Kasapreko Company Limited Expansion

In a pursuit to meet the growing demand of its numerous consumers in Ghana and across the West African Sub-Region, Kasapreko Company Limited (KCL) is investing about $30 million in its expansion project.

For this reason, the Company is installing a state-of-the-art equipment on a 7,500 square metre land, which is said to be the highest ever technology producer of alcoholic beverages in the world.

The plant, which has the highest machine speed spirit line in the globe, has two state-of-the-art bottling lines, with one producing 30,000 bottles an hour, while the other producing 40,000 for the same time. It is being handled by Les Banks, an International Technical Consultant.

The Company is engaging 12 university graduates to operate the equipment. They are expected to leave for Germany for training to enable them efficiently handle the machines. Addressing the media about the investment, Martyn Mensah, Managing Director of KCL said the move was necessitated to meet the growing market demandof consumers and to improve the consumers’ confidence in the Company.

He noted that the expansion, which is expected to be complete in six months time, will open doors for more jobs and for that matter more revenue for Ghanaians, which he said, will boost the economy of the country.

Mr. Mensah commended the media for contributing tremendously to the successes of KCL over the years, saying that the Company’s feat as the first indigenous Ghanaian establishment that has survived the terrain over the past 22 years is for the entire nation.

“Our growth has been driven by consumer support in Ghana and outside Ghana. As we grow, we need to make investments and the size of our loyal consumers justifies the need for this expansion. We are only reinvesting what we have received from our valued consumers,” he maintained.

The MD stated that KCL had come of age and as such, registered its presence on the International market, emphasizing that the decision to buy the best technology and invest in the human resource base in order to maintain its recognition globally was in the right direction.

The MD stressed that Management of the company benchmarked everything they did against the best in the world and they assembled and led an exceptional team of people to a number of significant firsts amongst its peers.

“Indeed, we are proud to demonstrate that Ghanaians and Ghanaian companies can achieve the highest heights. The Government of Ghana has always maintained that industry is the engine of any economy and not a foreign company; not a company that has foreign investors or brought in foreign ideas. KCL, which is a company born, bread, nurtured and rose in Ghana has reached the pinnacle in the manufacturing sector. It is the master of which we are greatly proud and we want to share that success and pride with our cherished and loyal consumers by giving back to them what KCL has taken from them,” he opined.

The MD said the Company is leaving no stone unturned to spread its operations and products across the nooks and crannies of the world and for that matter, become a major African player as a precursor to being a global player, but was quick to say that it is going to take a lot of hard work and resources. He stressed, “We have begun the journey. We continue to invest in our Company for that purpose. We see ourselves very much improving in everything we do such that we can harp internationally relevant and competitiveness products.” Dr. Kwabena Adjei, Founder and President of KCL, said there was the need for the citizenry to dream big as Ghanaians so that they could propel the economy and put the country at a highest pedestal.

Dr. Adjei, who is also the Group Chairman of Pinnacle Holdings, a mother Company of KCL noted that the expansion was being undertaken to showcase to some of the people that small beginnings can make greater endings. He recounted how KCL begun with four people at his garage and going through thick and thin, it has become a giant Company that is contributing immensely to the Ghanaian economy.

The Group Chairman mentioned that the investment being made today is to ensure that after he dies, the Company can survive for the next 1,000 years, and so, measures had been put in place to enable others take over from him, stressing that when he dies, he will not die with the Company.

Andrews Akolaa, Marketing and Public Relations Manager indicated that the Company, which started exporting to some West African countries including Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Benin and Cote D’Ivoire, two years ago, was doing very well by patrons of the products, especially, the Alomo Gin Bitters. He indicated that the numerous awards that KCL had received within the last 12 years had been the hallmark of the Company’s efforts to expand its frontiers and meeting the high demands of consumers. Mr. Akolaa said the $30 million investment by KCL, makes obvious its urge to expand its market base and promote the country’s presence abroad. Emmanuel Teiko, General Manager, Finance, said the expansion project was being done through the Company’s own resources, with support from Pinnacle Holding limited, saying that they had not taken any loan from anywhere. He noted that the Nigerian market in particular was one major reason for the expansion, noting that the Abuja Chamber of Commerce Lagos Chamber of Commerce was of tremendous support in Nigeria.

The General Manager, Plant and Bottling, Edmund Blankson, who conducted the media round the existing plant and the new site, said the Company was also bringing in a three-million water tank in order to always have enough water supply for the huge project.

KCL was founded in 1989 in Nungua, a suburb of Accra in response to the growing demand for good quality alcoholic drinks that were still within the means of the average Ghanaian.

The mission of KCL is to produce quality alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages to satisfy consumers through the adoption of modern methods using a highly motivated professional staff.

Its vision is to be the leading alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage manufacturer in Ghana and beyond, satisfying consumers with excellent products through sound management practices and collective responsibility of all stakeholders.