KCB VENTURE 1 final

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COVER STORY ‘Guru’ Narendra Raval, the Man Devki Group Chairman reveals how <strong>KCB</strong> Bank grew with him during the group’s formative years of Steel 12 |
COVER STORY Stepping into the spacious reception of Devki Group of companies in the dusty little town of Ruiru, one is met by an antiseptic environment and tranquility that belies the reality outside the offices. A large TV screen welcomes you to the head office of the largest steel factory in the region. On the screen is a looping documentary on the journey the company has taken to become the behemoth it is today. Donning the walls are pictures of the Chairman, Narendra Raval in various poses with Very Very Important People. There is one with former President Daniel arap Moi. There is another with Narendra Modi, India’s Premier who, during a recent state visit to Kenya, squeezed some time to visit his old friend Raval, or Guru as he prefers being referred to, in his house in Nyari estate. The other is that of Raval with Mwai Kibaki, Kenya’s immediate past President. The most telling picture however is that of Guru adjusting Uhuru Kenyatta’s tie right where Raval’s cement and steel companies thrive. “The President is my friend and we have known each other for a long time,” says Raval as he ambles around his massive office. And it is a very big office. The entire top floor of “I started off at Gikomba in the cheapest store we could get because nobody was interested in the area as it was considered a very unsafe place,” the office complex is a case study in good taste; ambient lighting covers the entire floor; the furniture is what you find in those expensive catalogues while the walls are decorated with art and rather pricey looking wallpaper. The floor is bedecked with the most expensive Italian marble, a turquoise blue there, a gray and blue tile thither. Yet, he wasn’t born with a silver spoon. “I started off at Gikomba in the cheapest store we could get because nobody was interested in the area as it was considered a very unsafe place,” says the former priest. Having seen a gap in the hardware business, he took a plunge by sinking his savings in buying and reselling steel. The Kshs 3,500 shillings a month in rent for 5,000 square feet was considered steep for the time and place but Raval was undeterred. It was a tough time for him and the country in general. During the late eighties and early nineties, Kenya was going through the labour pains of the advent of multi-partyism and the epicenter was usually the area around Gikomba. | 13
Page 1 and 2: TRENDS INTEL INDUSTRY COUNTY PURSUI
Page 3 and 4: 11 VW arrival in Kenya boosts FDI p
Page 5 and 6: OPINION Growing Business Through Pa
Page 7 and 8: Facts: Agriculture contributes abou
Page 9 and 10: CLIMATE CHANGE Cleaner energy: lead
Page 11: TRANSPORT Lightening the Load for N
Page 15 and 16: COVER STORY he fondly remembers as
Page 17 and 18: INDUSTRY FOCUS: HOSPITALITY Four me
Page 19 and 20: INDUSTRY FOCUS: HOSPITALITY we all
Page 21 and 22: akes a splash KCB Bank’s Sh5 bill
Page 23 and 24: INDUSTRY FOCUS: HOSPITALITY “We h
Page 25 and 26: “We have two projects in Nairobi;
Page 27 and 28: COUNTY: ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Accord
Page 29 and 30: COUNTY: ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT entere
Page 31 and 32: ““Before the tarmac road, we ha
Page 33 and 34: PROJECT FINANCE If you take a walk
Page 35 and 36: manufacturing ingredients, there is
Page 37 and 38: SWINGING Golf made easy G olf is no
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KCB VENTURE 1 final

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