Duka that has grown from selling bulbs to designer kitchens

Mukesh Desai was only four when his father, in 1964, opened a small electronics shop along Grogan Road (now Kirinyaga Road) in Nairobi.

Today, the duka that mostly sold light bulbs and electrical wires has changed address to the Parklands suburb and diversified its product offerings to include flooring materials, kitchenware, lighting accessories and fittings such as chandeliers.

Mr Desai, the managing director of Prafulchandra & Brothers Limited, has seen the business grow in leaps and bounds from its single premise in downtown Nairobi to a 5,000-feet showroom.

“Our customers were asking for more products, so we kept on adding items with time,” said Mr Desai in an interview with the Business Daily.

“This encouraged us to pursue the supermarket model to meet customers’ needs.”

This family-owned enterprise has since 2010 consecutively been ranked in the Top 100 Survey — a study that grades Kenya’s fastest growing mid-sized companies with an annual turnover of between Sh70 million to Sh1 billion.

Mr Desai plunged into the world of business in 1979 immediately after graduating from high school and has never looked back.

At the turn of the millennium, Prafulchandra & Brothers began stocking products such as ceramic and wooden tiles and lighting accessories such as switches and sockets.

In 2007, the business moved to its current location, which offers more space and allowed it to diversify further into a one-stop shop for contractors seeking lighting solutions, flooring materials and kitchen accessories.

“The construction boom has helped drive demand for our products,” said the 53-year old businessman.

The hotel and entertainment industry has also been a key market for Mr Desai, supplying lighting products such as chandeliers, lamps, bathroom lighting and lamp shades.

“Increasingly, people’s tastes are growing. Prices for good lighting have come down over the years making it more affordable,” he says adding that tailored-lighting is no longer viewed as a luxury.

“Ambience makes a big difference in hospitality and lighting helps define a hotel reception, lobby, conferences and suites.”

Most of the lighting products are global designer brands such as Mantra and Eglo, which cater for lower middle class to high net worth individuals.

The tiles too are imported and the shop sells the Italian Ragno brand.

Prafulchandra & Brothers also sells designer kitchens under the Scavolini variety.

There are various themes at the showroom and a complete kitchen unit costs 1.05 million to Sh5 million depending on design, finishes, colour scheme and appliances such as gas cooker and refrigerator.

“We try to keep with the trends so that goods launched in Europe and immediately available in Kenya,” he says.

Mr Desai plans to open a new branch in Nairobi by 2015 and hopes to gross the billion-shilling mark in revenues in three years’ time. The business also wants to venture into tapware and showers, including kitchen and bathroom mixer taps from German firm Hansa.

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