This archive report was first published on 6 September 2019.
Choppies supermarket, a Botswana-headquartered retailer, has announced plans to exit the Kenyan market after classifying its 12 outlets as distressed.
The move comes after the company faced operational turbulence, including an inability to pay suppliers, which led to the closure of some of its outlets in Kenya.
Choppies entered the Kenyan market in 2016 after spending Kshs 1 billion in taking over Ukwala Supermarkets.
However, the company's condition worsened in 2018 when the Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) and Johannesburg Stock Exchange halted trading of its shares over failure to release financial results for the year ended 30th June 2018.
As a result, the firm's shares have dropped by more than 60% since last September.
Choppies has operations in eight African countries, including Botswana, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Namibia, although it has already hinted at a possible exit from South Africa.
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