Fashion store owner on recovering from the Westgate mall attack
Last year's terrorist attack in Kenya's capital has had an adverse effect on businesses operating in the shopping centre.
Last year’s terrorist attack at Nairobi’s Westgate mall led to millions of dollars in losses for about 100 businesses that operated in the shopping centre. In the aftermath of the attack, business operators have had to pick up the pieces, relocate to other malls and enter new partnerships. Many businesses have faced hardships as they did not have anti-terrorism insurance while employees have lost their jobs.
Kache By Angie, a high-end fashion business targeted at Kenya’s middle and upper classes, operated a store at the Westgate mall. Spanish-born entrepreneur Angie Messeguer started the business eight years ago.
Messeguer told How we made it in Africa that the attack’s impact on business was “terrible”. All other shopping centres in Nairobi closed for four days and when they reopened, they struggled to attract clients for a while as people stayed away from malls out of fear.
At Westgate, Messeguer counted even more losses. Before the attack, she says, attracting clients to her store which was located on the first floor of the mall was difficult since most traffic concentrated on the ground floor where coffee shops and a large supermarket operated. But business had “started doing well” and traffic had improved significantly.
Her staff were trapped in the mall for six hours but emerged unharmed. Her stock was destroyed and,to add insult to injury, she had to pay to hire people and a moving company to remove cabinets from the damaged store.
“About 90% of my clothes had bullet holes. I just put them in boxes in case the police needed them,” she says. “It was so bad but I can’t give up. I have invested a lot in my business. If one store goes down I have to continue running the others. I have no choice but to keep going.”
Spanish fashion in Kenya
Kache By Angie currently operates four stores in different shopping malls in Nairobi. The high quality, “classy and stylish” outfits sell from KSh. 3,000 (US$35), while the most expensive evening dress can sell for KSh. 40,000 ($462). The business has carved a niche in the market, selling the latest fashion collections from Barcelona, Spain.
“I want to identify my original country with my adopted country,” says Messeguer. “For the last three years we have held an annual catwalk [show] at the Spanish ambassador’s residence. Last year’s theme was ‘Made in Spain’ because Spain is facing many difficulties. I wanted to do something that makes Spain glow again and shows its glamour. It was a beautiful evening.”
Out of Africa
Messeguer moved to Kenya 16 years ago to join her then boyfriend (now her husband) who had relocated here. They made the decision to travel to Africa on their second date as they spoke about the 1985 film Out of Africa. Kenya, where the film was made, became their choice of destination.
When she moved here, Messeguer struggled to find employment because it was difficult to get a work permit and her English wasn’t very good at the time.
Messeguer holds three degrees in psychology and marketing. Her first contact with the fashion industry came when she worked for a Japanese company that made make-up specifically for catwalk shows and film. She worked as the commercial marketing manager for Spain.
“I am not a fashion designer. It was not in my plan. I really wanted to be a psychologist,” she says.
Every time she travelled to Spain, Messeguer would buy clothes for herself, which most of her friends in Nairobi loved. Some would ask her to buy them a few outfits during her trips. She then decided to start bringing in some clothing items which she would sell at a profit. “I could see people here were hungry for new things, especially things from Europe and things of high quality.”
But it was not until after her third baby that necessity – in the form of school fees – pushed Messeguer to fully dive into business. She opened a showroom in her house which attracted a good number of clients.
“I was afraid to pay rent but I realised that people were coming. So I opened a shop in Karen (upmarket estate in Nairobi). That was a big risk but it turned out to be very successful. People would come from across town to see the nice, small shop selling things from Barcelona. Everyone was saying: ‘I am going to Angie.’ It became very popular.”
Expansion
When The Junction Mall was near completion, officials from leasing manager Knight Frank approached Messeguer.
“When I saw the rent figures I said: ‘No, I will never take such a big risk.’ I thought about it for a while and decided to take the risk. Again, people kept coming and the store became very successful.”
Messeguer attributes the demand for high-end fashion in Nairobi to the expanding middle and upper classes. The numerous social events at embassies and leading hotels are also good opportunities for people to dress up. Her stores are visited by a few expatriates but her main clientele are mostly Africans. Messeguer says she wants to widen her market by stocking outfits that are “not out of budget” for most shoppers.
Although more shopping malls are opening, Messeguer says Nairobi’s infamous traffic snarl-ups pose a big challenge as shoppers put off window shopping to avoid getting caught in traffic.
“Traffic is a big, big handicap,” Messeguer says, adding that this may hamper plans to open more Kache By Angie stores as it would make management very difficult.
“The run up and down when you… really want to put your personal touch [in every store] is very difficult. I think it is better to grow and just be focused. Honestly, after Westgate, part of my energy is gone.”
A taste for quality
Messeguer explains that in Kenya there “are lots of opportunities and consumers are open to new things”. Parents are also investing in their children’s education and young people have a taste for quality.
“The Kenya that I found when I came here 16 years ago was of cafés at some corner with plastic cups and customers who didn’t care. Today, people go to Dormans or Java (leading coffee shop brands) and they expect quality. I have seen the development of taste. I see people complain when they don’t get what they asked for or the quality they expected.”
Entrepreneurs, she says, stand to succeed if they seize the opportunities.
“There is only one secret: work hard. Nothing comes for free. You just have to do your part.”
The road to recovery
According to Messeguer, her biggest hurdle now is to recover from the Westgate mall attack. Although business improved during the December holiday season, things have slowed down again and rents have gone up by 10%. Nonetheless, Messeguer says when Westgate reopens she might open her store at the mall.
She explains that violence can happen anywhere in the world and people should not let an attack “paralyse” their lives.
“At first I thought of the pain and loss, but… I realised that if we stop business we make the [terrorists] proud because they will have accomplished their goal. [Our] will is to start again, rebuild, stand up and prove that violence is not going to stop this country, our business or our freedom.”