Africa Venture Capital Association 14 May 2013
Dutch fund manager XSML announced its investment in Starz-kin, a retail business consisting of shops that sell household goods to the lower end of the market in DRC. This investment, through XSML’s Central Africa SME Fund, is the first long term finance for Starz-kin and contributes to its expansion plans into smaller cities in the interior of Congo. Kisangani, Tshikapa and many more smaller, remote cities in Congo face high transport costs leading to high product prices for the end customer. Through its network of shops and their economies of scale, Starz-kin is able to offer a reliable and affordable range of household and personal hygiene products throughout Congo.
The Managing Director of Starz-kin, Mr. Eeke Iyamba, states: “With the support provided by the Central Africa SME Fund, Starz-kin is now able to expand further into the interior of Congo. With this long term finance in place we can start opening up shops in Kisangani in the North-East of the country, a region of Congo that is remote and lacks a reliable supply of household items.”
Marcel Posthuma, Managing Partner at XSML says: “Our investment in Starz-kin will help solve the scarcity of affordable household and personal hygiene products in remote areas of Congo. Besides 4 stores in Kinshasa, Starz-kin operates household good shops in more remote cities like Tshikapa and Kikwit. The expansion into Kisangani is the next step in its expansion plans and we are looking at other smaller cities in the interior for the years hereafter.”
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