KCB VENTURE 1 final

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.
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