The story of the House of Manji and its growth to a multi-billion empire is the right definition of creating generational wealth. The brand has been at the forefront as the best food processing company for decades with its different brands of biscuits leading even in the international market.
The “Family” and “Marie” biscuits which are the brands of the company went on to win a prestigious La Monde selection gold medal award that was held in Brussels, Belgium. The current, empire that has fed so many Kenyans for decades was founded by a hawker based in Karatina, Nyeri.
This is the story of Manji House as narrated by JamboDaily.
Who Owns Manji House?
The House of Manji is owned by the late Madatally Manji family, Mandatally Manji was an Indian Immigrant born in 1918. Manji began his hawking venture after completing his education but little did he know the venture would grow into an international company that would serve generations and generations of his family.
The busy town of Karatina, Nyeri county served as his business hub where he noticed something that many weren’t aware of, in his autobiography written in 1995, Manji noted that his venture was inspired by the busy traders and farmers in Nyeri who were so busy that getting time to secure supplies from Karatina market was a bit hard.
Having identified the opportunity, Manji would go on to utilize his 2hrs school break on market days to supply traders with what they needed. Once he completed the school he sharpened his business skills by working in different business companies.
However, the goal for him was to one day own and run a business of his own. After hustling for some time, in 1941, he bought the Ngara Bakery at Ksh 10,000 and ventured into bread making business.
The business took the right turn and the bread was really doing well in the market, however, in 1939-1945 the demand for bread reduced at a higher rate since Kenyans were participating in the fight.
With the bread business going south, he decided to launch another plan which was the production of biscuits. After the war was over, the fighters returned home and the demand for bread became heavy that he had to expand his bakery to try and beat the market but he couldn’t. He went on and purchased land along Haile Selassie Avenue where he later built the Whitehouse.
By the 1950s he was already a billionaire and his company was not only known locally but also internationally as he was recognized by the London-based newspaper, The Sunday Times. The newspaper recognized him as a biscuit baron.
In 1953, the House of Manji was born in Industrial Area, Nairobi. Since its establishment, the company has been at the top of the performing companies in East Africa. Currently, is one of the billion companies in Kenya that has also provided hundreds of jobs to Kenyans.
Madatally Manji Death and Family
Manji was one lucky guy as God enabled him to see the fruits of his hands for over five decades. Manji died on September 9th, 2006 leaving behind three Adults and a Wife. His children are currently the ones running the business.
Family Wealth
When listing the richest families in Kenya, the House of Manji will be on that list. The family is said to have a net worth exceeding Ksh 50 billion.