•Mobikey East Africa CEO Ricardo Teixeira said the company is eying a bigger pie of the “competitive” market.
•According to Teixeira, the MAN brand has gained traction in the region led by Kenya.
Mobikey Truck and Bus East Africa is keen to grow its market share in the region’s commercial vehicles segment, riding on the fast-growing economies and huge demand for movement.
The official distributor of MAN trucks and buses in Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya is targeting both the public transport, construction and mining sectors, among others, as it cements its presence and offerings in the key East African markets.
During an event in Nairobi on Saturday, to showcase its new Man long-distance Coach 6x2 and 4x2 variants, Mobikey East Africa CEO Ricardo Teixeira said the company is eying a bigger pie of the “competitive” market.
According to Teixeira, the MAN brand has gained traction in the buses segment, where competition includes Mercedes-Benz, Nissan UD, Isuzu and Scania.
“We are pleased to host this exhibition and honoured to showcase our new MAN Long distance Coach chassis on a platform that provides high perfomance, low running cost, high fuel efficiency and explores future public transportation solutions,” Teixeira said.
The company has partners with SBM Bank Kenya among other financial institutions to offer asset-financing solutions, which is part of strategies to drive sales.
“With its continued fast-growing economies and huge demand for people to move from one place to another they deserve safe, comfortable and reliable buses, and not forgetting the operators’ profitability. Together with MAN, we remain committed in transforming the region’s public transportation landscape by providing innovative mobility solutions,” he said.
The collaboration with financial institutions customises offerings which enable bus operators to access up to 100 per cent financing for new MAN buses.
It assembles units locally for both the Kenyan market and exports for bin Kenya for export to the neighbouring markets and fully built imports.
Year to July, Mobikey Truck and Bus sold 36 units, data by the Kenya Motor Industry Association (KMI) indicates, with the company being one of the 11 key dealers in new vehicles in Kenya.
“In the next five years, I see Mobikey as a key player in the region with a strong portfolio of good quality products, fighting for the top place,” Teixeira affirmed.
Speaking during the event, SBM Bank Kenya representative said the partnership comes at an opportune time as the country looks to accelerate economic growth through increased investments in key sectors.
“We are proud to partner with Mobikey, a respected player in the movable assets space in East Africa. This collaboration will allow us to offer our customers an unrivaled range of asset financing options to grow and expand their operations as they pursue their financial goals,” the lender said.
Mobikey Truck and Bus has over six years of existence in the East Africa market delivering MAN trucks and buses, heavy construction equipment from Hyundai and mining equipment’s, Randon trailers and Powertrac tractors .
It is part of the JAP Group, a reference in the automotive and mobility sector in Portugal and Africa.
JAP has over 120 years and now encompasses several leading market brands such as Carby, representing 17 brands in the automotive industry, Matrizauto, the largest used vehicle megastore in Portugal, and Sixt Rent-a-Car, and having a presence in various countries in Africa, including Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya, Angola, and Mozambique.