Kenya’s hair extensions and wig industry is warming up to new competition following possible entry of Hair Manufacturing Kenya Limited.
- •The company has secured a nod from the Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) to acquire Style Industries Limited for an undisclosed amount.
- •The deal is on condition that Hair Manufacturing Kenya retains at least 70 per cent of Style Industries employees.
- •Style Industries currently has 2, 171 employees while Hair Manufacturing Kenya Limited is a new company.
“As per the parties’ submissions, Style Industries commercial position and prospects is not promising, as evidenced by a review of its financial statements for the three years to March 2023. Absent the proposed transaction, it is highly likely that the firm will exit the market, leading to a loss of all the current jobs and assets,” noted CAK.
The market for hair extensions and wigs is largely fragmented with players with local manufacturing capabilities as well as a significant extent of imported goods. It is characterized by many players comprising local manufacturers and importers.
In the last 5 years, the market has experienced the entry of new players like Lush Hair Kenya and Olivia Hair Kenya. 6wresearch, a global market research and consulting firm, reports that Kenya has increasingly been relying more on imports to meet its growing demand of human hair extensions. According to Volza, an import export database company based in India, Solpia Industries accounted for the highest import market share with 12 shipments in 2021.
