Local businesses must be creative, resilient – BUK boss

MATHEWS NDANDULA writes LOCAL businesses must remain resilient and adopt creative and innovative ways of connecting with the local market in light of Covid-19, BUK Holdings Limited Chief Executive Officer Benjamin Katubiya has said. Speaking at a Thought Leadership forum hosted by TexilaAmerican University in Lusaka, the business magnate highlighted how the Covid-19 pandemic had shown […]

Local businesses must be creative, resilient – BUK boss
MATHEWS NDANDULA writes LOCAL businesses must remain resilient and adopt creative and innovative ways of connecting with the local market in light of Covid-19, BUK Holdings Limited Chief Executive Officer Benjamin Katubiya has said. Speaking at a Thought Leadership forum hosted by TexilaAmerican University in Lusaka, the business magnate highlighted how the Covid-19 pandemic had shown the importance of creativity and innovation for businesses to thrive.  Mr Katubiya said resilience and creativity in marketing and service delivery is vital for any business to survive the turbulence of the pandemic. He further called on local businesses to maximize on the benefits of digital marketing because it is the future of running successful businesses. Mr Katubiya said Covid-19 has also highlighted the critical need for Zambian entities to set up manufacturing plants to produce essential goods locally. “We must emulate countries like Kenya who have a strong local industry base. Most local businesses have been highly dependent on imported goods, the impact of the pandemic has been felt severely and has seen quick escalation of the prices of goods and services,” he said. He said there is urgent need to promote locally produced goods in order to build Zambia’s economy and called on his fellow business owners to collaborate and quickly identify priority areas to stop depending on manufactured goods from outside the country. Mr Katubiya further encouraged businesses to have a target market and not venture into mass marketing because consumers have become more selective in their spending due to lower income or uncertainty of cash flow.  He said in light of the slowing down of economic activities many businesses have closed while others are struggling because people are spending less.  Mr Katubiya also cautioned consumers to watch out for fraudsters in the new era of digital marketing. He said it was important to find out necessary information of businesses before sending money to them. He also urged consumers to avoid giving out personal information to online stores with questionable records. He was speaking in Lusaka recently during the Texila Zambia Thought Leadership Series which is being held virtually. The Sun