East Africa Volume 6

MARKET In 2015, to celebrate their 30-year Anniversary, Bidco Oil Refineries, ‘evolved’ to incorporate ‘Africa’ into their name. Bidco Africa not only paid tribute to the founder, but also to the people and heritage that worked tirelessly to make it East Africa’s leading edible oils, hygiene and personal care products manufacturer. They are a true African Entrepreneurship success story that started out with producing just three soap brands to become one of the region’s largest FMCG manufacturers with over 50 brands. Bidco currently has manufacturing units in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and most recently Madagascar; producing edible oils and fats, margarines, baking products, hygiene and personal care products and animal feeds. Bidco’s range of brands offer products with sizes that suit every pocket in over sixteen countries that the company has footprint on. Bidco Africa aims to “Grab, Grow and Sustain” the Number 1 market share in Africa by 2030. The company continues its ‘Soil to Pan’ philosophy which in turn supports farmers by contracting them with the assurance of an off-take market at competitive rates for their produce. Bidco currently has over 30,000 farmers growing various raw materials exclusively for them. ACHIEVEMENTS Bidco Africa has won over 30 awards and recognitions in the last 32 years and is an acknowledged leader in the East African Manufacturing sector. Bidco was the first company to establish a fully operational refinery in East Africa. Bidco has acquired the highly regarded ISO 22000:2005 presented by Bureau Veritas Kenya. This is in addition to the BS 18000 certification in 2007 (Occupational Health and Safety Management System specification), ISO 9002/1 in 1999 (Quality Management Systems) and ISO 14000 in 2004 (Environmental Management). HISTORY Bidco was established in 1970, as a garment manufacturer in Nyeri, Kenya. In 1985, the founding father, Mr. Bhimji Depar Shah and his two sons Vimal Shah and Tarun Shah saw a growing need in the African market for soap products. They relocated to Nairobi and set up a soap manufacturing plant. Bidco only produced three soap products initially; Kuku, Sabasaba and White Star. In 1991, Bidco set up a state-of-the-art refinery in Thika. The growth and expansion continued by Bidco acquiring various brands from other companies such as Elianto from Unga Group in 1994 and Kimbo and Cowboy from Unilever in 2002. After the rocky start, overcoming challenges with distribution and marketing, Bidco managed to break into the market and became the success it is today. PRODUCT Edible Oils: Bidco’s oils brands are the most trusted in 20