This archive report was first published on 8 June 2020.
On June 6, 2020, President Uhuru Kenyatta relaxed measures aimed at containing the spread of Covid-19 by revising the curfew hours from 7pm to 9pm.
This change has been a big boost for businesses, particularly supermarkets and banks, which can now extend their working hours to serve more customers.
According to Willy Kimani, chairman of the Retail Traders Association of Kenya (Retrak) and chief commercial officer of Naivas Supermarkets, the revised curfew hours will allow supermarkets to serve an increased number of customers.
Naivas Supermarkets will now adjust its closing hours from 5:30pm to 8pm, giving customers more time to shop.
"We have been closing at 5:30pm but we will now take that to 8pm. I believe by extending these hours, we will be able to serve more customers," said Mr. Kimani in a phone interview.
Kenya Bankers Association CEO Habil Olaka also stated that banks would revert to their traditional closing hours of 4pm, which was the case before the curfew was imposed.
"A number of branches were closing earlier to enable staff do end of day work and get home in time. The 9pm means they can now work up to normal time and still get home on time," said Mr. Olaka.
Evening hours are crucial for supermarkets, as they are synonymous with high traffic of customers. However, shopping had been impacted as customers rushed to be home by 7pm.
"Evening period is very crucial for most retailers because many people shop after work. That is when our business usually peaks. But what people have been doing is leave work then rush to catch matatus to home," said Mr. Kimani.
