For the better part of the week, Umi and Ajab maize flours have been a topic of discussion on social media due to their prices.
The products were listed among 2kg packet of flour retailing below Ksh 160 following the government’s promise on reduced cost of maize flour.
The two products are brands of Grain Industries Limited (GIL) which also produces Ajab Fortified All Purpose Home Baking Flour and Ajab Fortified Self-Rising Flour.
In this article, WoK looks at the profile of the company estimated to be worth Ksh 15 billion and its CEO.
Grain Industries Limited (GIL)
Grain Industries Limited (GIL) is an agro processing company located in Shimanzi, Mombasa County.
The company manufactures a variety of flour products including Ajab, which was their flagship product.
The brand grew to become one of the most popular flour products in Kenya, thanks to its availability and quality.
Under the Ajab brand name, GIL has other products including Ajab Fortified All Purpose Home Baking Flour and Ajab Fortified Sifted Maize Meal.
Other products are Ajab Fortified Mandazi Flour, Ajab Fortified Self-Rising Flour and Ajab Fortified Atta Mark 1.
Two years after launching Ajab, the company expanded its product portfolio and introduced Umi into the market.
Under this brand, the company has two other products namely Umi Fortified All-purpose Flour and Umi Sifted Maize Meal.
GIL later acquired Lotus from Rafiki Millers and relaunched Fortified Home Baking All-Purpose Flour into the market in February 2022.
Additionally, GIL owns Asli Commercial Bakers Flour, a premium quality bakers’ flour known for its strong rise.
As of April 2023, the company’s quality certifications included FSSC Award/ ISO certification FSSC 22000 and Superbrands Status (2020- 2022).
GIL has also been awarded ISO 14001: 2015 and ISO 45001: 2018 certifications.
Business awards include New Business of the Year, Best Customer Focus Company and Best Growth Strategy Company of the Year awards by the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KNCCI) Mombasa Business Awards.
“Growth and innovation being part of the core values, we look forward to the next five years with plans to keep expanding our product/brands portfolio as well as exploring opportunities in other product areas,” the company declared while marking their five-year anniversary.
Munir Thabit – CEO
Munir Thabit, a former banker, established GIL in 2017.
At the time he set up the company, the country’s political temperatures were high as former Prime Minister Raila Odinga had just disputed the elections outcome.
He filed a petition for the same at the Supreme Court after which ex-Chief Justice David Maraga nullified the elections and ordered a rerun.
In a past interview, Munir disclosed that people labeled him crazy for establishing a business at such a time.
“When everyone was closing down for the fear of election violence, we opened our doors,” he told The Star.
It is worth to note that by the time Munir was getting into business, he had no degree and just held a Diploma in Banking.
He, however, enrolled for an MBA at York St John University in the United Kingdom a little later.
Before going into banking, Munir was working with the Kenya Air Force having joined in 1983, but left a year later.
He departed KAF to join Barclays Bank where he worked for eight years, and served at Digo Road, Moi Avenue and Nkurumah Road branches.
He left Barclays Bank and joined Fast-Moving Consumer Foods (FMCG) in Mombasa where he worked for 18 years.
“It was a family business and the older generation had passed on. The young blood came in and I felt that there was no appreciation and respect. I quit,” he said.
It was then when Munir started scouting for investors to set up a milling company in Mombasa.
“This place was a bush, complete with monitor lizards and snakes. We cleared it and set up a 15 billion investment,” he shared.
From three initial employees, the company grew to employ over 500 staff including millers, drivers, accountants, a sales team and support staff.
“Within 36 months, we grew from milling 750 tons to 2,250 tons of wheat and 400 tons of maize per day. That tells you the level of our staff members’ commitment
“We rely a lot on automation. Our mills can be operated from anywhere in the world as long as you have access permission. Our sales team operates from mobile devices,” Munir said.
He has three children; a son and two daughters and he adopted his nephew whose mother and sister died in a road accident.
