Dilip Shah: Founder Of Umoja Shoe Products Who Started With One Tiny Shop Now Owning 25 Stores Spread Across The Country

Dilip Shah is the founder of Umoja Rubber Products.

He started his shoes business while trying to emulate his father; a highly-regarded businessman at the time.

45 years down the line, Shah has grown from a tiny shop in Mombasa to have 25 stores spread across the country and over 3,000 employees.

Here is his story as told by WoK.

In 1978, Shah established his business, Umoja Rubber Products, in a tiny rented space in Mombasa County.

When he went into business, he was following his father’s entrepreneurial footsteps, and he was hoping to make a name for himself in the African rubber footwear market.

At the time, Shah and his family had just moved back to Kenya from Tanzania where his father ran a rubber shoes business.

“I started in a small area of 7,000 square feet, making flip flops with a staff of 22, using imported machinery from Hong Kong and China,” he said.

Before going solo, Shah was working at his father’s textile shop where he would handle imports clearing and forwarding as well as accounting.

He also worked at his father’s factory, Viatu Limited, in Tanzania and Nakuru, giving him massive experience in rubber shoe manufacturing.

Shah was so confident about himself to the point that he was not worried about about his business failing.

He was fortunate to secure a loan from a local bank which he used to import machines.

“I had nothing to fear or lose, whether I failed or succeeded. Luckily, ABN Amro Bank which had been our family bank since 1951 came in handy,” he said.

At the time, Shah noted that his main competitor was multinational footwear, apparel and fashion accessories manufacturer Bata.

However, at some point, Bata was hit by a fire incident that destroyed the company’s shoe factory unit in Kenya, forcing them out of the market for some time.

Following the incident, Shah got the chance to flood the market with his brand since the company had low overheads.

His strategy included giving hoods on credit.

“This gave me a chance to sell my goods and I was encouraged by that. Fortunately, there were no delayed payments so money started flowing in,” he said.

In 1993, they bought land in Kikambala in Mtwapa and set up a new factory.

However, despite getting the land, money to build a factory was a challenge but Shah entered a deal with the contractor that saw the factory built on credit.

He also relied on support from fellow business community members.

In 1979 when the new factory had completed, he convinced his brothers who were running their businesses in the UK to join him.

“We had a very good relationship and we are still all together and strengthening the structure of the company,” he said.

In an interview with Business Daily, Shah pointed out financial hurdles while starting off as some of his main challenges.

“Finance was the main challenge even though the bank was of help but repayment timing had to be done right,” he said.

The company is currently seeking to introduce new products like canvas shoes into the Kenyan market, and they have already acquired machines for the same.

He added that they now export their shoes to the Democratic Republic of Congo, Japan, and the US, and are targeting Somalia.

“Japan wanted some goods made in Kenya and even though it is small quantities, we are opening their eyes to us. We also sent samples to Germany for approval and were given a green light and we are proud of that,” he says.

Shah is also the founder of Mzuri Sweets, makers of candies, lollipops, chewing gum and long-life cakes.

“Do not hold onto anybody’s money, pay them on time however small or big because they have to run their families, pay taxes promptly, do not hide anything,” he concluded.