Nakumatt creditors meet on next course of action

What you need to know:

  • Speaking to The Citizen yesterday, Mr Joseph Mlay, who chaired the taskforce for suppliers of goods to Uchumi Supermarket—another Kenyan retailer that closed shops unceremoniously in 2015—said the meeting aims, among other things, at establishing the exact number of suppliers and how much they were still owed by the firm.

Dar es Salaam. Suppliers of goods to Nakumatt Supermarket now plan a meeting on Saturday to discuss how to salvage what the troubled retailer owes them. This comes after Nakumatt Mlimani City outlet was closed by the land lord after the former’s failure to pay rent.

Speaking to The Citizen yesterday, Mr Joseph Mlay, who chaired the taskforce for suppliers of goods to Uchumi Supermarket—another Kenyan retailer that closed shops unceremoniously in 2015—said the meeting aims, among other things, at establishing the exact number of suppliers and how much they were still owed by the firm.

“We don’t know yet how many of us there are and what is the amount owed. I’m sure that the money Nakumatt owes us in total might be equal to that owed to us by Uchumi Supermarket or even more,” he said.

He added that, most Nakumatt suppliers from Tanzania were the very same ones who used to supply goods and services to Uchumi. “Most suppliers are on a panic mode at the moment. We’ll meet on Saturday to form a task force that will make follow up on the matter,” he observed.

He said Nakumatt happened to be the best option for suppliers after the closure of Uchumi, but now its going down is going to affect their income a great deal lamenting that some were still servicing bank loans. According to reports, Nakumatt’s rent debt has accumulated to Sh300 million at Mlimani City Shopping Mall.

The Kenya based firm has been in financial doldrums for some time both in Kenya and Tanzania, raising concerns that it would take the direction of Uchumi Supermarket that closed shops about two years ago.