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Morris Mpala, MoB Capital Limited
SLOWLY and surely the Zimbabwean identity is going. It’s no longer surprising to see most companies with foreign names all over. Due to change in shareholding structures, Zimbabwean companies have been swallowed to assume foreign identities. Majority owners are assuming their parent companies’ identity at the expense of Zimbabwean names.
With time China towns, Jozi (South African) towns, UK towns are becoming normal. The local brands are fast disappearing and being replaced by foreign brands representing foreign ownership despite the indigenisation policies.
We have seen:
Kingdom Bank — AfrAsia
Spars franchisees
Agency Banking
Express —Jet
At the Ready wholesalers/Power Sales — Pep
Sakunda/Redan—Puma
Meikles —Pick n Pay
And due to the demise of manufacturing plants most shops are full of imported items making Zimbabwe a big post office for foreign goods.
For identity purposes this creates a major challenge for the country as it has a foreign identity in terms of brands. It will take more years to reverse such anomalies. Bulawayo is one place that is overly affected. It is a mini RSA and the use of multi currencies does not help either (Please note we are not advocating for Zimbabwean dollar re-introduction).
Some companies like Dairiboard, Econet, OK and Datlabs are still holding their own in terms of Zimbabwean brands visibility and the more they dominate the local market and export the more Zimbabwean cements its identity on the global stage.
We hope more follow suit and increase Zimbabwean brand visibility despite the country’s unfavourable cost structure. For Zimbabwean brands it will be difficult to achieve internationalisation using their own brands after being swallowed. It puts Zimbabwean brands visibility only confined to Zimbabwean borders and that is a bit sad for the country’s intellectual property.
Let’s pray the new brains coming up will bring in new brands that will touch everyone within and without Zimbabwean borders. With a string of educational and entrepreneurial foundation we are confident it’s just a matter of time before we claim our position on the brands’ spectrum of the world.
With the fuel industry it’s prevalent such that only a few have managed to wade off being re-branded to foreign brands in line with major investors.
Even some leisure and tourism entities have rebranded to show the current shareholding structure.
Does this mean Zimbabwean brands are dying?
Does it mean Zimbabwean populace is gullible to international brands? Or it’s about giving that international feel thus Zimbabwean brands are now confined to dust bins?
Maybe in some instances the foreign brand has more commercial attractive power to the market.
Has the market aspirations changed that much?
I thought we were doing Think Globally and Acting Locally since the market is still Zimbabweans thus you would expect the brands to represent Zimbabwean aspirations or to associate with anything Zimbabwean.
Will NRZ rebrand? Will ZISCO go the same way? What of Hwange Colliery or Econet or NetOne or UZ/Nust when it twins up with international learning institutions? Are churches going the same route because they have become an economic power house unto themselves? I pray not so that the Zimbabwean identity remains even though it’s foreign capital being injected.
Does rebranding to non local names also a point of interrogation, that is, research? This is branding and one wonders what trajectory it takes for owners to stick or change their brands in line with their strategic partners.
In social financial contracts conventionally called marriages the fairer sex assumes their husband’s name is this in the same vein?
Is one being swallowed that they cease to exist. And in a situation where there is resistance we see double barrel names which in business could represent a 50/50 shareholding structure. Double barrel names reflect the resistance to assume another identity and lose visibility even though still in existence.
Business is a relationship game thus the social analogue is representative of my argument. Names are about heritage, power/dominance, influence, ego, identity, emotions and existence therefore reflects such.
Delta has resisted changing despite its shareholding. Others that have also stood the test of time and shareholding structures are Dunlop and PPC.
Some banks have retained Zimbabwean heritage despite foreign investors in their balance sheets. The billion dollar question is how to turn our small informal operations into world recognisable brands from humble beginnings. If you can answer that then you have just gotten yourself a retirement package.
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Morris Mpala is the managing director of MoB Capital Limited, a Bulawayo headquartered micro-finance institution with footprint across the country.
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