@ VVS - as far as I know Nick Hutchinson is very Kenyan (though he may be a UK passport holder), Nairobi School alumni, his Kiswahili is flawless!

Broadway Bakery 'purchases' flour from their sister company, Bakex Millers (Oboma flour), also based in Thika.

Incidentally, from my observations walking around leading supermarkets, Capwell Industries (Pearl and CIL rice, Ranee spaghetti, Pearl pulses, Soko and Pendana maize meal, Soko porridges) also based in Thika, giving Unga a serious run for their money in the 'share of the shelf' stakes. Unga's Amana pulses getting in late in the game - the leading supermarkets also pushing 'own brand' rice and pulses.

As you suggested, Unga should consider disposing their Commercial Street premises and moving to a nearby town (Ruiru, Thika, Athi River etc spring to mind).

Or even consider moving to Kengen's mooted industrial park in Naivasha area. Guaranteed low cost energy!

@VVS - I'm not sure why bakeries would choose Thika. I know that Broadway have been there since the 1950's or early 1960's - started by the CEO's late father who used to supply most of the kiosks in the then Central Province. The info on Capwell I got from their website. Thanks. I find it interesting just like the supermarkets starting as 'mattress stores' from the Naivasha/Nakuru area! Tusker Mattresses = Tusky's Nakuru Mattresses = Nakumatt There was Woolmatt & Eastmatt.

If I was Unga and wanted to get in to the bakery business, I would probably have gone for DP Festive over Ennsvalley, purely on the basis of the amount of shelf space they occupy in the retail outlets (and hence sales volume) and also on the anecdotal evidence that the muhindi busiens owners (please don't get me wrong on the ethnicity thing) appear to have a more efficient (in terms of time, cost and back office procedures etc.) distribution system and accounting systems than many of their competitors. I have never found a stale loaf of bread from DP Festive - so they appear to know their numbers. DP Festive was supposed to go public then it didn't. What happened? Good point re: volumes but could Unga have managed to maintain the business after the Shahs had left?
However, as we know with Ennsvalley, the Ndegwa's have a vested interest and being the largest shareholders in Unga, no other deal was likely to fly. And that neatly sums it up. I think the Ndegwas got a great deal funded by the 'other' 49% of the shareholders.

In my view, Unga are operating at much lower than their potential. Hopefully the appointment of a Business Development Manager will help identify areas of growth. For example, what is stopping them from leasing (or buying) large tracts of land and growing their own maize, wheat and lentils (similar to what REA do with sisal) instead of importing? I disagree i.e. they could do that with a partner but I prefer they stay a manufacturer & retailer. Sisal is different i.e. the 'farmer' has to process the crop ASAP. Plus the marketer is a related party. Full vertical integration but REA/Wigglesworth is a huge player in the overall sector.
Or doing the same using large contract farmers. That I agree with but local farmers need to be competitive with imports. Weetabix wants to do that with local farmers.
They don't mention anything on seeking opportunities in the region outside Uganda and Tanzania ( I think in Zambia and Congo they're constrained as Seabord has activities there). Tanzania is dominated by Azam/Bakhresa. Plus Tanzanians do not like Kenyans! I read Unga sold the maize milling plant in UG to concentrate on wheat. I would rather that Unga expands/consolidates in EAC (RW, BU, SS) before it ventures into Zambia or DRC. Is Seaboard into manufacturing (vs supplies/trading) in Africa?
Somaliland exported 5 million head of livestock to the Middle East in 2014 (read this in a late October 2015 issue of the Economist newspaper) - what is the market share of Unga's animal feeds and healthcare products in this country? Interesting! I venture it is 0% but certainly something Unga should look at.
In the last budget, Mr Rotich reduced or removed import duties on semolina (used in manufacture of pasta) - is there an opportunity here? and so on and so forth... I still can't figure out why Unga sold Elianto & Buitoni. Or did someone get a kickback? I remember corn oil was always Elianto. And the spaghetti was always Buitoni.

@VVS - I'm flattered by your comments and opinion. If there is any one from this forum who SHOULD be elected to a listed company board it is you! Your opinions and comments on the companies you follow are well researched and thought out. Unfortunately, many (if not all) boards on the NSE operate like an old boys club and dissenting voices are rarely tolerated (if at all). I suspect that that is why the likes of Wanjiku Mugane no longer sit on any board of a publicly listed company (or invited to do so).

However, all is not lost for the minority (and here I mean very small shareholder), as sometimes they are able to punch above their weight, and get some concessions (even if only cosmetic) at the AGM's. For example, Unga used to hold their AGM's at the Grand Regency until a shareholder loudly complained at two consecutive AGM's about the air-conditioning! They then moved the location to KICC! Similarly, when the Ndegwa's/board tried to be sneaky and dilute the shareholding of the company by offering Unga shares in exchange for Ennsvalley ones - minority shareholders caused a ruckus and they had to back off, and the deal was put off for a year until they came up with the Unga cash for Ennsvalley shares proposal. On the other hand, unfortunately, many of the small shareholders spend valuable time asking for t-shirts and other giveaways (or are there just for the miserable lunch), leaving little time for those who desire answers with respect to the operations, financials and strategy.

Unga's AGM is tomorrow - 2nd December 2015. Bearing in mind the huge forex loss recorded at year end (30th June 2015), and that the shilling has depreciated considerably against the dollar since then, what the position on this is as at the end of the first quarter (Nick normally gives an overview of the first quarter performance after the end of the AGM).

Similarly, now that they've paid for the Ennsvalley shares on or around 1st July 2015, what their cash position is, and if they were able to benefit from the small window of considerably higher T/bill rates that were on offer around October/November 2015.

I also cannot trace any mention of the Ngong Road plot in the notes to the 2015 accounts (assets held for sale). Is it leasehold? If so, how many years are left before the lease expires? They've been saying for years that they've been trying to sell this plot, but are unable to due to its user restrictions. I think there's more to it than meets the eye.

Let's see what transpires at the AGM...

@VVS - I'm flattered by your comments and opinion. If there is any one from this forum who SHOULD be elected to a listed company board it is you! You are too kind. Thanks but that's unlikely to happen. There are some smart chaps at AGMs who ask nuanced questions but as you say, KE boards are for YES men! Warren Buffett says the best Board Members are knowledgable folks with a significant chunk of their wealth in the firm & do not need board fees to sustain their lifestyles.
Your opinions and comments on the companies you follow are well researched and thought out. Unfortunately, many (if not all) boards on the NSE operate like an old boys club and dissenting voices are rarely tolerated (if at all). I suspect that that is why the likes of Wanjiku Mugane no longer sit on any board of a publicly listed company (or invited to do so). Wanjiku did some funny things as a Transaction Adviser at HFCK during the earlier Rights Issue. I lost respect for her then.

However, all is not lost for the minority (and here I mean very small shareholder), as sometimes they are able to punch above their weight, and get some concessions (even if only cosmetic) at the AGM's. New laws will help minority shareholders. Also getting 10% of shares behind a proposal helps and 26% allows one to block the majority in some matters.
For example, Unga used to hold their AGM's at the Grand Regency until a shareholder loudly complained at two consecutive AGM's about the air-conditioning! They then moved the location to KICC! Why are AGMs held in fancy hotels? KQ loses 30bn and provides packed lunch!
Similarly, when the Ndegwa's/board tried to be sneaky and dilute the shareholding of the company by offering Unga shares in exchange for Ennsvalley ones - minority shareholders caused a ruckus and they had to back off, and the deal was put off for a year until they came up with the Unga cash for Ennsvalley shares proposal. On the other hand, unfortunately, many of the small shareholders spend valuable time asking for t-shirts and other giveaways (or are there just for the miserable lunch), leaving little time for those who desire answers with respect to the operations, financials and strategy.

Unga's AGM is tomorrow - 2nd December 2015. Bearing in mind the huge forex loss recorded at year end (30th June 2015), and that the shilling has depreciated considerably against the dollar since then, what the position on this is as at the end of the first quarter (Nick normally gives an overview of the first quarter performance after the end of the AGM). I like Nick. Plus he is there on behalf of Seaboard so he probably gets grilled by his bosses too. I wish he was a significant shareholder too.

Similarly, now that they've paid for the Ennsvalley shares on or around 1st July 2015, what their cash position is, and if they were able to benefit from the small window of considerably higher T/bill rates that were on offer around October/November 2015. Those are the questions that need to be asked. Please ask these questions! And let us know what transpired.

I also cannot trace any mention of the Ngong Road plot in the notes to the 2015 accounts (assets held for sale). Is it leasehold? If so, how many years are left before the lease expires? They've been saying for years that they've been trying to sell this plot, but are unable to due to its user restrictions. I think there's more to it than meets the eye. Apparently, it has a 'sports use' restriction so the pool of buyers is small. They should try and sell it to GoK or Safaricom. That's an excellent question re: what type and duration of lease.

Let's see what transpires at the AGM...