From left to right: Almasi Beverages CEO, Mrs. Joyce Macharia, Almasi Board Chairman and Centum Group CEO Dr. James Mworia and DT Dobie & Co. (K) Ltd Director of Sales, Commercial Vehicles Mr. Mike Duder flag off Almasi’s newly acquired fleet of trucks.

Nairobi 12th  April 2017- Almasi Beverages Limited (ABL) has expanded its distribution fleet capacity at a cost of KES 183 million. The investment will see the company’s fleet increase by 11 Mercedes Actros trucks. The increased fleet will enable Almasi Beverages move an additional 25,000 cases of Coca-Cola products daily.

The investment is part of the Organizations Strategy to build capacity across its Supply Chain in Manufacturing, Distribution & Logistics and Commercial. Recently, the company invested in increased Manufacturing capacity by installing 2 new production lines, an RGB (returnable Glass Bottle) line with a capacity of 40’000 bottles per hour and a PET line with a capacity to produce 36’000 bottles per hour. This in addition to existing capacity will see ABL produce 826,425,600 Bottles of soft drinks per year.

The company has also invested in improved IT systems to increase efficiencies within its 3 bottling plants. Almasi Beverages currently has implemented a group-wide ERP system, Sales Force Automation and a Fleet Management System.

“We intend to sweat our new investments as we look to ensure that within our franchise market all our customers are well served, with their Coca Cola product of choice available at arm’s length,” explained Joyce Macharia, CEO of Almasi Beverages, at the Flag Off Ceremony held at the DT Dobie Headquarters. “Government devolution, exploration and the various infrastructure projects have impacted on our rural economies with previously sleepy towns now revamped. We are now seeing growing demand from regions that were previously inaccessible, this investment will improve our internal long haulage to far flung markets”.

Almasi Beverages successfully raised a rights issue of KES 1.6 Billion in 2016. “Our phenomenal growth story at ABL continues to bring forth new milestones and unending opportunities, thus placing new and increasing demands on capitalization to fund these growth opportunities. ABL has continually and consistently recorded growth with great performance on volumes, revenue and profitability year on year,” James Mworia, Almasi Beverages Chairman and Centum Group CEO explained as he flagged off the trucks from DT Dobie headquarters in Nairobi’s Industrial Area.

ABL contributes up to 30pc of Kenya’s Coca-Cola beverages volume serving 25 of the 47 counties. Almasi Beverages is pegging its future success on an expanding Kenyan middle class, improved infrastructure, and increased economic activity in counties with increasing Government devolution exploration and various infrastructure projects within its markets.

 About Almasi Beverages Limited

Almasi Beverages Limited was incorporated in 2012 following the merger of 3 Coca-Cola franchise bottlers; Kisii Bottlers Limited in Kisii County, Mount Kenya Bottlers Limited in Nyeri County and Rift Valley Bottlers Limited in Uasin Gishu County. ABL, through its bottlers distributes Coca-Cola products to 25 counties in Kenya spread out across Central, Eastern, North Eastern, Rift Valley and Nyanza regions. Almasi Beverages is a subsidiary of Centum Investment Company Plc.