese market is a great resource for adept entrepreneurs," she says in a telephone interview.

At Nakumatt, a retail chain that has a regional presence, the designated area for Christmas ornaments is bigger and more conspicuous.

A supervisor in one of the branches located in downtown Nairobi says business was picking up because of Kenyans' habit of shopping at the eleventh hour.

Wine bottle covers with Asian designs are proving to be popular as gifts. "We are well stocked," she says, declining to give her name.

Joe Zhang, founder of Chinabuy.co.ke, a new website in Kenya, calls business brisk, adding that hundreds of customers have been served since the site started in April. Zhang is CEO of Chinabuy Group.

Zhang says the site links Kenyan shoppers directly with factories and suppliers in China, providing competitive prices and variety.

"We also sell online products from all major retail websites in China, including Aliexpress, Biggestshop, Mininthebox, Lightinthebox, Dealextreme, Taobao, Alibaba, Pandawill, Focalprice.com and more. We also have exclusive stores for One Plus, Xiaomi and SJ extreme cameras."

Zhang says Kenyan shoppers seem to have an affinity for electronic devices and clothes. "I can say that smartphones, the LCD electronic hair brush, LED shoes, handbags, women's clothes, kids' clothes and men's watches and other accessories, extreme cameras and their accessories are doing very well.

The Chinese firm launched a Singles Day shopping festival in November for the first time in Kenya. The event has become a big shopping day in China.

Discounts up to 50 percent were offered as the company lured Kenyans into the online system, a culture that is gaining ground with the increase of smartphone users.

According to a new study by e-commerce company Jumia, of the 3.1 million devices sold in Kenya this year, 1.8 million were smartphones, representing 58 percent of the units sold.

Contact the writers through lucymorangi@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily Africa Weekly 12/18/2015 page20)