Food chain’s secret recipe to whet appetite of middle class

Injection of Sh100 million capital into Café Deli coffee shops is set to give the food chain the boost it needs to run with the big boys.

With the ambitious expansion plan, the shops will certainly give Java, which currently rules the centre of Nairobi, a run for its money.

Mr Obado Obado, who owns Café Deli, is banking on what he calls a fusion of tropical and continental dishes to whet the appetite of the expanding middle class.

Java will, however, not be a pushover. The food chain has more than 20 branches in Nairobi. Last year it injected between Sh400 million ($4 million) and Sh500 million ($5 million) for expansion, enabling it to open shops in virtually all corners of the capital.

READ: Java plans new outlets in Nairobi

It has remained unchallenged since the acquisition of Dormans by Artcafe. However, the entry of Café Deli is bound to challenge Java’s smooth ride.

Deli’s funding by GroFin, a South African venture capitalist company, will be used to finance the opening of four additional restaurants by next year.

GroFin has been funding small and medium businesses with high growth potential across Africa and the Middle East. Established in 2004, it has local teams in 14 offices across 12 countries.

It has since received a Sh78.4 billion (700 million euros) from the Dutch Good Growth Fund (DGGF), who are shifting from aid to investment in SMEs in Africa.

OPEN A NEW OUTLET

Mr Obado plans to open a new outlet with a 250-seating capacity on Kenyatta Avenue, Nairobi, next month.

From an apprentice chef at Norfolk in 1991, Mr Obado has certainly made impressive strides in entrepreneurship. He started with a small coffee house in Westlands but later shifted to the CBD with a 80-seater restaurant on Moi Avenue.

“I hated being poor. The life in Rwambwa, Budalang’i, of waking up to go to the shamba (farm) made me vow to find a way out,” he told Smart Company.

He says the road has been rocky and winding, and has tasted failure several times. However, his resilience has seen him rise from the ashes like a phoenix.

“In 1993, I took Sh100,000 loan to buy beans from West Pokot, but I lost all of it because I did not do any market research. I have closed so many businesses but each time I learnt a valuable lesson,” he says.

However, he said his biggest test was quitting his job and going into business with only Sh40,000 in savings. Perhaps his biggest boost was a friend who gave him Sh1.5 million because the business idea fascinated him.

He later bought out Coffee World, marking his entry into the lucrative market in Nairobi’s CBD. “I had eight employees, now I have 80 and I will have over 100 by next year. I used to pay my vegetable supplier Sh10,000 and just last week I wrote her a Sh450,000 cheque, that’s the kind of impact that moves me,” he said.

Mr Obado says he misses being in the kitchen and making cakes, which have been central to his business success.