The long awaited Two Rivers mall was finally opened on Valentines Day this year. Tenants have already begun taking their places in what is said to be the biggest mall in sub-Saharan Africa. The mall which has attracted some of the biggest brands worldwide will be house to more than 150 international brands such as Nike, Chandarana but most notable is the Turkish-based brand LC Waikiki.
LC Waikiki global foot print is one that cannot be ignored. The giant retail brand has been ranked as one of the top retail brands in Europe that has been on a rapid bushfire expansion streak. The company which was first founded in France in 1985, later became a Turkish brand in 1997. During that time they were involved in whole sale supplies before embarking on establishing retail stores. It is in the year 2009 that they launched their first international store in Romania. Today they boast of having about 750 stores across 36 countries in 3 continents. The company has specialized in making clothes and accessories for men, women and children of all ages. However, they recently rolled out a new line of products to cater for the home needs with products such as beddings, linens and room perfumes. The pilot project has since been rolled out in four countries before it is implemented in all their stores worldwide.
Speaking at the LC Waikiki conference at the intercontinental hotel, the operational director Ilker Hacioglu made it clear that the store’s entry into the Kenyan Market was a step towards increasing LC Waikiki’s global footprint in Africa. He noted that Kenya was a great launch pad and the gateway to the sub-Saharan African market hence opting to open its first sub-Saharan African store in Kenya. The retail giant has gone ahead to invest $1.5 million to open the 2000 square meter store at the Two Rivers mall that will see it create direct employment opportunities to 30 Kenyans.
The company has a philosophy that states “everyone deserves to dress well.” It is no doubt that they live up to their philosophy that everyone deserves to dress well, they provide some of the best and trendy clothing designs at very affordable rates. The luxury designer brand has categorised their line of products in six main groups according to the client’s needs that they wish to satisfy. This includes men, women, kids, babies, home and cosmetics. The clothes have further been categorized to suit different lifestyles and different personalities of the clients.
Their customer profiles include; Classic, which contains classic ageless pieces such as T-shirts, they have Collection for conservative customers, Casual Wear, Active for the sporty clients which feature comfortable clothes suitable for activities such as jogging or yoga. The working men and women who are deemed smart and sophisticated have their own profile named Vision. Having been named the number one denim brand in turkey they have one of the biggest collections of denim and a whole customer profile under Denims.
LC Waikiki has dedicated a large share of the store for kids clothing, while 60% of the stores caters for men and women, 40% is dedicated to kids. The clothes they make for children are not only suited for kids, but they are just as trendy as the adults clothing. They are simply smaller version of the adult products they produce. A lot of work and caution has been taken in the production of Baby Wear. Most of the kids’ clothes are 100% cotton based especially for the newborn from the hospital to eighteen months.
LC Waikiki will also be selling accessories such as shoes, hats and scuffs. They are yet to launch their cosmetic line in Kenya but you will soon be able to buy and test their great cosmetic products such as lipsticks, nail polish and foundation.
