For close to 20 years, Massmart has been operating one Game store in Uganda employing more than 300 people as the retailer also has three other stores in Kenya and one in Tanzania but is now set to run out of business after struggling for years.
According to reports, Massmart Holdings, the operators of Game Store in Kampala on Wednesday announced they had opted to close their only outlet in Lugogo after efforts to find local investors to buy it went futile.
The South African giant retailer said last year in March that it was in discussions to sell all its Game stores in Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania to stem losses in that struggling part of its business.
The company Chief Executive Officer Mitch Slape then noted that during the review, Massmart would explore the option of engaging potential buyers to improve the performance of some of its stores under the management of investors and entrepreneurs with a better understanding of local market conditions.
However, in a statement released on Tuesday, October 4, the company said the review had been ongoing over the last 12 months before a decision to close had been reached.
“Massmart initiated a process over a 12-month period to investigate… the opportunity to sell our East and West African stores to local investors. Unfortunately, this initiative did not deliver a meaningful outcome, One possible way forward now is to consider closing our Game store in Uganda and we have therefore initiated potential store closure consultations with our staff members in the potentially affected stores.
Our present focus is to ensure a transparent consultation process with our staff members and their representatives after which we will update you about the agreed next steps. It is difficult to anticipate the timing of the consultation process but please be assured that we will revert to you as soon as we have collective clarity on the way forward” the company said in a statement.
However, Neville Hatfield, the Vice President of Game merchandise assured employees that they are finding the best possible alternatives for them.
