Tuskys chain of supermarkets has come to the aid of Nakumatt, which has been at the verge of collapsing due to deep financial woes that had paralyzed operations.

In the merger deal signed between the two retailers, Nakumatt will now be able to access stock from suppliers using Tuskys supermarkets’ goodwill and value chain.

Nakumat will however still retain its brand but Tuskys will provide managers to run the business.
Tuskys has been Nakumatt’s biggest competitor.

Nakumatt, Kenya’s largest supermarket chain has been having a financial crisis and is reported to have accumulated a huge debt from Sh4.7 billion in 2012 to an estimated Sh18 billion as at April 2017.

The retailer has already closed some of its branches locally and in Uganda as well with the remaining outlets operating under empty shelves as apprehensive suppliers have kept off.
As at July this year, Nakumatt owed its suppliers Sh 15 billion and 8 million to 10 commercial banks.

A week ago, the Uganda revenue authority (URA) auctioned its good’s as the taxman sought to recover $71,000 owed in taxes.

A local tea firm, Tea brewer Gold Crown Beverages, had also filed an insolvency suit against the struggling supermarket chain last month over a Sh60 million debt.

Nakumatt employees have also been staging protests over late payments of salaries dating to May.
In January this year, the cash-strapped Nakumatt sold a 25% stake to an international investor in a deal that would see the retailer receive $75 million. However, the windfall of the deal has delayed and slow operations are hurting its cash flows.

In January this year, the cash-strapped Nakumatt sold a 25% stake to an international investor in a deal that would see the retailer receive $75 million. However, the windfall of the deal has delayed and slow operations are hurting its cash flows.